Raiders dropped for a loss by Bengals 30-16

CINCINNATI - Derek Carr kept his streak without an interception going. But, in the end, he couldn’t complete enough throws to give the Raiders a chance to win Sunday.

Carr extended his streak without an interception to nine games, but Oakland managed only 19 yards in the fourth quarter, helping the Cincinnati Bengals hold on for a 30-16 victory.

The Bengals (6-8) got the better of a game between two struggling, injury-depleted teams. Oakland’s offensive line has been hit hard, forcing the Raiders (3-11) to keep shuffling players, and a lackluster showing on offense was the result.

“It was a very difficult situation for us today offensively, with all the changes,” Raiders coach Jon Gruden said. “We’ve got to do better, and I will acknowledge that was one tough situation that we were put under today.”

Joe Mixon ran for 129 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and Cincinnati ended one of its longest losing streaks under coach Marvin Lewis. The Bengals (6-8) had dropped five straight - their third-worst slump during Lewis’ 16 seasons - before finding a team struggling as much as them.

Mixon’s 15-yard touchdown with 4:04 left capped his second straight 100-yard game and clinched the Bengals’ first win since October. Yes, October.

“I feel like it’s been a loooooong time since we were able to do that,” Mixon said.

The Raiders had managed to pull out a 24-21 win over the Steelers a week earlier and had a chance for another comeback, trailing 20-13 after the third quarter. But they failed to convert a third-down play against the NFL’s worst defense the rest of the way and could not rally.

Carr was 21 of 38 for 263 yards and a touchdown and no interceptions for the ninth straight game. With his 14th pass, Carr broke Rich Gannon’s club record for the longest stretch without throwing an interception - 277 in 2001. He was lucky to get that far: Bengals safety Shawn Williams dropped a ball thrown directly to him on Oakland’s first possession.

It was another tough go for the Raiders, especially up front. Starting left guard Kelechi Osemele missed his second straight game with a toe injury. Starting right guard Gabe Jackson was inactive with an elbow injury. The line didn’t give the running backs much room - the Raiders managed only 68 yards rushing - and Carr was sacked five times.

“We’re working with our fourth and fifth guards,” Carr said.

Doug Martin ran nine times for 39 yards, the Raiders’ leading rusher. Tight end Darren Waller accounted for nearly a third of the Raiders’ rushing yards, getting 21 on a reverse. Otherwise, there wasn’t much room to run.

“We didn’t have it today,” Martin said.

For the Bengals, Jeff Driskel struggled in his third start replacing the injured Andy Dalton, repeatedly overthrowing receivers and finishing 14 of 33 for 130 yards with an interception.

Carr finished the game having thrown 301 passes without an interception. In the fourth quarter, Carr was 4 of 7 for 38 yards with three sacks.

After Daniel Carlson’s 40-yard field goal cut Cincinnati’s lead to 23-16 with 5:05 left, Alex Erickson returned the kickoff 77 yards, setting up Mixon’s clinching touchdown run.

“We made it a one-possession game in the fourth quarter, and the kickoff return by Erickson really hurt us,” Gruden said.

The Raiders already are in next-year mode. They fired general manager Reggie McKenzie on Monday and had little on the line against the Bengals, other than Carr’s interception streak and the chance to win back-to-back games for the first time this season.

“I want to see us finish with authority, with as much juice as we have, and as much heart and soul as we can showcase,” Gruden said. “That’s what I want us to do.”

But on Sunday the sloppy Raiders lost another game with a nondescript performance.

“This stings,” Gruden said. “It’s hard to lose. It’s a hard situation with a lot of the moving parts that we have.”