Well, at least they managed to play a competent game this week.
The Las Vegas Raiders lost their ninth straight game to the Houston Texans, 23-21, as they failed to capitalize on a chance to pull a major upset against a team that was supposed to beat them easily.
This game was a classic case of a bad team hanging around against a better opponent. Raiders quarterback Geno Smith played the “Geno giveth, and Geno taketh away” game with the Texans in the first quarter, throwing an early pick-six to Derek Stingley, then a TD pass to tight end Brock Bowers on the subsequent drive to tie the game at 7-7.
A pair of field goals by Houston kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn put the Raiders down 13-7 at the half, but this one was far from over as the Texans consistently failed to put Las Vegas away.
The Raiders actually took the lead for a brief moment in the third quarter on a 60-yard touchdown pass from Smith to running back Ashton Jeanty, who finally had that breakout game the fan base as been waiting for. Jeanty also had 128 yards on 24 carries to go with a rushing touchdown, and he was easily the star of the game for Las Vegas.
Houston countered with another Fairbairn field goal to regain the lead, 16-14, and quarterback C.J. Stroud finally got the Texans offense in gear when he fond tight end Dalton Schultz wide open for a one-yard score to make it 23-14. A 51-yard touchdown jaunt by Jeanty pulled the Raiders to within two, but that was as close as Vegas was able to get.
Penalties played a big role in this Raiders loss as well, particularly in the secondary. A pass interference call on safety Lonnie Johnson Jr. against receiver Nico Collins set up the Schultz score, and another interference call against cornerback Darien Porter gave Houston a crucial first down late in the fourth quarter that allowed the Texans to run out the clock.
Geno Smith was much better in this one, aside from the pick six. He went 16-for-23 and threw for 201 yards and two touchdowns, as the Raiders broke through and posted 300 yards of offense to break a streak of six straight games in which the Raiders had fewer than 17 points and less than 275 yards, which is the longest such streak in the NFL since the 2008 Cleveland Browns, according to an AP report via ESPN.
The Texans should breathe a sigh of relief after this one. They clearly had a letdown game, and ultimately they were lucky to emerge with a victory. Stroud had just 187 passing yards as he went 23-for-35, and the Houston offense struggled all day long. They managed to avoid falling into what was a classic trap game, and they’ll head west to meet the Los Angeles Chargers next week in a game with huge playoff implications for both teams.
The Raiders managed to play some decent football against Houston, and they still have the top pick in next year’s draft, which qualifies as a good day given some of what they’ve put on the field lately. They’ll head home to play the New York Giants in a game with huge draft-board implications for both teams.