Raiders' Josh McDaniels Monday Recap of Loss to the Jaguars

After watching the film of the Las Vegas Raiders' loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, moments ago Josh McDaniels offered his analysis.

HENDERSON, Nev.--The Las Vegas Raiders yet again lost a game in which they had a 17-0 lead on Sunday, and moments ago Josh McDaniels reflected after seeing the film.

You can watch the entire press conference below, and read the transcript as well:

Head Coach Josh McDaniels

OPENING STATEMENT: “After looking at the tape, obviously it got off to a good start. I thought we were trying to play the game the way we wanted to play the game, and then I think the biggest swing in the game was kind of from the two- minute drive they had at the end of the second quarter, then starting the third quarter with the big kickoff return, scored on that drive, and then we had the ball I think want to say for five plays or so offensively, punted it back there to them and then they drove again. So, I think it’s an example of how quickly games will change in this league, you know, go from 20 to 7, where we’re driving the ball at the end of the second quarter to try to see if we can make it a three score game to all of a sudden we run five plays offensively and we're behind against a team that has an explosive group on all three phases. So, tired of talking about this a lot on Mondays but it is what it is. We'll try to learn the hard lessons again today and see if we can’t make some progress.”

Q: Last year, this bunch pulled out a lot of close games at the end and a lot of those guys are back her. Why do you think they haven't been able to translate it over to this season?

Coach McDaniels: “

It would be hard for me to speak on last year's circumstances and those kinds of things. Certainly, there's a lot of reasons why you don't win when you don't win, and there's a lot of reasons you do win when you do win, and it's never one thing. It's never that simple. And I think it's really ultimately the result of a bunch of guys doing a lot of things well under pressure. We've had instances where we've done that, we have instances every game where we do that, and what we're learning is that there's a competitive stamina element of this where we have to do it longer. We have to do it longer and I think some of these games that we've been in and been right there at the end and haven't pulled out, like I said it's a hard pill to swallow, but we're going to have to learn from it and still have a lot of football left to play, and that's what we're going to need to do to try to win them.”

Q: Opponents have had a goal-to-go situation 15 times this year and scored a touchdown every time. Because you are so offensively minded, is it going to take more of your time maybe spending with the defense?

Coach McDaniels: “Yeah, I mean, look, eventually it's all my responsibility. So, I think there's something to be said for that. We need to figure out how to put ourselves in positions to maybe keep somebody from putting it in obviously in those types of scenarios, creating some type of a negative play would be important to us in those situations. But certainly, that's not good enough for us, especially if we're playing a bunch of tight games, which we've been in a lot of them, win or lose. Those are the sequences that ultimately end up factoring into the winning or the losing, whether you on offense or on defense. And so, I think we had a couple chances yesterday to add to our lead, and then they had a couple opportunities and they converted on some of theirs and we missed one of ours. So, ultimately in a tight game that's what swings it. Everything really needs attention. I think that's what we have to do and certainly points and turnovers are at the top of the list for sure.”

Q: Looking at the second half the season, do you see major changes coming? Or do you think it is more tweaking at this point?

Coach McDaniels: “

I mean, look, we’re going to try to address and figure out what do we need to do to shift the results, and some of those things might be very minor. Look, you change the result of four plays yesterday, it probably changes the game, and that's how every game is when it's that tight. I definitely am not going to go in there and panic and say we need to uproot everything we've done. That's not really the right thing to do. There’s things we're doing very well, there's things that we need to do better. And I think for us to try to figure out what those are and then address them and address them in the right way. The truth is what's important and if there's something we can do better with the scheme that we're using or the players that we're using with them, then we'll try to do that. If there's something that needs to change, whether schematically or put different people in different personnel groupings or what have you to make it go a little better for us, then we'll have to try and take a look at that too.

Q: When you look at the film, is it something you're seeing consistently that you're not doing correctly, or do you feel like it's different game to game?

Coach McDaniels: “I wouldn't say it's the same thing over and over. I mean, it's a lot of little things at the end of the day. It's little things. It's not where we don't know what we're doing. There's a lot of little things that have to go right on every play, 11 guys connected doing their job well. And we have stretches where we play really well. We had stretches yesterday where we played well. We just got to play well longer, that's what we got to do. And coach well longer."

Q: With having lost three games when having a 17-point or greater lead, is it teams in second halves making adjustments to what you're doing? Is it maybe you guys not making adjustments? Or is it player execution, coaching execution?

Coach McDaniels: “Probably all of the above. I think there's an element of that. I think it's not just one thing. I think at the end of the day, we've learned that the games can switch quickly, they can. And we've been on the wrong end of that so far. But those things can shift around pretty quickly if you don't do a lot of the right things. The Kansas City game was very similar to one yesterday, where we had a lead and then all of a sudden, we kind of lost the momentum of the game. Score at the end of the second quarter, score at the beginning of third quarter and then before you know it, the game is entirely different game, which is not abnormal to the National Football League, it happens. What we need to do in that situation is be able to respond and stem the tide and go regain the momentum for ourselves with doing our job. I think the end result of trying to switch if the tide has been turned against us a little bit because another team's kind of going on a run so to speak, we have to be able to go out there and play good football whatever phase we're out there on; punt team, offense, defense, kickoff return, whatever it is. We got to be able to go out there and execute well together, and that's the only way to do it. It's not going to be look to one player, or call one play or one defense, and have it magically stop. This is a result of the collective efforts of 11 guys on every play doing the right thing. And if you do it the right way, then you'll stem the tide because you'll make good plays. And again, like I said, we've done it before, we can do it again. We need to learn how to do it longer and in more difficult situations when we don't have the momentum."

Q: When you look at the tape, what are some good things that you believe your team is doing that if you feel you could just do more consistently or execute a little bit better, they will result in different results?

Coach McDaniels: “Yeah, I mean, we got off to a really good start throwing a football yesterday, protecting the passer. Made some big chunk plays in the in the passing game. Obviously, Davante [Adams] was significantly involved in the game at that point in time. And were able to put it in not in the red-zone, which is a good thing. Defensively, I thought we started the game with the right mindset of trying to bottle up [Travis] Etienne and not let him get loose on the edges and those kinds of things. And again, it's consistency and it's doing the right thing over and over and over again and not having lapses in anything that we're doing. That's really what we need to do. But we've had stretches in every phase where we've played very good football. We have to look to those as opportunities for us to say, can we do that more and can we do it more often, and can we do it on a consistent basis and try to ultimately produce more victories and stringing something together here."

Q: In the locker room, Davante [Adams] said he felt like you guys went away from what was working in the second half. Not just focusing on yesterday, but as a big picture of this season, do you feel like there are areas where you could improve just from a play calling standpoint?

Coach McDaniels: “I always think there's areas that I could do better in. I've stood up here before and said I've never called a perfect game, and I probably never will. I think there's a lot of things that go into that. I know what he meant when he said that, and I don't take any of those things personally. The reality is, we have opportunities and we’ve got to come through with them. And I have to do a good job of trying to make sure that we continue to try to present opportunities for our team. It's really a two-way street in that regard where you got to keep probing as a coaching staff and as a play caller to find opportunities for your best players to get involved and produce in the game. Then when we have those opportunities, we're going to need to come through. I thought one of the things that was really interesting as the game wore on yesterday – and it is what it is – but you end up throwing it really well in the first half and producing a lot of yards and points with very little success in a running game, and when you look at it – and I've looked at it many times because I've called a lot of different games – is that a sustainable model to keep playing where you're going to throw it for 450 (yards) and not run it for any. So, it's a tough thing to think you're going to be able to just do it that way. We were fortunate we got out to the start we did, and obviously we were doing a very good job of getting him (Davante Adams) involved in the game. Derek [Carr] found him on a number of plays, and we continued to try to do some of that. But I also think we didn't run it very good in the first half and it was something where I'm looking at it going, ‘okay, we got a lead but you're going to need to be able to find some balance in the game at some point, so that we're not just sitting there with a lead dropping back to pass on every play and giving them opportunities to make plays in the pass rush or blitz us or those kinds of things. So, the thought process hopefully was the right mindset. Obviously, the execution at the end of the day is what's important and we didn't put enough points on the board to win the game."

Q: You talked about the inability to run the ball consistently yesterday. Most of Josh Jacobs’ yards were after contact. Do you think these last two games were a step back for the offensive line?

Coach McDaniels: “I'm not going to say that. I think these two teams that we've played, they certainly have a good defensive front. I mean, give them credit. They deserve it. It's not easy to run on these two teams, statistically. And again, I'd say, two weeks ago we completely fell behind in the game and that was part of the problem. But yesterday, we didn't get off to a great start. I thought they controlled more of the line of scrimmage than we did overall. That's always been a big point of emphasis for us as we go into a game, is we want to try to get control of it. I thought J.J. [Josh Jacobs] made some great runs. It's never on his own, I will say that, and make sure I say that the right way because somebody's blocking for him on every play and he would be the first to admit that. But it wasn't real clean yesterday, and again, part of that, I think you got to give a lot of credit to Jacksonville and what they chose to do. They were certainly, I think, adamant about trying to do two things – limit Josh if they could, his ability to get into the defense without having contact, and then try to take away as much of Davante [Adams] as they could. So, that's normal. That's what we're seeing now."

Q: You're playing a team that just moved on from their coach this morning in Frank Reich. First of all, what's just your reaction to that. And also, they've named an interim coach with no coaching experience. Going into this game, just your thoughts of maybe preparing for somebody who hasn't done it before?

Coach McDaniels: “I'll probably reserve my comments on that, relative to I'm not really sure exactly where we're at on preparation for the game in that regard yet or anything. But I'm aware of that. Frank's a really good coach. He's a great person and he's done a lot of great things in our profession. So, I have a deep respect for him and what he does. It's always tough to hear that."

Q: When you put this team together, you talked about everybody on this roster made it and they deserve to be here. Eight games in, do you look at some of those young guys maybe who haven't gotten a lot of reps, maybe on defense and say, 'Hey, let's give these guys a shot?' Or is it still, they got to unseat the guys ahead of them in practice?

Coach McDaniels: “I think they've got to earn that. All of them practice and get repetitions, not just on the scout team, but also in our defense, our offense, our kicking unit. So, everybody works in there and takes repetitions. I think that's just been the model that we've used and have tried to promote the competition on our team with. I think as you go through the season, there's a lot of reasons why people get opportunities – injuries, performance, practice – so on so forth. So, we'll just try to do the right thing and be diligent with our evaluation of that. And if there's somebody that has earned it, then we absolutely would give them an opportunity to perform and go in there and do something in the game and see what happens. Not afraid to do that."

Q: You've always talked about the makeup of the locker room and how you really appreciate all the guys in the locker room. Is now a time where you have to lean a little bit heavier on the captains and the veterans that kind of keep everything together when they're going through adversity like they are?

Coach McDaniels: “Sure. I mean, look, it's a tough sport. We chose this, you know what I mean. So, this isn't something that is abnormal, it's not unique to us. But when you get into these situations, you have two choices: you can work hard and grind through it and come out on the other side – which I believe in this group, and believe our staff, our players will try to do that, with everything that they're responsible for. And that's what you have to do. That's why we do all this together. That's why we have training camp, that's why we go through the offseason, that's why we spend this amount of time together. You're never going to go through a season and not have to handle adversity. We know that. So, I trust our leadership, I trust our captains, I trust our locker room. And they don't have to feel good about losing. People ask me, ‘Are you concerned with them?' No, I'm not concerned with them. They should be pissed off. We all are. Losing sucks. But I think ultimately, at the end of the day, our responsibility is to one another in terms of doing our job, putting our head down and working. There's only one way to get through this and that's to work hard and earn the right to win. I mean, if we sit here and feel sorry for ourselves and hope that the outcome changes next week, the outcome will be the same. So, put your head down, work, do more if you can, and then earn the right to win. And then you try to build off of that and go and see if you can string a few together. I mean, that's the long and the short of it. There's no shortcut to it."

The Raiders return to home Allegiant Stadium next Sunday to take on the Indianapolis Colts. That game kicks off at 4:05 EST and 1:05 PST, and it can be seen on CBS.

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