Raiders Hold On to Outlast the Rams, 17-16
Even though the Las Vegas Raiders weren’t nearly as sharp as they were in their preseason opener last week, they slipped past the Los Angeles Rams and moved to 2-0.
Safety Dallin Leavitt broke up a two-point conversion pass intended for tight end Jacob Harris in the right corner of the end zone one play after Harris beat him for a three-yard touchdown in the left corner with 15 seconds left, and the Raiders escaped the Rams, 17-16, on Saturday night at Sofi Stadium in Inglewood, CA.
Raiders wide receiver Dillon Stoner recovered the onside kick and it was over, and much of the crowd of 68,834 cheered, many of them still fans of the Silver and Black from their years in Los Angeles from 1982-1994.
“I like our grit,” Raiders Coach Jon Gruden said afterward. “Our young people have gotten better and found a way to win two football games, no matter what the stakes are.”
The Raiders trailed, 10-7, at halftime but Daniel Carlson kicked a 29-yard field goal with 5:01 left in the third quarter and Las Vegas scored what proved to be the winning points when Nathan Peterman threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Marcell Ateman with 6:58 left in the game and Carlson added the extra point that made the difference.
“We’ve been working on that double move all week in practice,” said Ateman, who is in his fourth season with the Raiders after they drafted him out of Oklahoma State. “I thought we were going to call it earlier in the game, but then Coach (Gruden) said, ‘Your play is coming up.’
“So they called it and I just ran out there and ran it the way we did all week, and it worked out just like it did in practice.”
Third-string quarterback Peterman went all the way at quarterback after missing only one play last week in a dominating 20-7 victory over the Seattle Seahawks, this time completing 16-of-24 passes for 172 yards and the touchdown to Ateman, while throwing two interceptions—one that was tipped at the line of scrimmage and another that bounced off the shoulder pad of wide receiver Keelan Doss.
Peterman, who was sacked three times, also led the Raiders in rushing with 35 yards on five carries, as the offense was not as productive as last week, with B.J. Emmons rushing for 34 yards on eight carries and Trey Ragas managing only one yard on six carries, but he did dive for a two-yard touchdown that gave the Raiders a 7-0 lead with seven minutes left in the first quarter.
Even though the Raiders couldn’t put together a long drive until going 67 yards in six plays for the winning touchdown, Peterman again spread the ball around by hitting 10 receivers, with tight end Alex Ellis leading the way with four receptions for 41 yards, while Ateman caught two passes for 45 yards, Ragas had two for 24 and DJ Turner made two grabs for 19 yards.
The Raiders defense had problems with Rams quarterback Bryce Perkins, a rookie free agent from Virginia, who completed 26-for-39 passes for 208 yards and two touchdowns with one interception, and also kept drives alive with his legs, running nine times for 41 yards as running back Jake Funk led the Rams in rushing with 56 yards on seven carries.
Wide receivers JJ Koski, who had eight receptions for 61 yards, Tutu Atwell, who made eight catches for 46 yards, and Landen Akers, who caught five for 49 yards, seemingly got open at will in the Raiders secondary.
Rams linebacker Chris Garrett might have been the best player on the field, as he filled out the stat sheet with four tackles, 1½ sacks for 10.5 yards in losses, three quarterback hits on Peterman, one tackle behind the line of scrimmage, two passes defended and a forced fumble.
The Raiders also had a standout on defense, as rookie cornerback Nate Hobbs made four tackles, one tackle for a loss, two impressive passes defended, and an interception.
“We moved him around, played him at nickel and moved him outside, and he was excellent, got the job done no matter where we put him,” Coach John Gruden said “I don’t usually give out game balls for preseason games, but I just gave one to Nate Hobbs tonight and it was well deserved.
“He has the ‘It’ factor and rarely makes the same mistake twice.”
Said Hobbs: “Crazy. (Getting the game ball is) something I’ll never forget. I feel like I’m gaining the coaches’ trust. And they trusted me to play multiple spots. I feel like when guys go down, they can throw me at corner to fill in. It’s all about gaining their trust.”
Safety Roderic Teamer, who signed as a free agent in June, led the Raiders with seven unassisted tackles including one for a loss, while defensive Malcolm Koonce had six despite leaving the game briefly because of a left knee injury, while cornerback Nevin Lawson, linebacker Max Richardson, and cornerback Amik Robertson all made five stops.
Defensive tackle Darius Philon had only one tackle, but assisted linebacker Tanner Muse on the Raiders’ only sack of Perkins for a three-yard loss, added two quarterback hits, and turned in what might have been another play that saved the game when he blocked a 43-yard field goal attempt by Matt Gay with 10:36 left in the game.
Gay had to punt, kickoff, and kick field goals for the Rams because punters Johnny Hekker and Corey Bojorquez both are on the Covid-19 list.
After Philon’s block, the Raiders drove for the winning touchdown, the 29-yard pass on which Peterman made a pump fake as Ateman ran a double move to get open behind the Rams secondary in the left corner of the end zone.
The Raiders will try to finish the preseason at 3-0 when they play the San Francisco 49ers at 1 p.m. next Sunday at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
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