The Oakland Raiders will wrap up a two-game stint in Oakland this week with a home contest against the New York Giants at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Sunday, December 3 at 1:25 p.m. PT. Sunday's game will be the NFL's My Cause, My Cleats game, a league-wide initiative that allows players to design cleats in honor of causes that they care about.
Here is the Game Preview, presented by 95.7 The GAME.
THE SETTING
Date: Sunday, Deccember 3, 2017Kickoff: 1:25 p.m. PTSite: Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum (1966)Capacity/Surface: 56,057/Overseeded BermudaRegular Season: Raiders lead, 7-5
Postseason: N/A
The contest this weekend against the Giants will start a stretch of three games in four weeks against NFC East opponents for the Raiders, as they will host the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 17 and travel to Philadelphia to play the Eagles on Dec. 25. The Raiders played the Washington Redskins back in Week 3 at FedExField. The Giants have not played in Oakland since 2005, as the Raiders have played in New York each of their last two meetings (2009 and 2013).
Last week, the Raiders won an important divisional game against the Denver Broncos, 21-14. The defense led the way for Oakland, holding the Broncos to just 219 total net yards. The 'D' was fueled by five sacks from the unit, including two each from DL Denico Autry and LB Bruce Irvin. DE Khalil Mack got in on the action as well, recording his 10th career sack against Denver. LB NaVorro Bowman came away with his first interception as a Raider, stalling a Broncos drive deep in Raider territory. QB Derek Carr led the way on offense, posting a 136.3 quarterback rating after completing 18-of-24 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns. RB Marshawn Lynch had his most productive game as a Raider, totaling 111 yards (67 rushing and 44 receiving) with one rushing touchdown. WR Cordarrelle Patterson stepped up with a depleted receiving corps and led the way with 72 yards, including a 54-yard reception late in the fourth quarter to seal the game for the Raiders. P Marquette King consistently flipped the field in the Silver and Black's favor, pinning the Broncos inside their own 10- yard line four times.
Next Sunday, the Raiders will travel for an AFC West matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. The Giants will return home to host the Dallas Cowboys next Sunday
PINNING THEM DEEP
Last week against the Denver Broncos, field position played a large role in limiting the Broncos offensively, and in large part due to the fact that P Marquette King pinned the team inside the 10-yard line four times out of his six punts. The field position helped the defense in setting a season-low 219 total yards allowed
King is just one of six other players since 2001 to have four such punts in a game with six-or-less total punts. He is also tied for the league with 13 such punts this season, while no one has downed more kicks inside the 10 in a single game in 2017.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TELEVISION
FOX
Play-by-play: Kenny Albert
Color Analyst: Ronde Barber
Sideline: Kristina Pink
RADIO
Flagship: 95.7 The GAME
Play-by-play: Greg Papa
Color Analyst: Tom Flores
Sideline: Lincoln Kennedy
Spanish Radio
Spanish Flagship: KIQI 1010
Play-by-play: Fernando Arias
Color Analyst: Ambrosio Rico
GIANTS SNAPSHOT
Overview: After becoming the fourth coach in franchise history to lead the team to the playoffs in his first season in 2016, Head Coach Ben McAdoo and the Giants sit in fourth place in the NFC East with a 2-9 record. Both of New York's wins came against AFC West opponents as they defeated the Broncos in Week 6, 23-10, and the Chiefs in overtime in Week 11, 12-9.
Offense: In his 14th season, QB Eli Manning has completed 247- of-395 passing for 2,411 yards with 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions for a passer rating of 84.1. Manning has started in 210 consecutive regular season games entering the matchup, the most among all active players. After losing WR Odell Beckham Jr. to injury in Week 5, rookie TE Evan Engram has emerged as a top target this season, leading the team with 44 catches for 470 yards (10.7 avg.) with five touchdowns. Engram's five receiving touchdowns are tied for first in the league among all rookies this season. WR Sterling Shepard leads the team with 475 receiving yards on 38 catches (12.5 avg.) with one touchdown. Leading the run game is RB Orleans Darkwa, who in a breakout year has recorded 112 carries for 519 yards (4.6 avg.) with two touchdowns, all career highs.
Defense: Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's unit has recorded 20 sacks in 2017. Leading the way is eighth-year DE Jason Pierre-Paul, who has recorded 6.5. CB Janoris Jenkins has recorded a team-high three interceptions and has returned two of them for touchdowns, the most in the league. S Landon Collins, who has totaled two interceptions, leads the team with 86 tackles (64 solo).
NOTABLE CONNECTIONS
Pro Connections
• Raiders OL Marshall Newhouse spent the past two seasons with the Giants, appearing in 24 games with 20 starts, before signing with the Raiders this past offseason.
• Giants wide receivers coach Adam Henry spent five seasons as an assistant for the Raiders. He was the offensive quality control coach from 2007-08 and the tight ends coach from 2009-11.
• Raiders General Manager Reggie McKenzie was the director of pro personnel and director of football operations for the Packers from 2006- 11 while Giants Head Coach Ben McAdoo served as the team's tight ends and quarterbacks coach during their six seasons together.
• Giants LB Ray-Ray Armstrong spent time in Oakland, playing two seasons for the Silver and Black on defense from 2014-15. Armstrong registered 39 tackles (32 solo) in 21 games, starting five of them.
• Giants TE Rhett Ellison's father Riki, was a linebacker for the Raiders from 1990-92. Rhett is also a native of Mountain View, Calif.
College Connections
• Raiders LB Bruce Irvin played two seasons (2010-11) with Giants QB Geno Smith at West Virginia before the two left for the NFL.
• Raiders DT Eddie Vanderdoes played on opposites sides of the field for three seasons (2013-15) with Giants RB Paul Perkins at UCLA. Perkins was drafted in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft and Vanderdoes was taken in the third this past year by the Silver and Black.
• Raiders linebackers coach Sal Sunseri was the special teams coordinator/linebackers coach for Michigan State in 2001 while Giants Head Coach Ben McAdoo assisted on special teams and as an offensive assistant.
• Raiders G/C Jon Feliciano and TE Clive Walford spent three seasons at the University of Miami (2012-14) with Giants T Ereck Flowers.
• Raiders DE Mario Edwards Jr. spent three seasons (2012-14) playing with Giants T Bobby Hart at Florida State. The two were both selected in the 2015 NFL Draft.
• Giants quarterbacks coach Frank Cignetti Jr. spent one season as the offensive coordinator at Cal in 2008. • Giants TE Shane Smith attended San Jose State and played in 48 career games with 27 starts for the Spartans, where he was a three-time Academic All-Mountain West honoree.
• Giants RB Shane Vereen attended Cal and played in 38 games with 19 starts at, where he had 556 carries for 2,834 yards and 29 touchdowns.
• Giants QB Davis Webb transferred to Cal for his final season of college football in 2016, where he started all 12 games.
• Raiders WR Amari Cooper played three seasons (2012-14) with Giants S Landon Collins at Alabama, helping win a National Title in 2012. Both were selected in the 2015 NFL Draft.
Hometown Connections
• Raiders LB Shilique Calhoun grew up in Middletown, N.J., which is just a short drive from MetLife stadium.
• Raiders wide receivers coach Rob Moore is a Hempstead, N.Y. native, and spent time at Montclair (N.J.) High School coaching wide receivers from 2002-03.
• Raiders running backs coach Bernie Parmalee is a native of Jersey City, N.J., which is approximately 10 miles from MetLife Stadium.
• Raiders offensive line coach Mike Tice is a native of Bayshore, N.Y., and attended Central Islip High School on Long Island. Tice was coached and mentored by the great George O'Leary during his time at Central Islip.
• Giants offensive line coach Mike Solari is a native of Daly City, Calif., and began his collegiate career at the College of San Mateo as an offensive lineman.
• Giants P Aldrick Rosas is a native of Orland, Calif.
