Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Raiders ride Josh Jacobs to win over Denver

The Las Vegas Raiders VS The Miami Dolphins at Allegiant Stadium

Christopher DeVargas

Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (13) celebrates with Dillon Stoner (16) after Renfrow scores a touchdown against the Denver Broncos in the second quarter of their game at Allegiant Stadium Sunday, Dec. 26, 2021.

Raiders beat Broncos

Raiders fans cheer as Vegas begins the second half of their game agains the Denver Broncos at Allegiant Stadium Sunday, Dec. 26, 2021. The Raiders defeat the Denver Broncos 17-13. Launch slideshow »

It would have been easy for the Raiders to turn away from Josh Jacobs on Sunday.

The third-year running back came into Las Vegas’ crucial Week 16 matchup against Denver having averaged just 3.6 yards per carry over the previous six games, and when his fumbling problem cropped up once again late in the first half it gave the Raiders coaching staff more than enough reason to bench him.

But Jacobs pleaded with the coaches at halftime to do the opposite, and they listened. The Raiders doubled down on the former first-round pick and continued to feed Jacobs the rock, over and over. Even when Jacobs almost coughed it up again on the opening drive of the third quarter — the play was ruled a fumble on the field but was overturned on replay by a fraction — his squad stuck with him.

Jacobs rewarded that faith with his most productive performance of the season, as he ran for 129 yards on 27 carries to help keep the Raiders’ season alive with a 17-13 win over Denver at Allegiant Stadium.

Las Vegas has now won two in a row to move to 8-7, a game out of the seventh and final playoff spot with two weeks remaining.

The Raiders led, 7-6, with two minutes left in the first half when Jacobs caught a swing pass from Derek Carr in open space. With no defenders in the vicinity Jacobs somehow managed to knee the ball out of his own grasp, and the Broncos fell on it to set up a gift of a field goal with less than a minute on the clock.

Jacobs’ fumble was an inexcusable miscue, especially given recent history. Two weeks ago Jacobs fumbled on the opening snap at Kansas City and the Chiefs returned it for a touchdown, opening the floodgates in what would eventually become a 48-9 loss for the Raiders.

Carr compounded the mistake on the ensuing possession. Stuck between wanting to run out the clock and trying to score, Carr targeted Jacobs on a screen play on first down only to see Bradley Chubb intercept the pass and return it to the Las Vegas 1-yard line. Javonte Williams scored on the next play to give Denver a stunning 13-7 lead at the break.

That sequence could have been the story of the game — of the Raiders’ season, in fact, as it was a virtual elimination game — and Jacobs could have been a goat. After gaining just 20 yards in the first half (and putting the ball on the ground), Jacobs went into the locker room at halftime and lobbied the coaches for more carries.

They agreed, and Jacobs responded by running for more than 100 yards in the second half.

"I went into halftime and talked to the coaches and I was like, ‘Let me get in a rhythm. Just give me a chance to play the style of ball that I want to play,’" Jacobs said. "And the offensive line, we all came to an agreement and then we went out there and did it.”

The Raiders received the kickoff to open the second half and immediately stuck the ball in Jacobs’ gut. He carried on the first three plays and ended up running the ball on seven of Las Vegas’ nine plays as the offense drove 75 yards in 4:34. After Jacobs did the grunt work, Peyton Barber capped it with a 5-yard TD run to give the Raiders a 14-13 advantage.

Jacobs gained 58 rushing yards on that possession, which is more than he recorded in 10 of his previous 12 games this year.

"Josh was putting his shoulder into them," Carr said. "It was very aggressive. I think that would be the word I would use, from my point of view. It was a very aggressive running style in that second half. It helped us win that football game. It was really unbelievable, especially that first drive [of the third quarter], the way he was cutting and running. I told him, 'I think that's the best drive I've ever seen you have.'"

Once the rushing attack regained the lead, the Las Vegas defense made it hold up.

With Maxx Crosby leading the way up front, the Raiders consistently harassed Denver quarterback Drew Lock and held the Broncos to 153 passing yards on the day.

The defense was also bolstered by the return of linebacker Denzel Perryman, who had missed the previous two games due to injury. Fresh off being named to the Pro Bowl, Perryman made four solo tackles and helped limit Denver to 18 rushing yards on 16 carries (1.1 yards per attempt).

After Daniel Carlson kicked a field goal with 7:40 left to extend Las Vegas' lead to 17-13, defensive lineman Quinton Jefferson sacked Lock on third down to force a Denver punt from midfield. The Raiders took over with four minutes remaining and handed the ball to Jacobs on the next four plays. He picked up one first down to keep the clock moving, then positioned the Raiders for a pivotal 3rd-and-2 at the 36-yard line. The Broncos defense sold out to stop Jacobs, allowing tight end Foster Moreau to leak out for a 28-yard play-action pass down the middle to clinch the game.

The Raiders will close the season with two more contests against their wildcard competition. First they’ll head to Indianapolis next week to face one of the NFL’s hottest teams, as the Colts (10-5) have won six of their last seven games to move into the first wildcard slot. After that, the Raiders will return to Las Vegas to host the Los Angeles Chargers (8-7) in the season finale on Jan. 9.

To have any realistic change at making the playoffs, the Raiders will have to win both games. And they know it.

"We still have two games left against two really hard, difficult teams," Carr said. "It's going to take everything that we have, especially the one coming back here against our rival. But we're doing what we want to do right now. We're winning football games. We're finding a way to win."

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.

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