The Sports Xchange

OAKLAND, Calif. — Trailing the Baltimore Ravens by three points with just over two minutes to play Sunday, the Oakland Raiders had the ball at their 20-yard line at the O.co Coliseum.

Coming off a one-sided loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, the Raiders appeared headed for an 0-2 start to the season, but quarterback Derek Carr said that when he stepped into the huddle, he knew they were going to score.

“There was a great look on everyone’s face,” Carr said. “It was just a confidence, man, ‘We’re just at practice’ (look). We did this. We practiced against this. We practiced against these looks. It was just a confident look in everyone in that huddle, and I just said, ‘Hey man, I better not screw it up. These guys are ready to go.'”

As it turned out, Carr was right. He threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Seth Roberts with 26 seconds to play, lifting the Raiders to a 37-33 victory against the Ravens on Sunday at the O.co Coliseum.

Carr marched the Raiders 80 yards on nine plays in 1:44 for their game-winning touchdown, giving coach Jack Del Rio his first victory with Oakland.

“It was special,” Del Rio, a Bay Area native, said of the victory. “I had to focus on taking my mind elsewhere so I didn’t get all choked up.”

Carr, who left last week’s game against the Bengals with an injury to his right thumb, threw for a career-high 351 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. He completed 30 of 46 passes and had his second career fourth-quarter, game-winning drive.

“He’s a special guy,” Oakland safety Charles Woodson said. “You saw that with the last drive today.”

Raiders rookie wide receiver Amari Cooper had seven catches for 109 yards and his first NFL touchdown. Wide receiver Michael Crabtree caught nine passes for 111 yards and a TD.

Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco completed 32 of 45 passes for 384 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Baltimore wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. caught 10 passes for 150 yards, and tight end Crockett Gillmore had five catches for 88 yards and two touchdowns.

What we learned about the Ravens:

1. Rushing the passer is going to be a big problem without outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, who sustained a season-ending Achilles injury against Denver in the season opener. Elvis Dumervil replaced Suggs in the lineup, but he didn’t have a sack, and the Ravens’ defense had just one Sunday in a 37-33 loss to Oakland. “You can’t replace a Hall of Fame-caliber player,” Ravens defensive end Chris Canty said. “We understood the challenge that was ahead of us. We understood that we had to find a way to win. Guys had to step up. Quite frankly, we didn’t do that today. We took a step backwards.”

2. Quarterback Joe Flacco and wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. are back on the same page after a rough opener at Denver. Smith, in his second season with Baltimore, caught two passes for 13 yards against the Broncos. On Sunday against Oakland, he caught 10 passes for 150 yards — both high marks since becoming a Raven. Flacco completed 32 of 45 passes for 384 yards with two touchdown passes and one interceptions.

3. The Ravens find themselves an 0-2 hole for the first time under coach John Harbaugh and for the third time in franchise history. NFL history tells us they face a tough climb to reach the playoffs. The Ravens didn’t finish with a winning record in any of their previous three seasons starting 0-2. Only 24 of 205 NFL teams that started 0-2 since 1990 made the playoffs since the current postseason format began.

Etc.

–QB Joe Flacco completed 32 of 45 passes for 384 yards and two touchdowns with one interception Sunday in a 37-33 loss to Oakland. Flacco threw for his highest yardage total in a game — regular season or postseason — since Sept. 25, 2011, when he passed for 389 yards in a 37-7 win at St. Louis.

–WR Steve Smith Sr. caught 10 passes for 150 yards Sunday in a 37-33 loss to Oakland. The last time he had a higher total of receiving yards was when he caught eight passes for 181 yards on Oct. 2, 2011, with Carolina at Chicago. He hadn’t enjoyed a double-digit-reception game since he grabbed 10 for 136 yards on Oct. 14, 2007, with Carolina at Arizona.

–OLB Elvis Dumervil started Sunday against Oakland in place of Terrell Suggs, who sustained a season-ending torn Achilles in Baltimore’s season opener at Denver. Dumervil had two tackles, one quarterback hit and no sacks.