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Raiders' Derek Carr 'Really Gets Shook' After a Few Hits, Chargers' Joey Bosa Says
October 5, 2021
Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa had a simple explanation for his team's success against the Las Vegas Raiders and quarterback Derek Carr on Monday night.
Bosa told reporters it all came down to pressuring Carr:
"We knew once we hit him a few times, he really gets shook. And you saw on [Christian Covington's] sack, he was pretty much curling into a ball before we even got back there. Great dude, great player ... but we know once you get pressure on him, he kind of shuts down."
L.A. sacked Carr four times, forced him to fumble once and also picked him off once en route to a 28-14 victory.
Las Vegas got off to a slow start Monday, trailing 21-0 at halftime. Carr then orchestrated a comeback, as the Raiders scored 14 unanswered points and cut the deficit to seven.
The Raiders had an opportunity to drive for the tying score in the fourth quarter, but as Bosa mentioned, a Covington sack halted the drive.
Carr did appear to surrender before Covington got to him, resulting in a huge stop for the Chargers on 3rd-and-3. Vegas then missed a 52-yard field goal, and the Chargers took advantage by scoring a touchdown on the ensuing drive to re-establish a 14-point lead.
Las Vegas fell to 3-1 with the loss, while the Chargers improved to 3-1. There is now a three-way tie atop the AFC West with the Raiders, Chargers and Denver Broncos at 3-1, while the two-time defending AFC champion Kansas City Chiefs are last at 2-2.
A big reason for the Raiders' early-season success has been the play of Carr, who is completing 64.3 percent of his passes for an NFL-high 1,399 yards. He has also thrown two touchdown passes in each of his four games this season with three total interceptions.
Carr hasn't been named to the Pro Bowl since 2017, and the Raiders haven't reached the playoffs since 2016, but both of those droughts seem likely to end if Carr can maintain his level of play.
If Bosa is right about Carr's aversion to pressure, however, the veteran signal-caller could face a lot more of it as the season moves forward.