The Las Vegas Raiders lost their ninth straight game and fell to 2-13 after losing 23-21 to the Houston Texans in Week 16.
Against the best defense in the league (272.3 yards per game, first in National Football League), the Raiders held their own and almost stole a victory from a likely playoff team.
Las Vegas’ offense has struggled to score all season long and have the lowest scoring offense in the NFL (14.5 points per game). Even with some great offensive weapons, this unit has been blown out of the water by opposing teams.
Rookie running back Ashton Jeanty had a strong performance and played arguably his best game in his young career. He rushed for 128 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries as well as one reception for 60 yards and a score. Jeanty’s 188 all-purpose yards were a career-high, surpassing the 155 yards he had against the Chicago Bears in Week 4.
Jeanty became the first rookie to score rushing and receiving touchdowns of 60 or more yards since Kareem Hunt in 2017, according to NFL.com.
“Against Houston, the league's best defense, Jeanty once again showed why he still has a high ceiling despite an underwhelming rookie campaign,” ESPN’s Ryan McFadden wrote Sunday. “Jeanty recorded 188 total yards -- 128 on the ground -- and a touchdown on 26 touches. He became the first player with a 50-yard rushing touchdown and 50-yard receiving touchdown in the same game since Lamar Miller in 2015, per ESPN Research.”
Another struggling player that performed well was quarterback Geno Smith. Smith has had a rough season and has struggled with turnovers. He didn’t start last week due to injury, but with how he had been playing, a quarterback change was likely anyway. However, backup Kenny Pickett didn’t show any reason to stick with him under center and Smith got the nod against Houston.
“Outside of quarterback Geno Smith throwing a pick-six in the first quarter, he played very well,” McFadden wrote. “Smith completed 16 of 23 passes for 201 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. He made a pair of big plays in the passing game, completing a 60-yard touchdown pass to Jeanty and a 37-yard pass to rookie wideout Jack Bech.”
There was already speculation that Smith would remain as the starter down the stretch, but after this performance, the speculation should be a reality. Jeanty, Smith and the Raiders will look to build some late-season momentum against the New York Giants in Week 17.