Las Vegas Raiders – Minnesota Vikings : 26-20
One of the big projects of the summer in Las Vegas is at the level of the offensive line. The meeting once morest the Vikings showed that coach Josh McDaniels does not yet have all the answers despite the victory and that he is trying to find the ideal formula. Many different rotations were tested on almost every offensive series, which allowed the locals to keep up the pace over the distance and put themselves in the clear when they returned from the locker room. After a sluggish first act, the two inaugural series of the 2e act resulted in touchdowns, enough to guard once morest a Minnesota comeback.
Versatility is key, but it’s more important to have a solid line to effectively protect quarterbacks and open ground breaches. The holder of the evening, Jarrett Stidham (10/15, 68 yards + 4 races, 16 yards, 1 touchdown) was sacked 3 times and experienced all the trouble in the world to advance his squad in the first half. The Raiders gained only 23 yards on the first 12 attempts, and only one action resulted in a gain of more than 4 yards. Nick Mullens (7/9, 94 yards, 1 touchdown + 2 carries, 9 yards) led the operations following the cut and led his people to the end zone, before leaving Chase Garbers (2/3, 19 yards, 1 sacks conceded) end the game.
As once morest Jacksonville, the group of running backs pulled out of the game. Even with Josh Jacobs left to rest, the 4 runners used accumulated 140 yards. The choice of 7e turn, Brittain Brown, was the most visible and the most used (14 carries, 54 yards, 1 touchdown). Austin Walter, Kenyan Drake and Zamir White have also each worn the leather at least four times, with Drake and White adding a few takes along the way. Another element of satisfaction of the evening, the conversion rate: 8/16 out of 3e attempt, 2/2 out of 4e and 2/3 in the red zone.
The same cannot be said for their evening opponent, who is more delicate in this sector (1/7 out of 3e attempt, 1/1 of 4e and 2/4 in the red zone), which was above all weighed down by too many penalties on both sides of the ball at crucial moments. In total, the Vikings were penalized 8 times for 71 yards, including 7 violations for 66 yards in the first half of the game.
Kirk Cousins affected by COVID-19 at the weekend, all eyes were on Sean Mannion (8/12, 79 yards) and Kellen Mond (9/14, 119 yards, 2 touchdowns), who had a time of relatively equal game. While Mond has made some interesting throws and made his last 5 passes, both have missed open receivers in the end zone on 3e attempt, forcing kicker Greg Joseph into action to score points on foot. Veteran Albert Wilson stood out with his 2 touchdowns caught, while rookie running back Ty Chandler eclipsed the competition for backup quarterback with his 50 yards gained in 5 carries and his 56-yard return. . Enough to redistribute the cards behind the irremovable Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison.
