The Raiders parlayed four interceptions and a fumble recovery and a big day by running back Josh Jacobs for a 37-12 win over the Denver Broncos Sunday at Allegiant Stadium.
The Raiders improve to 6-3 going into a rematch against defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City next week in Las Vegas. The Broncos fell to 3-6.
Jacobs had touchdown runs of 5 and 11 yards, Daniel Carlson had field goals of 24, 52 and 22 yards, and Devontae Booker had fourth-quarter scoring runs of 7 and 23 yards to account for the Raiders scoring.
The Broncos managed field goals of 50 and 33 yards by Brandon McManus before finally getting their first touchdown trailing by 24 points with 6:55 left on a 7-yard touchdown from Drew Lock to DaeSean Hamilton.
Jacobs rushed for 112 yards on 21 carries, with Booker adding 81 on 16 attempts as the Raiders ran for 204 yards overall compared to 66 yards rushing for Denver.
Safety Jeff Heath had two interceptions of Lock, with defensive end Carl Nassib and Nick Kwiatkoski getting one each. Kwiatkoski's one-handed pick of Lock came with 18 seconds left and closed off Denver's last scoring opportunity.
Quarterback Derek Carr was 16 of 25 for 154 yards as the Raiders were content to run the ball and play field position on a day when they weren't particularly sharp in the passing game. Included were a pair of dropped potential touchdowns from Nelson Agholor and Darren Waller.
The Raiders came in to the game with just five takeaways in eight games before Sunday's avalanche.
Highs, lows and everything you need to know:
— FUMMBLE!: Nevin Lawson forced and recovered a Hamilton fumble in the fourth quarter, which led to a Booker's 7-yard touchdown run for a 30-6 lead with 10 minutes to play.
Booker joined the Raiders as a free agent after four seasons with the Broncos.
Double ejection: The Broncos Tim Patrick and the Raiders Isaiah Johnson were ejected early in the fourth quarter on a play in which Johnathan Abram gave Patrick a shove and Patrick threw a punch. Johnson then took a swing at Patrick.
— Nassib with the pick: The Raiders went up 23-6 on a 22-yard Carlson field goal, set up by an interception and 23-yard return by Carl Nassib.
Nassib signed with the Raiders as a former 3-4 linebacker in part so he could put his hand down and rush the passer. On this play, however, he dropped into coverage and Lock threw him the ball when pressured by Nicholas Morrow.
The Raiders failed to convert the turnover into a touchdown, but did add three more points on Carlson's third field goal.
— Taking control: The Raiders went on an 11-play, 78-yard drive following a Broncos punt to take a 20-6 lead with 36 seconds left in the third quarter. Jacobs did the honors with a 5-yard run.
Included was a nice bit of improvisation by Carr for a 22-yard pass to Henry Ruggs III on third-and–4, breaking to his left and lofting a pass that was caught for the first down. They overcame a holding penalty on Denzelle Good which set up a second-and-18 with Carr hitting Jacobs for 13 yards out of the backfield and Darren Waller for five and the first down to the 5.
— Waller drops a big one: Waller appeared to have a 55-yard touchdown pass after getting open on the first possession of the second half but dropped a Carr pass that was ever-so-slightly underthrown but easily catchable.
The tight end came back to catch a 24-yard pass on third down, but the Raiders were eventually forced to settle for Carlson's 52-yard field goal with 9:13 left in the third quarter. Carlson had made all four of his attempts from 50 and beyond in 2020.
— Heath with the save: Heath's interception of a Lock pass at the goal line prevented the Broncos from a potentially devastating touchdown drive to end the first half.
It was the second interception of the game for Heath and third of the season and enabled the Raiders to take a 10-6 lead into halftime.
On the play before the touchdown, Lock had apparently run for a 5-yard touchdown only to have it called back because of tight end Noah Fant's holding penalty against — you guessed it — Heath.
Denver had driven 70 yards in nine plays before the back-to-back mistakes, including a 27-yard Lock-to-Patrick pass and another 27 yards to K.J. Hamler.
The Raiders Clelin Ferrell also received a roughing the passer penalty on Lock, moving the ball to the 24 to the 12.
— Algholor has costly drop: Wide receiver Nelson Agholor dropped a potential 6-yard touchdown pass on second and goal and the Raiders were eventually forced to settle for Carlson's 24-yard field goal for a 10-6 lead with 1:44 to play.
The Raiders, who had three consecutive three-and-out possessions, drove 81 yards for the three points. Big plays included a 16-yard pass to rookie Bryan Edwards, his first reception since Week 3, and a 24-yard run by Jacobs, his longest gain of the season.
— Third-and-15 woes: The Broncos cut the margin to 7-6 with 8:15 left in the half on a 33-yard field goal by McManus. The 56-yard eight-play drive included a third-and-15 conversion with Lock hitting Jeudy for 26 yards against Trayvon Mullen. Mullen then was beaten for 27 yards to Tim Patrick before the Raiders stiffened at the 15-yard line.
— Wasted opportunity: A Jeff Heath interception of Lock and return to the Denver 40 was wasted when the Raiders couldn't score on the short field.
On a fourth-and-1 at the Denver 30, Jacobs was stuffed for no gain on a play in which Brandon Parker was called for holding. The Broncos accepted the penalty and the Raiders punted, with A.J. Cole pinning Denver at the 2-yard line.
— Irving makes debut: Defensive end David Irving, signed after being reinstated by the NFL following a suspension, played in his first game in more than two years. He entered the game on Denver's second series and had a tackle. Irving last played on Oct. 21, 2018 for the Dallas Cowboys.
— Mullen out, Broncos score: Mullen exited the game after a helmet hit againt Noah Fant on Denver's second possession and was replaced by Damon Arnette. The Broncos drove 62 yards before stalling and scoring on a 50-yard field goal by McManus.
Mullen returned to the game.
— Great beginnings: The Raiders forced the Broncos to punt out of their own end zone on the opening possession with Denver botching the opening kickoff. It took the Raiders seven plays to capitalize with Jacobs scoring on an 11-yard run. The big play on the drive was a third-and-5 strike from Carr to Renfrow for 25 yards to the Denver 32-yard line.
— Morrow sacks up: Linebacker Nicholas Morrow, who started in place of Cory Littleton (COVID-19 reserve list) had a first half sack of Lock, the first by a Raiders linebacker since he had one in 2018 against the Ravens.
— Jackson in, Miller out: Guard Gabe Jackson, listed as questionable with an illness on Friday, started at right guard. Jackson and center Rodney Hudson are the only linemen to start all nine games. The Raiders have had six different combinations of starters on the offensive line since Week 1.
