Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (28) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos at Allegiant Stadium Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022. STEVE MARCUS
Published Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022 | 2 a.m.
Updated Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022 | 4:35 p.m.
Week 4
• Who: Broncos (2-1) at Raiders(0-3)
• When: 1:25 p.m., Allegiant Stadium
• TV: KLAS Channel 8, CBS
• Radio: Raider Nation Radio 920 AM, KOMP 92.3
• Betting line: Raiders -2.5, over/under 45.5
Josh Jacobs rushed for a season-high 144 yards and two touchdowns, and the Raiders won their first game of the season 32-23 against the Denver Broncos at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday.
Las Vegas was the last winless team in the league, entering the afternoon 0-3 with each loss by one score.
Derek Carr threw for 188 yards on 21 of 34 passing, and also added 40 yards on the ground. Davante Adams caught nine passes for 101 yards for his first game over the century mark since Week 1.
Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson had his best passing game with his new team, throwing for 237 yards and two touchdowns. But the Raiders defense, led by Maxx Crosby, sacked Wilson three times.
Crosby has four of the Raiders’ five total sacks this season.
But the afternoon belonged to Jacobs, who entered Sunday averaging 4.57 yards per carry but did was held to less than 20 carries in each game. Jacobs averaged 6.2 yards per tally. His longest run was a 43-yard rush where he broke away from two tackles, spun away from another and ran down the left side.
His second touchdown, a 7-yard run with 2:02 remaining, put the game away.
Check back later for more coverage.
Broncos score immediately to cut Raiders’ lead to two points
Raiders’ fans are in for another nailbiter.
Las Vegas leads Denver 25-23 with about seven minutes to go at Allegiant Stadium after the latter scored in 2:34 of game time on their latest possession. Quarterback Russell Wilson first hit K.J. Hamler with a 55-yard pass over the top of the defense, and then ran in a touchdown himself from 3 yards out.
Right when the Las Vegas defense appeared to have settled down, it let up again.
Raiders go up nine points
For the first time since Week 2, the Raiders have a two-score lead.
Las Vegas leads Denver 25-16 with 9:50 left to play after a 30-yard field goal from Daniel Carlson. The successful kick was Carlson’s fourth of the day.
It came after the Raiders forced a third straight three-and-out on the Broncos’ offense, this one at the 1-yard line after special teams captain Mack Hollins helped down a punt there. The Las Vegas defense has emerged in the second half, helping the team build a lead that won’t be easy for Denver to erase.
With just less than 10 minutes remaining, the Broncos will need to start tearing into the deficit immediately to have a chance to win.
Raiders take three-point lead into halftime
Daniel Carlson redeemed himself for a missed extra point by converting on a 39-yard field at the conclusion of the first half to give the Raiders a 19-16 lead going into halftime.
The Raiders had less than 1:30 to go down the field after a Jerry Jeudy touchdown for the Broncos, but Derek Carr led a short passing attack that resulted in three points. He hit Mack Hollins and Davante Adams with completions before scrambling for 20 yards near midfield for the biggest gain of the drive.
Carlson booted the kick right through the uprights to cap a high-scoring first half.
Broncos answer in five plays
The Broncos’ offense had struggled all year, but it’s finally getting on track against the Raiders today at Allegiant Stadium.
Denver just went 75 yards on five plays in less than two minutes to tie the game back at 16-16. Jerry Jeudy caught a 20-yard touchdown pass from Russell Wilson for the score.
Wilson has gone 11-for-12 on passing attempts for 149 yards and two touchdowns. Just like Daniel Carlson on the Raiders’ prior extra-point attempt, the Broncos’ Brandon McManus missed his attempt to keep the game tied.
Amik Robertson comes up big
The Raiders have their first defensive touchdown under coordinator Patrick Graham — and it’s a long one.
Amik Robertson returned a Melvin Gordon fumble 68 yards, weaving in and out of traffic but never getting hit, for a touchdown in the second quarter at Allegiant Stadium. It’s Raiders 16, Broncos 10 after Daniel Carlson missed the extra point attempt.
Gordon was fighting for extra yardage when he twisted and took a hit from safety Duron Harmon to force the ball out. Robertson is pressed into action today with Rock Ya-Sin out of the lineup, and making the most of it.
Jacobs scores first touchdown for Raiders
The Raiders are giving Josh Jacobs the ball, and letting him do the rest.
The fourth-year running back just put Las Vegas ahead 10-7 on the Denver with a 10-yard touchdown run where he broke one tackle and bullied another defender into the end zone. Jacobs has 11 carries for 53 yards, as well as two catches for 20 yards early in the game.
It’s the most balanced Las Vegas has been on offense all year, as quarterback Derek Carr has attempted only 11 passes.
Broncos find end zone fast
Russell Wilson needed only four plays to pilot a scoring drive on the Broncos’ second possession.
He fired a 5-yard touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton in the back of the end zone to put Denver up 7-3 on Las Vegas at Allegiant Stadium. The Raiders gave the Broncos strong field position after taking a sack at the 1-yard line.
D.J. Jones claimed the Broncos’ first sack of the day, stunting by right guard Dylan Parham.
Raiders start scoring with a field goal
Josh Jacobs and Davante Adams helped take the Raiders right down the field during the Raiders’ opening drive at Allegiant Stadium.
Las Vegas just couldn’t finish the job. Kicker Daniel Carlson made a 26-yard field goal after the Raiders stalled inside the 10-yard line after gaining 60 yards.
The Raiders lead the Broncos 3-0 early.
Rock-Ya Sin announced as inactive
There was a chance the Raiders could have been without their top two cornerbacks in this afternoon’s game against the Broncos. Instead, they’ll only have to play without one.
Nate Hobbs has cleared the concussion protocol and will be able to play at Allegiant Stadium, but Rock Ya-Sin has not recovered from a knee injury suffered in last week’s loss to the Titans. The veteran cornerback, acquired in a trade with the Indianapolis Colts this offseason, will be inactive for the first time this season.
The other notable players on the Las Vegas inactive list are on the offensive side of the ball — tight end Foster Moreau, guard John Simpson and slot receiver Hunter Renfrow. Moreau also hurt his knee against the Titans, while Renfrow will miss his second straight game after a concussion suffered in the final play of a Week 2 loss to the Cardinals.
Simpson appears to be a healthy scratch, as the Raiders prioritize other players including Alex Bars on their interior offensive line.
Running back Brittain Brown, defensive tackle Neil Farrell Jr. and defensive end Tashawn Bower finish off the Raiders’ inactives list.
Ya-Sin will be the biggest missing piece they’ll need to overcome against the Broncos.
Pregame
Despite their divergent records, the AFC West rivals Raiders and Broncos enter their first meeting of the year in similar situations.
Both teams brought in new offensive-minded coaches this offseason (Josh McDaniels in Las Vegas and Nathaniel Hackett in Denver) and traded for superstar players (wide receiver Davante Adams for the Raiders and quarterback Russell Wilson for the Broncos) to anchor their units. But the transition hasn’t been as seamless as many expected.
Denver is in the bottom half of the league for offense by any efficiency metric but has won its past two games through defense and making key plays at crucial moments. Las Vegas is more around league average on offense, but has consistently folded in high-leverage situations, made too many mistakes and seen spotty defensive performances.
All three of the Raiders’ losses have come by less than a touchdown, indicating they’re not nearly as helpless as their NFL-worst record, but they’re running out of time to get on the right track and stay in the playoff hunt.
Favorable matchup: Broncos’ red-zone struggles vs. Raiders’ defense
Las Vegas fans are groaning that McDaniels’ promised fix of the red-zone woes that ailed the team a year ago hasn’t yet materialized. The Raiders rate 26th in the NFL in converting only 46.2% of their trips inside the 20-yard line into touchdowns. But the Broncos are dead-last in scoring touchdowns on only one of seven trips to the red zone. Hackett’s offense, and Wilson’s effectiveness, have greatly diminished once the field gets shorter. The Raiders’ defense, though, has also not excelled inside the 20-yard line. Las Vegas is 30th in the NFL in giving up touchdowns on eight of opponents’ 10 trips inside the red zone. But if anything can repair the problem, it would seem to be a matchup with the Broncos. Wilson used to be particularly dangerous near the end zone given his mobility, but he’s so far shown an unwillingness to scramble in Hackett’s offense.
THEY SAID IT
“He’s a breath of fresh air relative to the things he’s interested in. I know he’s talked about a fish tank and a zoo, but that’s real for him — having snakes and everything else. He loves that stuff. Believe me, my daughters think the guy is top of the chart for them. I mean, like Davante and Maxx Crosby are great, but they are like, ‘Where’s Mack?’” - Coach Josh McDaniels on his young daughters following with many Raiders’ fans and adopting Hollins as their favorite player
•••
“I’ve been doing the carnivore stuff — like I’ll cook a steak for 40 seconds on each side, put honey on it and eat it. That’s been pretty good actually. Realistically, I don’t know the last time I had vegetables. If kids or parents are listening, cover your ears.” -Hollins on his diet
•••
“(I didn’t know) until Saturday morning. They didn’t even tell me. They literally gave me an hour and a half to get ready and make the flight. I’m like, ‘Damn, I didn’t even pack a bag.’” -Running back Josh Jacobs on when he was cleared by team doctors to travel to Nashville and ultimately play against the Titans despite missing two practices last week with illness
•••
“We’ve had some really good meetings. We’re not pulling no fire alarms, nothing like that.” -Quarterback Derek Carr on the mentality he’s seen out of the team after a slow start
Problematic matchup: Broncos’ defensive backfield vs. Raiders’ passing game
The Raiders’ past two opponents, the Arizona Cardinals and Tennessee Titans, have confounded quarterback Derek Carr by switching up their coverages, and they don’t have anywhere near the caliber of the Broncos’ personnel. Denver is the only team in the league with three cornerbacks rated in the top 50 of the league by Pro Football Focus’ player grades so far this season, a trio that’s helped it rank third in the NFL in giving up 5.4 yards per pass attempt. Outside corners Ronald Darby (25th) and Patrick Surtain III (36th) were expected standouts, but the emergence of nickelback K’Waun Williams (46th) may have set the Broncos’ secondary over the top. The Raiders’ offense should still have the pieces to attack any secondary, with wide receivers Davante Adams and Mack Hollins, tight end Darren Waller and slot receiver Hunter Renfrow. But Hollins has been the only one producing to his potential early in the year. Waller and Renfrow (who’s expected to return from a concussion that sidelined him in Week 3) have underperformed, while Carr has struggled to find Adams the past two weeks.
Gamebreaker: Linebacker Denzel Perryman
The Raiders’ defense needs a spark, and the hard-hitting team captain specializes in bringing a spark. Perryman injured his ankle in the first half of a Week 1 loss to the LA Chargers and hasn’t played since, but he appears on track to return after practicing this week. The Raiders have missed him more than numbers can illustrate. Perryman wears the green dot on his helmet for the defense, meaning he can communicate with coaches pre-snap on the field and relay calls to his teammates. Second-year linebacker Divine Deablo assumed the role with Perryman sidelined, and seemed to fill in well enough, but the veteran Perryman is naturally more vocal and revered. And his greatest strength is tackling in the run game — an area where Deablo and other Raiders fell short last week when the Titans scored touchdowns on each of their opening three drives.
Big Number: 80
That’s how many receiving yards per game Hollins is averaging, making him the Raiders’ leader in the department and 17 yards ahead of Adams, whom many consider the best receiver in the NFL. The sixth-year NFL veteran, who previously played for the Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles, is coming off a career outing in which he had eight catches for 158 yards and a touchdown against the Titans. Some have questioned whether he can continue being one of the primary pieces of the Raiders’ offense, and the answer should be, "why not?" He’s clearly established himself as the No. 2 wide receiver and benefited from defenses paying extra attention to Adams, Waller and Renfrow while catching 73% of his targets. Hollins has also importantly established a strong rapport with everyone in the locker room in his first year with the Raiders, as he’s a team captain and near-unanimously labeled as the most fun teammate to be around.
Best Bet (0-3): Over 45.5 points
Partially out of desperation to break an early-season slump, let’s go to one of the most basic betting options on the board. This is a buy-low opportunity on both offenses, which have too much talent to continue performing the way they have. The Raiders likely would have won last week if Waller hadn't uncharacteristically dropped a pass in the end zone that turned into an interception. The Broncos almost surely would be undefeated if they didn’t lose a pair of fumbles on the 1-yard line in Seattle in Week 1. The average NFL game dating back to last season features 46 total points. It’s an overreaction that this matchup is priced below average, especially in an indoor stadium with two proven quarterbacks. Wilson isn’t washed up; Carr isn’t incapable. They’re both just off to slow starts and should soon break out.
