Raiders' Blowout Loss to Jets Proved They're Pretenders

The Oakland Raiders looked to be on the verge of sneaking into the playoffs over the past several momentum-filled weeks, but those dreams came to a crashing halt on Sunday. The Raiders were dismantled at the hands of the Jets, losing 34-3 in blowout fashion.

The game was never even close, and if there's one thing we learned from the contest, it's that the Raiders are officially pretenders.

Derek Carr managed just 127 passing yards against the Jets' porous secondary. The running game didn't fare much better, with Josh Jacobs and DeAndre Washington combining for just 53 yards on 16 carries.

The Raiders appeared to be putting the league on notice, entering Week 12 with a 6-4 record and the chance to tie the Chiefs for the AFC West lead. That didn't come to fruition, and a deeper dive reveals Oakland's wins this season are not...well, they're not all that impressive, coming mostly against some lowly competition including the Bengals, Broncos, Chargers and Lions.

If Jon Gruden and Co. wanted to prove they were for real, a big road performance against the Jets was necessary. And they fell flat on their faces when it came time to execute.

The defense surrendering 34 points to the Jets is also a huge concern. Sam Darnold lit the Raiders up for 315 yards and two touchdowns, finding an assortment of targets in the rout for seemingly the first time all year long.

Things will only get more difficult for the Raiders, too. They travel to Kansas City in Week 13, before squaring off with the Titans the following week. Neither matchup will be easy, especially after they just let this opportunity for a win blow them by.