Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr was on the verge of tears as he faced the media following his side's third consecutive loss, dropping their record to a borderline unsalvageable 2-7.
The Raiders were favourites at home against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday after the visitors named a new interim head coach and offensive playcaller during the week, but an explosive performance from running back Jonathan Taylor carried the Colts to a 25-20 win.
Las Vegas committed no turnovers, but struggled to move the ball, averaging just 3.2 yards per carry on 24 attempts, while the Colts had 207 rushing yards from 30 attempts, buoyed by a 66-yard touchdown scamper from Taylor.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Carr had to pause several times to gather himself as he tried to explain how it does not feel to him that every member of the team is giving their all.
"I can't speak for everybody – I know where I stand, I love the silver and black, and I'm going to give it everything I can every time I'm out there," he said.
"I love [head coach] Josh [McDaniels], I love our coaches. They've had nothing but success – way more than I've ever had.
"I'm sorry for being emotional, I'm just p***** off about some of the things that a lot of us try and do just to practise, and what we put our bodies through just to sleep at night.
"For that to be the result of all that effort, it p***** me off, it p***** a lot of guys off. It's hard… I wish everybody in that room felt the same way about this place.
"As a leader, that p***** me off, if I'm being honest."
He said there was a players' meeting immediately after the loss where leaders addressed their concerns "man-to-man".
"We had our leaders address it man-to-man just now," he said. "It was good, it needed to be done, it needed to be said, and I think for me, I'm always going to just show the way.
"I'm going to show the way, show them what it looks like, show them how hard it is. In the huddle in the second quarter I told them 'this is going to be hard, but we're going to come back and win this game, I believe it'.
"It's going to be hard, though. It's not going to be easy, you've got to do the hard things. Josh always preaches 'do the hard things right'.
"I'm not perfect, I'm never going to be perfect, but the love I have for this place and the effort I give is going to be second-to-none every time.
"I think the emotion of just nine years of stuff hit me today, for how much I really love this place. It's not going to change anything, I'm going to come out here and fight and compete next week, and that's what I'm going to do."
When asked if he believes the coaching staff needs to take accountability for their six losses by one-possession margins – including three blown leads of at least 17 points – Carr refused to point the finger.
"We all take accountability, and the NFL, it's one-score games all the time," he said. "So this team has to learn how to finish those.
"There's been so many of them – six, right? You flip all of those, and everyone is feeling good about it, and I'd feel great about everything.
"That just isn't the case, but it's on all of us. But for me, I'm going to speak for myself and I'm going to come in, take my coaching from Josh, and he'll be hard on me like he always is.
"And I'm thankful for it, we'll keep going forward, and all that. I think if everyone takes that mindset, that's when you get better."
The Raiders travel to take on the Denver Broncos in Week 11, needing a win to keep their slim playoff chances alive.