Stidham’s 1st start helps Raiders almost shock Niners

LAS VEGAS (AP) — In his first NFL start, Jarrett Stidham threw for 365 yards and three touchdowns against the NFL’s top defense — and apologized to his teammates after the game.

Stidham was made the Raiders’ starting player Wednesday, after Derek Carr, a nine year veteran, was placed on the bench.

He completed 23 of 34 passes but threw two interceptions. This set up Robbie Gould’s short field goal, which gave the 49ers a victory of 37 to 34 that eliminated the Raiders’ playoff hopes.

“He apologized … and I think every single person on the team said, ‘Man, get out of here with that. You balled out and you did your thing,’” said Davante Adams, who finished with seven catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns. “We got to find a way to help him, protect a little longer, catch a few more balls and get a couple more first downs. A few more points and it could have been a dream situation for him.”

Instead, the dream turned into a nightmare when the Raiders did what they’ve done too many times this season — blow a double-digit lead in the second half. This was the fifth consecutive time that Raiders lost a lead of at least 10 points in the second half, an NFL record.

The 49ers rallied from a 24-14 deficit early in the third quarter to take a 27-24 lead, setting up a back-and-forth finish against their former Bay Area neighbors in the teams’ first meeting since the Raiders moved to Las Vegas.

Stidham became the Raiders’ second quarterback with at least 350 yards passing and three touchdown passes in 1950. He looked poised leading them to four of their five first drives.

Adams claimed he wasn’t surprised.

“I know the way he prepares,” said Adams, who topped 100 yards receiving for the eighth time, the most in a single season in Raiders history. “He prepared every single week like he was getting ready to play and it showed.”

Nevertheless, the fourth-year QB took ownership of his mistakes, including Tashaun Gipson’s interception that was returned inside the Raiders 10-yard line and put San Francisco in position for Gould’s chip-shot game-winner.

“The ball is in my hands every play,” Stidham said. “I’m the only one that gets to touch it every play. Unfortunately, I was unable to win due to two interceptions. Obviously, we’re going to look at the film tomorrow morning and see what I could have done better.”

The Raiders will finish their season against Kansas City at home before moving into the offseason, where they’ll need to make a decision about their quarterback future. Before Carr receives his guaranteed $33 million in 2023, the team has until February 15 to trade or release him.

Stidham argued that the Raiders might not need to look too far to find their next QB.

“I thought Jarrett put in a great week of work, obviously he knows what to do, he’s been in our system a long time and has the grasp of it, understands what to do,” coach Josh McDaniels said. “I thought he executed a lot of things the right way today, gave our guys a chance to make some plays. … I thought that his leadership, his energy and his communication were all good indicators of a team with a good rhythm. It didn’t surprise me that he was ready to go and played the way that he played.”

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL