Oakland Raiders sink the lowly New York Giants, 24-17

The Oakland Raiders handle the New York Giants on Sunday afternoon in Week 13, 24-17. Here are all the highlights, the game recap and the final score.

It wasn’t easy, but the Oakland Raiders were able to put away the terrible New York Giants on Sunday afternoon. The Raiders won 24-17 over Geno Smith and the Giants. Oakland improves to 6-6 on the year, while New York falls to 2-10 on the season.

The Raiders got a huge play early in the ball game, as starting running back Marshawn Lynch found sweet, delicious pay dirt of the 51-yard variety. That incredible run had him go over 100 yards on the day. This is the first time Lynch has done that since coming out of retirement to play for his hometown Raiders.

It was a low-scoring affair early in the ball game. Oakland took a 10-7 lead into halftime. The Raiders were able to strip sack Smith twice on the afternoon. However, Oakland did have a fumble on the day and an awful special teams miscue that should have resulted in Giants points. Thankfully, defensive end Khalil Mack was able to strip-sack Smith in the red zone late in the second quarter to prevent points.

What it really came down to for the Raiders was a great effort by the defensive front-seven and Derek Carr‘s ability to stretch the field late in the game. Oakland was able to sack Smith three times on the day. Mack, outside linebacker Bruce Irvin and defensive lineman Denico Autry were all able to bring down Smith once.

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Once again, the biggest indicator in this game for if the Raiders won or not was Carr’s yards per attempt. Did he eclipse 8.0? Well, he matched that ever so crucial passing metric threshold and helped the Raiders improve to 6-6 on the year. Oakland needed this win to stay alive in the AFC wild card race, but the divisional race just got so much more interesting.

Entering Week 14, the Raiders are in a three-way tie for first place in the AFC West at 6-6. They hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the reeling Kansas City Chiefs, losers of six of their last seven games. However, the Raiders will have to wait until Week 17 to avenge their early season loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, who have caught fire of late.

Sure, one could argue that the Raiders might have had a harder time with the Giants had Eli Manning played instead of Smith. That being said, Smith had a solid first start for the Giants, as he completed 21 of 34 passes for 212 yards and a touchdown. Simply put, the team with the better quarterback won on Sunday, so good for the Raiders.

Three Stars

1. Marshawn Lynch: Lynch rushed for 101 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown. He also had two catches for 20 yards.
2. NaVorro Bowman: Bowman had nine tackles, eight solo, one for a loss of yardage and a fumble recovery.
3. Derek Carr: Carr completed 22 of 36 passes for 287 yards and a touchdown.

Highlights

Next Game

The Raiders will have their second annual meeting with their arch rival in Week 14. Oakland will travel to Missouri to play the hated Chiefs next Sunday. Kickoff from Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City will be at 10:00 a.m. PT, 1:00 p.m. ET on Dec. 10. CBS will have the early afternoon telecast.

Next: Raiders 2018 NFL Draft, Week 13: 5 first-round targets

It’s been an interesting ride for the Raiders this season. Though 6-6 isn’t ideal, Oakland has to be happy to be in the midst of what should be a spectacular divisional race in the final quarter of the season. Oakland has gone 4-2 in their last six games. This team is hitting its stride at the ride. Let’s get ready for KC!