Raiders QB Geno Smith wants to go long, but the deep pass isn't always there

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Chargers decided to take away Geno Smith's deep passing game Monday night and force him to go with underneath routes.

Smith at times did just that, but he also opted to throw long regardless of the coverage — and paid the price.

He tied a career high with three interceptions in the Raiders' 20-9 loss to Los Angeles, becoming the first quarterback since 2015 to go at least 0 for 10 from 10 yards and beyond, according to Sportradar.

Las Vegas coach Pete Carroll said after the game he thought Smith forced too many throws. Watching the video reinforced his opinion.

“They defended him well,” Carroll said Tuesday. "They were back there. In retrospect, it looked like it was really difficult to be hopeful, and he was trying to make something happen.”

Smith showed back to offseason summer practices his willingness to take shots downfield, and he has speedy receivers on the outside in Tre Tucker and Dont'e Thornton who can get past the fastest cornerbacks. That aggressiveness plays into the Raiders' proud history of trying to beat teams with the long ball.

But Smith did his own Monday morning quarterbacking minutes after the game Monday night.

“I’m never going to make any excuses about anything,” Smith said. "I’ve got to be better. We got to be better, and we’ve got a short week to improve on that.”

A week shortened even more because the Raiders have a cross-country trip to play Washington on Sunday.

What Smith needs as much as anything is a run game, which would help open up those deep routes. Las Vegas averaged a league-low 79.8 yards rushing last season, which is why the Raiders drafted running back Ashton Jeanty sixth this year.

That hasn't fixed their ground game. The Raiders average 62 yards, ahead of only Cincinnati at 47.

Jeanty did make progress. A week after rushing for 38 yards on 19 carries at New England, he gained 43 yards on 11 attempts against the Chargers.

“He’s still getting it,” Carroll said. “We have a ways to go here, and I have no problem telling you that. He’s going to get better and get more comfortable. He felt more comfortable in this game. He looked good running the football. We need to just get to him more, just liked to get another eight or nine snaps to him and get around 20.”

One reason Carroll was thrilled to reunite with Smith after their success together in Seattle was that he knew he was getting a veteran quarterback who has overcome more than his share of adversity.

So one bad outing likely will not throttle Smith.

“You got to learn from it, and so I’m going to be super hard on myself, extremely hard on myself, because that’s all I know,” Smith said. "I’m going to get better this week, find ways to get better from this film, and we’ll be better as a team as well.”

The defensive front is getting the job done, ranking fourth in allowing 70.5 yards rushing per game and tied for eighth with six sacks. Usual suspect Maxx Crosby is a big part of it, but it's not just him. Defensive tackle Jonah Laulu, stepping in when Christian Wilkins was dismissed, has three sacks. He had one in 17 games last season.

The Raiders' struggles with the offensive line is a major reason they didn't have a running game last season. Guess where much of the problem lies now? Las Vegas drafted two linemen in the third round and signed free agent Alex Cappa, so the Raiders didn't ignore the front. But it's not looking like they did enough to address it.

Not everyone on the offensive line is struggling. Kolton Miller, long one of the NFL's top tackles, is off to an especially good start. Pro Football Focus rates him as third best out of 92 tackles in pass blocking and 10th overall. There's a reason the Raiders in July gave him a three-year, $66 million extension.

Three trips to the red zone netted two field goals and an interception against the Chargers. The Raiders' defense kept the team in the game, but the offense failed to take advantage. It's a bad early trend as well. The Raiders' 25% conversion rate ranks 29th.

Carroll said he expected G Jackson Powers-Johnson (concussion) to return to practice this week. He also said TE Brock Bowers (knee) will increase his productivity in practice. Bowers practiced once last week and was clearly not 100% against the Chargers in catching five passes for 38 yards.

2.7 — Jeanty's average per carry this season.

At the Commanders on Sunday.

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