Las Vegas Raiders

The burden is once again on Kenyan Drake in the Las Vegas Raiders backfield.

Josh Jacobs left Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles with a chest injury, and the team confirmed he would be unable to return.

Jacobs missed the team's victories in Weeks 2 and 3 due to toe and ankle injuries. Because of that, fantasy football managers already have an idea of what to expect from Drake in a larger role.

Through six games, he has run for 91 yards and one touchdown while catching 15 passes for 177 yards and one score.

When both players are healthy, the Raiders clearly see Drake as a pass-catching complement to Jacobs, who had 53 receptions through his first two years.

Prior to signing with the Raiders, the 27-year-old showed he could be effective on the ground as well. He went for 1,598 yards and 18 scores in 23 games with the Arizona Cardinals. Though he wasn't as productive with the Miami Dolphins, his 4.6 yards per carry in South Beach were slightly higher than his average (4.4) in Arizona.

His success on the ground in Arizona hasn't carried over to Las Vegas.

When Jacobs was injured in September, then-head coach Jon Gruden used a question about Drake to hype up Peyton Barber as another replacement for the 2020 Pro Bowler:

Barber was among the Raiders' inactives for Sunday's game.

And even assuming he and Drake will have some sort of split in the running game, the latter should still see his value rise with Jacobs unavailable because of the targets he'll collect from Derek Carr.

At the very least, Drake warrants flex consideration in standard leagues, and his stock grows stronger in points-per-reception leagues.

After the Las Vegas Raiders running back exited Sunday's 33-22 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles with a chest injury, early indications are that Josh Jacobs avoided a "major" injury, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.

The extent of the injury has yet to be determined. Of note, Las Vegas has a bye week in Week 8, providing two weeks until the Raiders' next game, which will come Nov. 7 against the New York Giants.  

Jacobs had six carries for 29 yards and one touchdown in the contest, adding 39 yards on three receptions.

The 23-year-old is in his third NFL season after the Silver and Black selected the former Alabama star with the 24th overall pick in the 2019 draft. He amassed 2,215 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns in addition to 53 receptions for 404 yards over his first two seasons.

Jacobs began the 2021 campaign with 40 total yards and a pair of touchdowns in a 33-27 win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1. He was questionable for that contest with an illness but ended up playing.

Unfortunately, Jacobs missed the Raiders' Week 2 game because of toe and ankle injuries. He didn't practice all week before he was declared out that Friday.

Jacobs ended up missing his team's Week 3 matchup against the Miami Dolphins. He was a game-time decision for the Oct. 4 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, though he played and ran for 40 yards.

Now Jacobs will be out once again, meaning the Raiders will turn toward Kenyan Drake and Peyton Barber to carry the workload, though at least for this game, Barber is inactive and Jalen Richard should see more carries.

Losing Jacobs is a blow to the Raiders offense. He's a bruising back who can carry the offense on his best day.

However, Las Vegas still has a potent passing attack featuring quarterback Derek Carr, so the Raiders can stay afloat with the Drake-Barber combination until Jacobs gets back.

Former Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden resigned after it was revealed he used racist, misogynistic and anti-gay language in a number of emails, but reportedly, he has said his side of the story will one day be made public.

Andrea Kremer appeared on the Real Sports Podcast and explained a producer called Gruden, who told her "the truth will come out" in due time (h/t Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk):

Maggie Burbank, who produced the story that we just did on Mark Davis, she actually called Gruden and he picked up the phone, much to I think her surprise. And he's still in Las Vegas. . . . He says he's letting the dust settle. He said, 'People who know me know what I stand for for 58 years. I have a resume of 58 years.' He said, 'The truth will come out.' It's certainly cryptic.

Ken Belson and Katherine Rosman of the New York Times reported Gruden sent the emails from 2011 to 2018 with many of them going to former Washington Football Team President Bruce Allen.

The emails were part of the NFL's investigation into workplace misconduct by the Washington Football Team's front office.

Gruden released a statement at the time he resigned and said, "I have resigned as Head Coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. I love the Raiders and do not want to be a distraction. Thank you to all the players, coaches, staff, and fans of Raider Nation. I'm sorry, I never meant to hurt anyone."

On the field, Rich Bisaccia took over as the interim head coach of the Raiders.

He led them to a 34-24 victory over the Denver Broncos on Sunday.             

Jon Gruden is reportedly "angry" that an investigation not directly involving him led to his departure from the Las Vegas Raiders.

Gruden resigned from his role as the Raiders' head coach last Monday after racist, anti-gay and misogynistic emails he sent between 2011-2018 were revealed to the public. They came to light as part of the NFL's investigation into sexual harassment and verbal abuse allegations within the Washington Football Team's organization

In the aftermath of the decision, Gruden is reportedly feeling "miserable" for the coaches, staff members and families he brought to Vegas and "stunned and fuming" about his demise, although he understood that he could no longer continue as coach.

Peter King of NBC Sports reported about the situation in his latest Football Morning in America article, which was released Monday:

According to someone who knows Gruden's mindset post-"resignation," he is of two minds. One: He is miserable about the families of the 22 coaches and numerous staffers he brought to Vegas who will suffer, and perhaps lose NFL livelihoods, because of his hurtful emails. Two: He is angry ('stunned and fuming,' this person said, describing Gruden) that some investigation that had nothing to do with him resulted in the loss of his job. He does understand, I am told, that the release of these emails made it impossible for him to continue as coach.

I haven't heard so many differing opinions from around the league on an issue in a while. But this one, from one of the smartest people in the NFL orbit, struck me: 'This was a Mafia hit on Gruden.'

Often, I'm told, victims of organized crime rubouts never see them coming. Gruden never saw his coming either.

Gruden corresponded with a group that included ex-Washington Football Team president Bruce Allen, which is why the messages surfaced in the investigation.

There hasn't been much public information about the NFL's investigation into the Washington Football Team. Of note, no written report was released on the findings.

Numerous groups want to change that.

Per The Athletic, a group of 10-ex WFT employees who alleged sexual harassment and verbal abuse within the team's workplace have released a letter that was received by CEOs for powerful NFL sponsors such as Verizon, Nike, Amazon, Anheuser-Busch, PepsiCo and Procter & Gamble:

We have every reason to believe that (attorney Beth) Wilkinson and her team did an exhaustive, competent investigation, and that she had every intention of issuing a written report of her findings. Despite (WFT owner Dan) Snyder's effort to distance himself from the toxic culture, we know personally that those findings included acts of harassment committed by Snyder himself, including but not limited to those reported by The Washington Post.

NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith told Mike Jones of USA Today that he plans to petition the NFL to release all of the investigation's emails as well.

However, Jones also reported that the league has no plans to release the emails.

A league spokesman told USA TODAY Sports that NFL officials had no current plans to release the emails because the confidentiality was an element of the investigation into the Washington Football Team and workplace review.

It remains unclear if an official request by the NFLPA would change the mind of league officials, or if the NFL will stand pat.

For now, the content of emails from Gruden, who has never worked for the team, stands as the most notable public revelation from the investigation.

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden resigned last Monday after emails featuring racist, anti-gay and misogynistic language were leaked to the public. Those messages were among the 650,000 emails that were part of the NFL's investigation into sexual harassment and verbal abuse allegations within the Washington Football Team organization.

The Gruden emails could have purposefully been leaked to the public, per Peter King of NBC Sports' conversations with "several smart people in the league." He wrote the following in his latest Football Morning in America piece Monday:

I don't know where the emails came from. Several smart people in the league think the leaks come from the Snyder camp. Maybe he feels steamrolled by the league in its July penalty, though it was certainly exactly the opposite. Maybe (probably) he's so anti-Allen that he'd have a jihad out for him and anyone close to him, which Gruden is.

Gruden sent emails to ex-Washington Football Team president Bruce Allen, hence their inclusion in the NFL's investigation.

The messages were sent between 2011-2018, when Gruden worked as an NFL analyst for ESPN before the Raiders signed him to a 10-year, $100 million contract in 2018.

Gruden has never worked for the Washington Football Team. His NFL coaching career included stints as an assistant with the Green Bay Packers and an offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1990s before working as the head coach for the Oakland Raiders (1998-2001) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2002-2008).

The 58-year-old worked for ESPN from 2009-2018 as an NFL analyst before rejoining the Silver and Black in 2018.

Gruden's younger brother, Jay, was Washington's head coach from 2014-2019 before being fired after an 0-5 start in his final year.

Andrew Beaton of the Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 8 that Gruden used a racial trope to describe NFLPA DeMaurice Smith. That led to a public apology from Gruden, who soon coached his team in a 20-9 loss to the Chicago Bears on Oct. 10.

However, Ken Belson and Katherine Rosman of the New York Times then revealed a host of emails containing offensive language last Monday, and Gruden resigned later that evening.

The rest of the 650,000 emails have not been released, and the NFLPA has called for that to happen.

"We have had communications with the league, and the NFLPA plans to request that the NFL release the rest of the emails," Smith told USA Today's Mike Jones last Tuesday.

As far as the investigation goes, the NFL fined the Washington Football Team $10 million amid other mandates, per ESPN. Lisa Banks and Debra Katz, who represented 40 ex-employees, said the league's punishment was a "slap in the face" and amounted to "pocket change."

Amy Trask, who spent 25 years in the Raiders organization from 1987 to 2013, says she repeatedly reported Bruce Allen for using offensive language when the two worked together.

"I did hear comments of that nature from the individual to whom Jon sent those emails," Trask said on That Other Pregame Show. "And I did speak up. I spoke up repeatedly, I spoke up forcefully. I talked to the owner about it. Because to be silent would have been to be complicit."

Allen served as an executive in the Raiders organization from 1995 to 2003. He then spent time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Washington Football Team as general manager.

In both Oakland and Tampa, Allen worked with Jon Gruden, who resigned last week from his second stint as Raiders coach after racist, sexist and anti-gay emails he sent were leaked to the press. Many of those emails were correspondences with Allen and took place when Allen was with Washington.

Trask says she never heard Gruden use offensive language, in large part because the coach refused to interact with her when he was in his first stint with the Raiders.

"I didn't interact with Jon a lot, but that was by Jon's choice," Trask said. "Jon made very clear throughout the organization he did not want to interact with me. Had I heard him say anything of that nature, I would have spoken up. Because silence is complicity."

It's unclear if Allen was ever reprimanded for his comments with the Raiders. Late owner Al Davis was known as a champion of social justice causes within the NFL and hired Trask as the first female front-office executive in league history.

Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis spoke out Sunday against the offensive emails former head coach Jon Gruden sent, saying they are "not what we stand for."

"Listen, the Raiders stand for diversity, inclusion and social justice," Davis told Ed Graney of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "We always have and we always will. The emails that came out are not what we stand for and so Jon Gruden is no longer head coach. There's not much more I can say. All the talking heads are making up all sorts of stuff. That's all it is. We don't stand for it."

Gruden resigned last week after his use of racist, sexist and anti-gay language in emails leaked to the press.

The correspondence, which was sent from 2011 to 2018 when Gruden was an employee of ESPN, included his calling NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell a "pussy," accusing the commissioner of pushing an agenda to get Michael Sam drafted in 2014 because he is gay and ripping the league's social justice movement—particularly Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid. He also used a racist stereotype in discussing the size of NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith's lips.

The emails were part of 650,000 uncovered during an investigation into the Washington Football Team's workplace. The NFL has refused to disclose further emails because of confidentiality agreements, but a source told Barry Wilner of the Associated Press that the league found no other offensive language among current league employees.

It's unclear if the emails will ever see the light of day. The NFLPA and other organizations have called on the NFL to release its full findings to the public.

Gruden, who apologized in his statement resigning from the Raiders, spent 15 seasons in the NFL as a head coach in addition to nine years in a Monday Night Football booth. 

The Las Vegas Raiders are back on track.

Las Vegas snapped a two-game losing streak with a 34-24 victory over the Denver Broncos in Sunday's AFC West showdown at Empower Field at Mile High. Derek Carr led the way for the Raiders, who improved to 4-2 and into a tie atop the division with the Los Angeles Chargers.

The win was all the more notable because it was interim head coach Rich Bisaccia's first game after Jon Gruden resigned when emails revealed he used racist, sexist and anti-gay language.

Teddy Bridgewater threw three touchdowns in the losing effort for the Broncos, who fell to 3-3 with their third straight loss.

Notable Player Stats

• Derek Carr, QB, LV: 18-of-27 passing for 341 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs
• Kenyan Drake, RB, LV: 4 carries for 34 yards, 1 TD; 2 catches for 39 yards, 1 TD
• Henry Ruggs III, WR, LV: 3 catches for 97 yards, 1 TD
• Teddy Bridgewater, QB, DEN: 35-of-49 passing for 334 yards, 3 TDs, 3 INTs
• Courtland Sutton, WR, DEN: 8 catches for 94 yards, 1 TD
• Noah Fant, TE, DEN: 9 catches for 97 yards, 1 TD

Derek Carr, Raiders Offense Rediscovers Impressive Form

From a football perspective, the biggest storyline coming into this game for the Raiders was how they would respond on the field after a week of headlines off it.

Carr appeared to eliminate all distractions and was dialed in from the start. He threw touchdown passes to Henry Ruggs III and Kenyan Drake to build a 17-7 halftime lead and had an initial connection with star tight end Darren Waller.

While Las Vegas' rushing attack left much to be desired as it was seizing that lead in the first half, Carr fit passes through tight windows and took what the defense gave him in front of a hostile crowd.

He also didn't have to do too much given how well Maxx Crosby and the Raiders defense played in the early going, which allowed him to make safer throws and avoid forcing the issue against his division rivals.

The rest of the backfield made their presence known as Las Vegas pulled further ahead in the second half. Josh Jacobs took a screen and darted through Denver defenders and into scoring position, while Drake found the end zone again with an 18-yard touchdown run.

The Carr-to-Ruggs connection wasn't done, as another deep ball set up a Jacobs touchdown and all but put the game away heading into the fourth. Even when Denver had some momentum after a fourth-quarter touchdown, Carr found Bryan Edwards for 51 yards before a field goal made it a three-score game once again.

Las Vegas' offense was facing some pressure after scoring a combined 23 points during the two-game losing streak, but it was explosive whenever the game was hanging in the balance Sunday and put the team back on a potential playoff track. 

Broncos Continue Their Slide Down the Standings

It was easy to feel skeptical about the Broncos heading into this game.

After all, their 3-0 start featured wins over the New York Giants, Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets, which isn't exactly a list of the league's best teams. They also looked far less formidable while losing to the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers in the next two games.

Sunday didn't provide much argument against that skepticism.

While Bridgewater answered an early score by the Raiders with a touchdown pass to Tim Patrick in the first quarter, that was about the only positive development prior to halftime for the home team. He also threw an interception to Brandon Facyson, faced constant pressure from Crosby and didn't get much help from the rushing attack of Melvin Gordon III and Javonte Williams.

It was one step forward and two steps back for the Broncos in the second half, as Williams broke free for a 30-yard run that included an impressive hurdle only for the drive to stall for a field goal. What's more, Bridgewater lost a fumble on the next possession when Denver had an opportunity to close the gap to one score.

The theme of progress undermined by mistakes continued into the fourth quarter, as Bridgewater followed his touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton with an interception to Tre'von Moehrig. Even when Denver recovered an onside kick during a late comeback attempt, Bridgewater ended that possession with another interception.

Denver's outlook looks all the more concerning in a daunting AFC West following yet another poor performance.          

What's Next?

Both teams are in action in Week 7 when the Raiders host the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday and the Broncos travel to face the Cleveland Browns on Thursday.