DENVER -- Jon Gruden was in a bad mood during his postgame press conference. The Raiders coach was terse with his answers and combative on some during a media session that lasted just over three minutes and typically goes much longer.
A tinge of regret crept in as Gruden left the podium, and he expressed it on his way out.
“Have a good day, guys,” Gruden said. “Sorry for being a grouch.”
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SIGN UP HERE Gruden had every right to be. He watched his Raiders squander a halftime lead for the second consecutive week, as the Denver Broncos squeaked out a 20-19 victory on Sunday at Broncos Stadium at Mile High.
The Raiders had a chance to ice the game late with a sustained offensive drive. Couldn’t do it. The defense had a shot to shut down the Broncos' two-minute drill, but it allowed them to push well into kicker Brandon McManus’ field-goal range. He nailed it from 36. Game, set, match.
The Raiders fell to 0-2 because they couldn’t close. They couldn’t finish off the Broncos even with several opportunities to do so.
That’s enough to upset a passionate coach, especially one who put together a good game plan, only to watch execution wane down the stretch. Players said Gruden emphasized that he was proud of the hard work put in, and they were sorry it didn’t lead to victory.
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“He should be pissed. We should have won that game,” right tackle Donald Penn said. “I am pissed. He should be pissed. He’s our head coach, and he should hold us accountable. He should hold us to a high standard, and he does.
“We had more than enough opportunities to win that game. We gave that game away, and the end of the day. We gave them all the opportunities, and they capitalized on this. We had a chance to finish, and we didn’t. I’m with Gruden; he should be pissed, too.”
While the Raiders also blew a halftime lead against the Rams, this Broncos loss felt worse.
The Raiders shut out Denver in the first half. They had a 12-point led late in the third quarter and let it slip away.
“When you have a chance to shut them down, when they have to drive down the field in a two-minute drill, we as a defense should be licking our chops about the opportunity to win the game,” Raiders linebacker Derrick Johnson said. “It didn’t happen for us today.”
Johnson believes it needs to happen soon.
“We have to find a way to win,” Johnson said. “That’s what good teams do. This isn’t a panic moment for us, but there is a sense of urgency now to win.”
The Raiders don’t want to go winless any longer, and the unbeaten Miami Dolphins will be ready for the Raiders on a hot and humid Sunday next week.
A long losing streak to start the season can crush it, and the Raiders must finish better to avoid that fate. The 2016 Raiders were excellent late in games -- it was a main reason that team went 12-4 -- but the franchise has lost the magic since.
Quarterback Derek Carr led many of those 2016 comebacks. He believes these Raiders can find that formula to close out games.
“The first two weeks, we’ve done some really good things, and we’ve also had some things where you’re like, ‘Man, I wish we could’ve done better,’ " Carr said. "We have the recipe for the right stuff, I think, with Coach Gruden and (defensive coordinator Paul Guenther). I think we’re on the right track and have to -- there’s no excuse -- we have to finish and win football games.”
