The Oakland Raiders will respond.
One way or another, the Silver and Black will have to respond; whether it's a positive or negative response is up to the players in the Raiders locker room.
Just three weeks ago, Head Coach Jack Del Rio's group was 2-0, firing on all cylinders, and looking like the like the cream of the NFL crop. Now, they've lost three games in a row, and are under .500 for the first time since 2015.
And following Sunday's 30-17 loss, Head Coach Jack Del Rio stood in front of his team and looked for the first of many responses that the team will have before they strap the pads back on in a now very important Week 6 tilt against the Los Angeles Chargers.
"He [Del Rio] paused and looked at everybody," quarterback EJ Manuel said postgame. "I kind of felt like he looked every man in the eye to see what kind of team we had, what kind of make-up we had."
So, as simple of a question as it is, with the Raiders now sitting at 2-3, it's a question that bares asking; what's been the biggest difference for the Silver and Black the past few weeks?
"I think you can see the difference," wide receiver Seth Roberts said. "We're losing now. Maybe we need to go back to what we were doing the first two weeks and apply that. We just have to come back together and protect the guys that are in the locker room, and hold each other accountable."
His teammate, running back Jalen Richard, was a tad more direct when discussing the team's recent skid.
"I don't even know what to say really, it's just bad shock," Richard explained. "We keep getting our ass whooped. This is going to come down to when are we going to get tired of getting our ass whooped?"
Now, if you look at the stats, the Raiders weren't dominated by the Baltimore Ravens Sunday afternoon at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, they just weren't able to do enough in multiple facets of the game to walk out of the stadium with a win.
The rushing attack enjoyed a nice bounce-back effort, totaling 108 yards; the Ravens went for 143 though. EJ Manuel actually put together a decent afternoon too stepping in for Derek Carr, but his 159 yards and one touchdown were outshined by Joe Flacco's 222 yards through the air.
While they trailed for nearly the entirety of the game, the Raiders were within striking distance for much of the afternoon, but close isn't good enough, and the end result of Sunday's contest was that Head Coach Del Rio's team suffered its third loss in as many weeks.
"We have to look in the mirror, man, and correct it because we still have a long time to go," Roberts said. "It's Week 6 next week."
And there certainly is some merit in Roberts' statement; while many didn't see the Raiders getting off to the type of start they've gotten off to in 2017, we haven't yet reached the halfway point of the season, and there's still plenty of time for the team to remedy the issues that have plagued them the past several weeks.
"It hurts, ya know what I'm saying? Losing, three weeks in a row at that, but I still think that we have a chance," Roberts said. "We can make a turnaround. It's all about the guys who strap up each Sunday and play."
He continued, "It can be the smallest thing that could just turn this whole thing around. We still have a chance."
The Raiders won't have a ton of time to lay down and lick their wounds, they'll host the Los Angeles Chargers in a divisional matchup next Sunday, in a game that now becomes more important considering the loss to the Ravens.
Key to that response – and the team's response all week really – will be keeping its confidence in tow.
"You just don't listen to what our doubters start saying," linebacker Bruce Irvin said. "Everyone has their own opinion about us right now. You just can't listen to it. It's about us, it's always been about us, it's going to continue to be about us."
The Raiders will respond, and over the next few weeks, that response will really show what the 2017 Raiders are made of.
