National Football League

Oakland Raiders victimized by their own mistakes in 17-9 loss to San Francisco 49ers

Published Oct. 18, 2010 10:13 a.m. ET

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The so-called Battle of the Bay turned into a battle of attrition Sunday, as the Raiders searched for ways to move the ball and relied on their defense to protect a slight lead. But in the end they failed on both fronts and lost 17-9 to the 49ers.

It was the kind of game the Raiders expected, and wanted, yet wasted.

"The game really comes down to opportunity," Raiders coach Tom Cable said. "We had a ton of opportunities offensively to score. We did not score (touchdowns). We let them hang around. I'm very disappointed. Too many opportunities to win a game, and we didn't get it done."

Jason Campbell, making his first start at quarterback since Cable benched him midway through the Raiders' second game, completed only 8 of 21 passes for 83 yards, with 48 of those yards coming on back-to-back plays to tight end Zach Miller early in the fourth quarter.

Defensive lapses late in the game also killed the Raiders.

Oakland controlled the contest for most of three quarters, answering everything the 49ers dialed up until one glaring lapse changed the momentum.

With the Raiders leading 6-3 and playing a zone defense, quarterback Alex Smith threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Michael Crabtree to give the 49ers their first lead of the game at 10-6. It came on the final play of the third quarter, and shifted momentum away from the Raiders.

"We went to the zone, and they beat us," Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha said. "They shouldn't have beaten us on that play because we knew it was coming."

The Raiders cut the deficit to 10-9 on a 40-yard field goal by Sebastian Janikowski with 8:21 left in the game, but the 49ers responded with a three-play, 80-yard drive that culminated on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Smith to tight end Vernon Davis. Frank Gore's 64-yard run to the Raiders' 16 got the drive started.

"We were completely fine until Frank Gore broke that run, " Asomugha said. "Then I saw the momentum shift. Even after the deep touchdown, I still thought we were fine. After that run, you saw it shift completely."

Gore bolted past middle linebacker Rolando McClain and defensive tackle Tommy Kelly into the open field before he was tackled 64 yards later. The 49ers scored a touchdown two plays later for an eight-point lead, from which the Raiders never recovered.

Again, a blown coverage was to blame. Safeties Tyvon Branch and Hiram Eugene allowed Davis to get open in the left flat, where Smith delivered a strike.

Asomugha said the Raiders were victimized on a play they practiced against last week and expected to see from the 49ers.

"That's the story of the Raiders," Kelly said. "Play good, play good, boom! There goes something. To go from the high of last week to this low, it's rough."

Raiders cornerback Stanford Routt said mental lapses by the defense coincided with well-timed play calls by the 49ers.

"It was definitely mental," Routt said. "We beat ourselves, plain and simple."

The Raiders bemoaned that they came away with field goals after sustained drives on their first two possessions of the game. Both drives stalled inside the 49ers' 10-yard line.

"To not come out with (touchdowns), it seemed like the air kind of went out of us, for whatever reason," Campbell said.

Several Raiders said they feared their inability to score touchdowns on those first two drives would come back to haunt them.

"You let a team hang around long enough, hang around and don't deliver the knockout, that's what'll happen," defensive tackle Richard Seymour said.

Every other AFC West team lost Sunday, making it the second straight week the Raiders blew an opportunity to gain ground. Oakland dropped to 2-4 and remains 1 1/2 games behind first-place Kansas City.

The Raiders had a chance to tie the game on their final possession, but their hopes were dashed when Campbell threw his second interception of the game. That ended the Raiders' hopes of reaching .500 for the first time this late in a season since 2002.

Campbell completed five of seven passes on the Raiders' first two drives -- for 28 yards -- and he misfired on 11 of his final 14 attempts. His performance should give injured starter Bruce Gradkowski nothing to worry about when he returns from an injured shoulder, possibly next Sunday against the Broncos.

Campbell didn't throw a pass in the second half until early in the fourth quarter, partly because the 49ers held the ball for all but four plays during that time.

That made it difficult to establish a rhythm in the passing game, Campbell said.

"It's tough," Campbell said. "Rhythm is all about timing and executing, and I just didn't feel like we found that rhythm in the second half, the way we came out in the (beginning of the) game."

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