It's a new day for Las Vegas, at least on Sunday, as the Raiders dominated the New York Giants from open to close. In Antonio Pierce's coaching debut, the Silver and Black played with energy and passion not seen all year. Additionally, as the Raiders came into the weekend as the only team whose offense has yet to score 20 points this season, they managed to string together 24 in 30 minutes of play.
Pound the Rock
From the opening kick, you can see that the Raiders wanted to play a physical style of football. On offense, under new offensive coordinator Bo Hardegree, the Raiders prioritized running the football Sunday. Running it 34 times for 125 yards, Josh Jacobs led the way for 98 yards on 26 of those 34 carries, bringing it home for six twice. Give credit to the Raiders' offensive line as well. They opened up a lot of holes for the backs and were physical all day.
O'Connell Impresses
Hardegree put together a good game plan for rookie quarterback Aiden O'Connell, who impressed in his second career start; he got rid of the ball quickly and made the proper adjustments at the line of scrimmage, and subsequently was making good reads. On the whole, O'Connell threw for 209 yards on 16-of-25 passing. He did not throw a touchdown pass but did a good job taking care of the football and spreading around the wealth, with eight guys picking up at least one catch. Mistake-free football is what the Raiders needed, and that is what O'Connell gave them, especially with the defense playing well.
Defense Balled Out
The Raiders' defense once again had trouble stopping the run, giving up 123 yards and 90 to Saquon Barkley alone, but they did a great job against the pass. Giants quarter Daniel Jones suffered a knee injury early in the game and did not return. Tommy Devito took over for Jones and struggled, throwing for just 175 yards.
The Raiders defense only gave up 154 yards passing and compiled eight sacks. Maxx Crosby had three of Vegas' eight sacks to pair with eight tackles. Additionally, Devito saw two passes go the other way, one pick coming from Amik Robertson and the other from Nate Hobbs. Robertson, specifically, had a great outing, picking up a trio of pass breakups to go with the pick. Although it was just one game against a battered Giants squad, it was so refreshing to see this team play with passion and effort. Now, it's about maintaining that on a week-by-week basis.
Final Score: Las Vegas Raiders 30, New York Giants 6
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