The Las Vegas Raiders defeated the New York Jets 16-12 on "Sunday Night Football: at Allegiant Stadium. The Jets now sit at 4-5, while the Raiders are 5-5.
If you like field goals, then this was the game for you. We did not see a touchdown until the fourth quarter, when Raiders' Michael Mayer got his first receiving touchdown of his career.
Before then, it was 9-9, with each side swapping field goals throughout three quarters. The Jets kicked things off with a 47-yarder and the Raiders answered with one of their own. The Jets kicked two more field goals, going up 9-3 and the Raiders were able to cut the lead by three with a field goal of their own right before halftime.
New York's field goals were from 47 yards, 53 yards, 30 yards and 45 yards. Las Vegas' field goals were from 41 yards, 54 yards and 40 yards.
The Jets defense had two major moments, intercepting Aidan O'Connell, a pick that lead to a field goal and fumble recovery, that the offense was unable to capitalize on.
The game came down to the final seconds, with a bomb to the end zone from Wilson into a crowd of Jets and Raiders players. No one was able to come up with the ball and the game ended on an incomplete pass.
Why the Raiders won
The Raiders had fewer total yards, fewer yards per play, fewer passing yards, their quarterback was sacked more, for a loss of more yards and they had more turnovers, so it seems by looking at the stats they may have lost this game. Las Vegas made their fare share of mistakes, but they were able to recover from them better than New York.
The touchdown, that ended up being the deciding factor of the game, was set up by great field position on a punt. Las Vegas started the drive at their own 47 yard line and the short field proved to be crucial.
Why the Jets lost
Just when the Jets seem to be getting something going on offense, they do something to push themselves backward. The Jets have gone 35 drives on offense without getting into the end zone and just when they were knocking on the door, Wilson threw an interception in the red zone.
New York's defense came up with an interception and a fumble recovery, but the Jets offense only turned the two takeaways into three points.
The end of the game saw some mismanagement of the clock, with head coach Robert Saleh claiming that he called the final timeout with more than 12 seconds left on the clock. He did not win the argument and crucial time was wasted for the Jets offense.
Turning point
For most of the game, it felt like whichever team could get in the end zone would come out with the win. The Raiders got in the end zone once, the game's only trip to the end zone.
The Mayer TD gave the Raiders their first lead of the game, one they would keep for the rest of the game.
Play of the game
Davante Adams not only made an incredible one-handed catch, he did it with a hand on him. Take a look at the play:
What's next
The Jets have an AFC East matchup next week, when they head to Buffalo to face the Bills. The Bills will face the Broncos on "Monday Night Football" and while they are the favored team, if they do lose it will make the New York-Buffalo game even more interesting. The AFC East, besides the Patriots, is a close race, as the Dolphins lead with a 6-3 record.
The Raiders will also face an AFC East team next week, the Dolphins, who are coming off their bye week. Before the bye, Miami lost 21-14 to the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs. The 'Fins have lost two of their last three games.
