Derek Carr, Jon Gruden silence critics in Raiders 34-24 victory over Saints
By Nick Ellis
The Raiders played a solid game on both sides of the ball in their first game in Las Vegas, dominating the Saints in a 34-24 victory.
The Raiders played their first game in Las Vegas in a Monday Night showdown against one of the best teams in the NFL in the New Orleans Saints. The game got off to a rocky start for the Raiders, trailing 10-0 after a series of missed tackles by the Las Vegas defense, but they battled back in a big way in the first half.
Later on in the game, Derek Carr and the Raiders found a way to move the ball, and there would be a big momentum swing in the game, as they drove down the field, finishing a drive with a touchdown pass to fullback Alec Ingold. Ingold would become the first Raider to score a touchdown in the new stadium.
The Raiders offense would not slow down after that, as the team would continue to throw the ball all over the field, tying the game at 17 at halftime, thanks to a Carr to Zay Jones touchdown and a Daniel Carlson field goal.
Las Vegas would pick up where they left off in the second half, something they had not done in 2019. The team would drive all the way downfield, and after almost fumbling the ball two times on the goal line, the Raiders would go for it on fourth down, as Carr would find Darren Waller in the end zone to take the lead 24-17.
Later in the game, Josh Jacobs would limp off the field, eventually leading to a big mishap, as Jalen Richard would fumble on a pitch on third down, but luckily the Raiders defense would respond and get the Raiders the ball back.
Jacobs would return and make an immediate impact in the game, leading the Raiders down the field, as Jalen Richard bounced back and makes an incredible touchdown on third and ten, avoiding tacklers and finding the end zone to push the lead to 31-17.
The Saints would easily drive down the field to cut the game down to 31-24, as Alvin Kamara would punch it in for a short touchdown with around 4:00 left in the game. The Raiders would get the ball back, feeding Josh Jacobs the ball to run the clock down
The Raiders offense were able to stay on the field, with help of a pass interference to keep the Raiders on the field until there was about a minute left in the game. The Raiders would elect to go for a field goal instead of punting the ball.
Daniel Carlson would nail a 54-yard field goal to extend the score to 34-24, pulling off a massive upset in Week 2.