FSM Essential Recap - Las Vegas Raiders vs Pittsburgh Steelers- Week 3 -2023

FSM Essential Recap – Las Vegas Raiders vs Pittsburgh Steelers- Week 3 -2023

www.FranchiseSportsMedia.com

 

The Raiders can’t overcome self-inflected mistakes and come away with a frustrating 23-18 defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Las Vegas Raiders took on the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday!

On Sunday night, the Raiders took on the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Silver and Black’s home opener. Unfortunately for Raider Nation, the Raiders fell short, 23–18, and fell to 1–2 on the year. 

The game was marred with the Raiders having self-inflicted wounds, such as penalties, turnovers, and mental mistakes that all played day major role in the loss. To add insult to injury, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was also being evaluated for a concussion after the game. Garoppolo finished 28 of 44 for 324 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw three interceptions on the evening.

Davante Adams had himself a night, 13 receptions, 172 yards, and two touchdowns. He is only the second Raider to record 13+ catches, 170+ receiving yards, and 2+ receiving touchdowns – the first since 2020 (Darren Waller) and Adams now has 90 career receiving touchdowns, becoming one of six players in NFL history to reach 90+ receiving touchdowns in their first 135 career games.

But the NFL’s best wide receiver also didn’t mince words about the way his team played.

“We’ve got to be real with ourselves,” Adams said following the game. “We get these opportunities to watch tape together and do these constructive things, we’ve got to get something out of it. That’s not just talking, but it’s about putting it to action and figuring out what’s wrong and doing something about it so that way when we go out there the next time it looks different.”

Running back Josh Jacobs said, “It’s a thin line of wanting to push guys to their full potential, but also not wanting to lose guys in the same sense.“

Las Vegas Raiders vs Pittsburgh Steelers was a tough Week 3 NFL matchup. 

The Raiders had their opportunities all game but kept getting in their own way.

Las Vegas Raiders vs Pittsburgh Steelers was a dogfight from the beginning.

Things started off right for Las Vegas as Garoppolo hit Adams for a 32-yard touchdown reception on the team’s opening drive to set the 62,541 in a frenzy. The Steelers came right back as Kenny Pickett threw a 72-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Austin to tie the game up.

The Steelers kicked two field goals in the second quarter to take a 13–7 lead to halftime. After a halftime performance by Lil Wayne, the Raiders were set to receive the ball to start the second half. The Black Hole and Raider Nation were ready to see a second-half come-from-behind win.

After the Raiders failed to score to start the second half, Pickett once again orchestrated a drive down the field for the Steelers and connected with tight end Pat Freiermuth for a 13-yard touchdown. Later, Chris Boswell connected on a 57-yard field goal to extend the Steelers lead to 23-7.

The Raiders showed some life in the fourth quarter. Garoppolo hit Adams for a 1-yard touchdown pass. Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels elected to go for two points. Garoppolo converted the attempt when he connected with rookie tight end Michael Mayer to make the score 23-15. 

The Raiders forced the Steelers to a three-and-out and drove down the field. The Raiders lined up for a 48-yard field goal, which was good, but it was nullified by a penalty that put the Raiders down to the Steelers‘ 14-yard line. Unfortunately, the Raiders couldn’t convert, which led to a critical decision for coach McDaniels, should he go for the touchdown or kick a field goal and hope his defense could get a stop?

 

McDaniels elected to kick the field goal and Daniel Carlson made the 26-yard field goal to cut the lead to 23–18. Pittsburgh took over with two minutes and 17 seconds left in the game. The Raiders used the two-minute warning, and two of their timeouts, but were unable to stop the Steelers from converting on third down and essentially win the game.

On the night, the Raiders outgained the Steelers 362 to 333 in total yards, but they failed to register any turnovers, something Pittsburgh did. Las Vegas also had seven penalties for 60 yards, most of which happened in the most critical times of the game, either stalling drives or putting them in a more difficult position to pick up the first down. 

“Davante is 100 percent right and he has a right to be frustrated because that dude shows up every day and he gets better,” Maxx Crosby said. “Me and him are tight as ever because that’s how we are since day one. That’s why he’s elite and he has a right to feel that way, and I feel the exact same way. We’ve got to stop beating ourselves. It’s something we’ve got to look at and find out how we can avoid doing that.”

The final score was 23-18, the Steelers over the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Raiders will now travel to Los Angeles to take on the Chargers next Sunday, October 1st. The kickoff is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. at Sofi Stadium. The Black Hole will have a watch party at Park Way Tavern in Henderson, across the street from the M Hotel.

 

– Joe Arrigo – Franchise Sports Media

Follow Joe on all social media: @JoeArrigoFSM

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