Raiders’ late push falls short in New England

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — It was two, maybe three seconds of pure exuberance and thrill, and then it was over. Raiders running back Darren McFadden had just bulled across the goal-line from 6 yards out for a would-be tying touchdown with a minute left Sunday, and let out a primal scream.

“I wasn’t going to be denied,” McFadden said. “And then I turned around and nobody was coming to celebrate with me.”

That was because of the yellow flag on the ground, a holding call against rookie Gabe Jackson that pushed Oakland back to the 12-yard line. On the next play, a pass bounced off the chest of Denarius Moore and into the arms of Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork, who bear-hugged the interception and the 16-9 win.

It was the 15th straight loss in the Eastern time zone for the Raiders, and maybe the hardest to take considering how close they were. After the defense was embarrassed in the first two losses, it put pressure on Tom Brady and stopped the running game.

“That’s a tough pill to swallow,” head coach Dennis Allen said. “The guys fought their tails off. At the moment of truth, we have to make some plays.”

There are no such things as moral victories in the NFL … unless there have been reports that the coach is on the hot seat and the team leaves two hours after the game for Europe. The 0-3 Raiders will have no problem focusing on the positives from this game as they get ready to face the Dolphins in London next Sunday.

“That was our best effort this year, and we have a chance to beat a well-coached, well-oiled team at their place,” defensive end Justin Tuck said. “We didn’t do anything different from the previous weeks but play well.

“We tried to have fun out there today, and this is a real confidence builder. You can’t hang your head low if everybody is fighting hard.”

Tuck had his first sack of the year, and blasted Brady two other times as the new defensive line finally played like Allen and general manager Reggie McKenzie thought it would. First-round pick Khalil Mack dominated left tackle Nate Solder, and Oakland allowed only 76 yards rushing — 13 on 15 carries in the second half.

This after allowing 400 yards rushing the first two games.

“I thought we won a few one-on-one matchups,” Allen said. “Overall, it was a better effort on our part, but still, we’ve got some work to do.”

Especially on offense, where the Raiders had to settle for three field goals while Brady did hit tight end Rob Gronkowski for a 6-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

Receiver Rod Streater had three catches before breaking his foot early in the second quarter, and the Raiders tried to go conservative and keep Brady and the Patriots offense off the field. But it didn’t really work, as they couldn’t get the running game going (McFadden finished with 59 yards on 18 carries) and Derek Carr missed some chances for big plays.

The rookie underthrew a couple of deep attempts and then missed a wide-open Marcel Reece in the end zone. But he didn’t turn the ball over, until Moore looked away late and that ball went off his chest.

There was another pivotal moment earlier, when, trailing 13-9 early in the fourth quarter, the Raiders gave the ball to running back Latavius Murray on 2nd-and-1 and then 3rd-and-1. Zip. And Zippo.

“Our pass protection has been good, but we need to run for more yards,” center Stefen Wisniewski said. “We are not a balanced offense yet. We’re not holding up our end of the bargain.”

True, but they held up a lot better than anybody thought, coming in as 14½-point underdogs against the best home team in the NFL since Gillette Stadium opened in 2002.

“We took a step forward,” defensive end LaMarr Woodley said. “It was time to just go out there and play football. Having fun. That is what it’s all about.”

Just imagine the fun if McFadden’s touchdown had stood and the Raiders had gone for a two-point conversion.

“That thought went through my head,” Allen said. “It’s kind of a moot point now.”

Vic Tafur is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail vtafur@sfchronicle.com. Twitter @VicTafur

3 notables

Khalil Mack: The first-round pick wore out Patriots left tackle Nate Solder and, though he didn’t get a sack, blasted Tom Brady on one play and was a major distraction.

Derek Carr: The late interception wasn’t his fault, but the rookie did miss some throws that would have given the Raiders a better shot at the upset.

Marcel Reece: A hot topic all week, the Raiders finally got the Pro Bowl fullback involved in the offense. But he had only had three catches for 19 yards.