The Las Vegas Raiders are playing at the Denver Broncos on Thursday night. Here is everything to need to know about the game:
First quarter
Tyler Lockett caught a first down on third down for his first catch as a Raider on the opening drive. But the drive stalled after a penalty and a sack. Star Las Vegas punter A.J. Cole pinned the Broncos at their own 2 on a beauty of a coffin corner punt.
The Broncos ran the ball for nine yards and then punted from their 11. Great opportunity for the Raiders as a bad punt gave them great field position at the Denver 41. The Raiders took care of business and scored on a four-yard touchdown run by Ashton Jeanty. They lead 7-0 with 3:02 to go in the quarter.
Adam Butler sacked Bo Nix for a 9-yard loss to force another three-and-out. Great start for Las Vegas.
A big run by Ashton Jeanty was negated by a holding call on receiver Jack Bech.
Raiders lead 7-0. The Raiders had 87 yards and six first downs to the Broncos’ yards yards and no first downs.
Second quarter:
Guard Jackson Powers-Johnson looked to suffer an ankle injury on a sack. He was carted to the locker room. Alex Cappa replaced him.
The Broncos’ offense stalled again. and had yet another shanked punt. The Broncos look sooooo flat.
A big 31-yard pass to Brock Bowers put the Raiders in business.
Oh man, a pass interference penalty on Dont’e Thornton negated a touchdown pass to Tre Tucker. The Rai
The Raiders were forced to punt. This is the Broncos’ first real chance to show life.
Another Cole gem as he pins the Broncos inside their own. Cole, the Broncos’ offense and their punter are the story of this game so far.
The Raiders went for it on fourth and five in Denver territory but another sack gave Denver it’s first good-field position of the game.
The Broncos got their first first down with 5:50 to go in the first half. Then, Denver hit a 43-yard pass play and then Bo Nix hit Tory Franklin on a seven-yard pass play to make it 7-7 with 2:41.
The Raiders have a chance to take the lead, but they have to be pretty frustrated after the great start to this game.
Now, left guard Dylan Parham is out with an ankle injury. He is questionable to return. Will Putnam is playing. The Raiders’ offensive line is a mess against this dominant pass-rush. Smith was sacked twice more on this game. The count is up to five. The last time the Raiders allowed five sacks in the first half was 2006.
The Broncos had a great chance but Kyu Blu Kelly intercepted Nix. That was a big momentum killer and needed for the Raiders.
Oh, bad drop by Thornton. Rough half for the rookie.
Raiders 7, Broncos 7 at halftime.
Denver gets the ball to start the second half. That will be a huge drive for both teams.
Third quarter:
The Broncos had two penalties that led to their fifth three-and-out of the game. Denver punter Jeremy Crawshaw got out of his funk with a54-yarder and tack on a 10-yard Las Vegas penalty.
The Raiders followed up with a three-and-out of their own.
Denver stand out guard Quinn Meinerz is sick and didn’t leave the locker room at halftime.
Denver made some weird play calls ( a double pass on third and one?) and then tried a 59-yard field by Will Lutz, which he missed badly. The Raiders have great field position again, at their 49. Denver begging to give this game away.
The Raiders are just as sloppy as the Broncos. A smith pass bounces off Jeanty and the Broncos picked it off and are the Raiders’ 33. That pick is not on Smith, but it’s his NFL high 12th of the season.
The Broncos keep making mistakes. They are up to 11. And Denver has to punt after getting great field position. Ugly game.
Blocked punt by Denver. The Broncos have the ball at the Raiders’ 12. This is such a crappy game.
Field goal.
Broncos 10, Raiders 7.
Fourth quarter:
Geno Smith was hurt and replaced by Kenny Pickett. The Raiders have gone seven straight possessions with a first down.
Smith returned.
Smith hit Tre Tucker for a 25-yard reception to end the first-down drought. It elapsed more than 28 minutes.
Smith is limping.
Nix throws another interception to Blu Kelly. The Raiders are in business in Denver territory.
Oh wow, Daniel Carlson missed a 48-yard field goal. Broncos take over leading with 4:26 to go.
Final score:
Broncos 10, Raiders 7.
Now that the game is over, let’s take a look at the key aspects:
Team records: The Las Vegas Raiders are 2-7. The Denver Broncos are 8-2.
What the loss means for the Raiders:
Las Vegas has lost nine straight AFC West games dating back to the start of last season. It’s the longest current streak in the NFL. The Broncos have won seven straight games. The Broncos had a terrible night and the Raiders couldn’t take advantage because they made so many mistakes.
Turning point of the game:
Both teams were bad. The Raiders were in control early then fell about in the second quarter. It just seemed like they would lose the game from that point on.
Injury report:
Right guard Jackson Powers-Johnson was carted to the locker room after suffering an ankle injury in the second quarter. He did not return. Alex Cappa replaced Powers-Johnson. Left guard Dylan Parham left the game in the second quarter. Will Putnam replaced him. Reserve safety Tristin McCollum was being evaluated for a concussion. Geno Smith went down in the fourth quarter but returned. He was limping, though. He has a quad injury. The Raiders have a long rest between games, but we will see how these injured players respond.
What’s next for the Raiders:
The Raiders have a long break as they host the 3-5-1 Dallas Cowboys on Monday night, November 17. Kickoff is at 5:15 p.m. PT.
