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Not too early to consider 0-16 a possibility for Raiders
CLEVELAND -- The parade of mistakes began early Sunday as the Oakland Raiders officially dropped into the danger zone near the most miserable place in NFL history.
From an interception on a fake field goal on the game's opening drive to a lost fumble the first time Oakland reached the opposing 20-yard line with a chance to take the lead in the fourth quarter, the miscues kept coming for the hapless Raiders, who ended up the losers once again. This time it was a 23-13 punch in the gut at the hands of the very beatable Cleveland Browns.
The result is an 0-7 record for Oakland. The NFL's only winless team has now lost 13 straight games dating to last November. It has been nearly a calendar year since the Raiders were able to smile on a Sunday evening.
The scary part for Oakland is that there doesn't appear to be an end in sight. The harsh reality is the only possible way the Raiders can win one of their next three games is if something unusual happens.
Oakland, which has the second toughest remaining schedule in the NFL, plays at the Seattle Seahawks next week, then hosts the Denver Broncos and then travels to the San Chargers Diego before hosting the Kansas City Chiefs on a short week.
The distinct possibility of this team being 0-11 is looming. And it is not too early to start talking about 0-16. The 2008 of joining the 2008 Detroit Lions in are the only team in NFL history to have finished with that record.
The thought of it has to be kicking at the back of minds in Oakland. It's a paralyzing thought that would signal a devastating low for a franchise that has dealt with endless misery for the past 12 years. Until Oakland finds a way to win, the concern will only grow.
But 0-16 probably isn't going to happen, right? The reality is the season is almost half over and Oakland truly hasn't come close to a win. The Raiders have been more competitive under interim coach Tony Sparano than they were before Dennis Allen was fired at 0-4, but they still aren't playing well.
They are still looking for a complete game.
Yes, the defense was better Sunday. It needs to be commended for holding Cleveland to 2-of-12 on third down after entering the game allowing opponents to convert third downs into first down more than 50 percent of the time.
And the Browns run offense, one of the best in the NFL, had 39 yards on 25 carries. But Cleveland adjusted when it had to, which is something the Raiders have failed to do.
Offensively, the Raiders took a turn for the worse. Derek Carr threw four touchdowns passes in a narrow loss to San Diego two weeks ago. Since, the Raiders' offense has been awful. The only time Oakland started a play inside the Browns' red zone was in garbage time.
Once again, the Raiders made questionable decisions. They threw the ball 56 times and ran it 22 times. The Browns entered the game with the worst run defense in the NFL. The Raiders threw it on third down on two early drives and failed.
As venerable Oakland safety Charles Woodson said, effort is not the problem.
"It's execution,” Woodson said. "We have to figure it out."
Sparano said it's time for Oakland to stop talking about good efforts and just win. The problem is figuring out where the wins will come from. This may have been the last winnable game for a while.
The 0-16 watch is officially on.
redskins will go 2-14 and still not get the #1 pick
It's already been done in recent memory. It wouldn't have the same umpfff
dline men brehs