National Football League
Preview
Denver at Las Vegas
When: 4:05 PM ET, Sunday, November 24, 2024
Where: Allegiant Stadium, Paradise, Nevada

The Las Vegas Raiders will be looking to end a six-game losing streak on Sunday when they host the Denver Broncos.

The Raiders' season-defining skid began with a 34-18 loss to the Broncos in Denver on Oct. 6. They've yet to recover.

The losses haven't been within a touchdown for Las Vegas (2-8), save for a five-point setback to the Los Angeles Rams on Oct. 20 in which it trailed 20-6 before making three straight field goals to make the final score look a bit more competitive.

The Broncos (6-5), on the other hand, have been a pleasant surprise.

Expectations for Bo Nix's rookie year weren't exactly through the roof, but the outlook has changed with the quarterback's recent performance. Nix has thrown 2,275 yards so far this season in addition to 14 touchdowns. Over the past two games, Nix has 522 passing yards with six touchdowns and zero interceptions.

"It's hard to pick out specific things (that he's doing well)," Broncos coach Sean Payton said. "I mean, we're blocking well. I think we have balance. I say this all the time, your allies at that position are your defense. He's certainly settled in third down (and) red zone.

"You're learning each week and then pretty soon you're like, I belong here. It's clear (Nix) belongs here."

For Nix, his performance earned him his first career AFC Player of the Week honor.

"It's a great honor," Nix said. "It's a great responsibility, but at the same time, it doesn't end with just that. You obviously got to go back, continue, and they only remember your last game. You got to go out there and continue to do it.

"It's a great honor. Many great players have won the award in the past. It's an honor to be included and be that recipient, but there's a lot of work left to be done."

Las Vegas starter Gardner Minshew hasn't had the same success recently.

Minshew has just eight passing touchdowns and nine interceptions, and his tally of 1,783 yards for the season ranks a lackluster 24th overall among starting quarterbacks.

The Raiders' ground attack hasn't been much of a help either, as the team ranks last in the league with 75.2 rushing yards per game.

Las Vegas also is nursing several injuries, including a shoulder injury to cornerback Jakorian Bennett. He sustained the injury during the first quarter of the Raiders' 34-19 loss to the Miami Dolphins last Sunday.

"It's one of the ones you've got to just swallow, you've got to take it," Las Vegas coach Antonio Pierce said. "There's been some non-contact injuries. There's been guys getting rolled up. Think about the Cincinnati Bengals game, you get six guys with ankle injuries, that's kind of unheard of.

"Just been having some bad breaks, but nobody feels sorry for us. Nobody feels sorry for me. You've got to roll out there with 11 players, and that's what we're going to do come Sunday."

In addition to Bennett, fellow cornerbacks Jack Jones (back) and Nate Hobbs (ankle), running backs Alexander Mattison (ankle) and Zamir White (quadricep), tight ends Harrison Bryant (ankle) and Justin Shorter (illness), and center Andre James (ankle) did not participate in practice on Wednesday.

As for the Broncos, guard Ben Powers (shoulder) did not practice on Wednesday.

--Field Level Media

Stats and Records
Team Comparison
  W‑L Strk PF PA Home Away Grass Turf OT Div Conf
Denver 6-5 W1 21.4 16.6 3-2 3-3 4-3 0-0 - - 2-4
Las Vegas 2-8 L6 18.7 28.5 1-3 1-5 1-5 0-0 - - 2-6
Last Meeting
Denver Las Vegas
Date Away Home Tot Rus Pas Tot Rus Pas
10/6/24 LV 18 DEN 34 289 109 180 330 115 215
Player Stats
Previous Matchup
Passing Player COMP % YDS TD INT
Denver B. Nix 70.4 206 2 0
Las Vegas G. Minshew II 70.6 137 1 2
Rushing Player CAR YDS AVG TD
Denver J. Williams 13 61 4.7 0
Las Vegas A. Abdullah 5 42 8.4 1
Receiving Player REC YDS AVG TD
Denver J. Williams 5 50 10.0 0
Las Vegas B. Bowers 8 97 12.1 1
Touchdowns Player TD
Denver J. McLaughlin 1
Las Vegas A. Abdullah 1
Season
Passing Player COMP % YDS TD INT
Denver B. Nix 65.5 2275 14 6
Las Vegas G. Minshew II 67.4 1783 8 9
Rushing Player CAR YDS AVG TD
Denver J. Williams 112 447 4.0 3
Las Vegas A. Mattison 97 320 3.3 3
Receiving Player REC YDS AVG TD
Denver C. Sutton 49 647 13.2 3
Las Vegas B. Bowers 70 706 10.1 3
Touchdowns Player TD
Denver B. Nix 5
Las Vegas A. Mattison 4