Las Vegas is playing football again. New York is sinking, and probably saying goodbye to a catastrophic season. Additionally, Daniel Jones was injured again.
Las Vegas Raiders (4-5) – New York Giants (2-7): 30-6
First victory as interim coach for Antonio Pearce, former player of the… Giants. First victory as starting quarterback for rookie Aidan O’Connell (16/25, 209 yards).
This week, Las Vegas had some problems, and seemed to have solved them by winning this game. Which puts them back in the race for the wild card in the AFC conference.
Speaking of problems, if any team can do worse than the Raiders, we can think of their opponent of the day: the New York Giants. The return of Daniel Jones (4/9, 25 yards), as well as left tackle Andrew Thomas, were supposed to give a glimmer of hope to the Giants.
This is not the case, the quarterback leaving his partners at the end of the first quarter with a non-contact knee injury. An injury undoubtedly serious, given the way he fell to the ground.
After a catastrophic first period, Brian Daboll’s men lost for the 7th time this season. The end of the season may be long for the New York team. A striking contrast, compared to the improvement seen last season.
Daniel Jones injury
The first period is an ordeal for the Giants. The results: 3 punts, 1 loss of ball on 4th attempt, and 2 interceptions. But the worst is yet to come. During an action on the 3rd attempt while moving backwards, Daniel Jones injured his knee alone. He immediately returns to the locker room, replaced by Tommy DeVito (15/20, 175 yards, TD, 2 INT). The rookie quarterback tries to play hero, but is intercepted twice, on his first two missed passes of the first half.
The Raiders are not asking for that much, and seem more liberated after the ouster of Josh McDaniels. Aidan O’Connell plays without pressure, and finds his receivers. Antonio Pearce gives confidence to his players, and in particular to Josh Jacobs (26 races, 98 yards, 2 TDs). The running back scores 2 touchdowns, and already beats his season record for yards in a game (85).
A little joy in Vegas
The meeting already closed, Las Vegas is content to manage. Aggressive throughout the game with 8 sacks including 3 for Maxx Crosby alone, the defense “let” Tommy DeVito throw his first touchdown pass for Wan’Dale Robinson. New York can console itself by saying that in the second half, they tied with Las Vegas (6-6).
The Raiders return to victory against a New York team, whose season is probably already over. After several embarrassing performances, Antonio Pearce’s players also found joy in a locker room which had had bad days in recent days.
