The New York Giants earned their first win since October, defeating the Las Vegas Raiders 34-10 on Sunday and potentially squandering a chance at the No. 1 draft pick.
Las Vegas (2-14) now has an 80 percent chance of landing the top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, according to ESPN. The Raiders would be guaranteed the No. 1 pick with a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 18. A Jets win over the Bills would also clinch the first overall selection for Las Vegas.
A Giants loss would have guaranteed them the No. 1 pick. With a loss to the Dallas Cowboys next week and a Raiders win over the Chiefs, New York (3-13) will get the first draft choice.
Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart had two rushing touchdowns, pushing his season total to nine. The rookie finished 22-for-30 passing for 207 yards, adding 48 yards on the ground. Las Vegas had 231 yards of total offense.
Geno Smith finished 20-for-28 passing for 176 yards. After two more interceptions, Smith has a league-leading 17 picks this season. He exited the game early in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury and did not return. Raiders coach Pete Carroll said after the game that Smith had suffered a high-ankle sprain and would have an MRI on Monday.
“That’s pretty hard to bounce back (from),” Carroll told reporters. “That might knock him out of next week, we’ll have to wait and see.”
Late in the third quarter, Deonte Banks put the game away for good with a 95-yard kickoff return touchdown, extending New York’s lead to 27-10.
Giants wideout Wan’Dale Robinson caught 11 passes for 113 yards, surpassing 1,000 receiving yards in a season for the first time in his four-year career.
Smith leaves with injury
Smith barely put weight on his ankle when the Raiders quarterback walked into the locker room on his own. Smith suffered the injury on the same play he threw an interception on a pass intended for Tyler Lockett. Instead, Dane Belton picked off the pass, Smith’s second interception of the day. Smith struggled against the Giants’ pass rush, and the Raiders’ offense couldn’t get much going until late in the third quarter. Kenny Pickett came in to replace Smith when the offense finally got the ball back nearly nine minutes later. At that point, the game was all but over. — Charlotte Carroll, Giants beat writer
Rookie responds after struggles
Dart had a bounce-back day after the worst performance of his young career in Week 16. After throwing just 33 passing yards last week, Dart came out looking much more like the first-round pick whom Giants fans have come to love over his rookie season. Dart now has nine rushing touchdowns after adding two Sunday. On his first score, Dart powered into the end zone on a designed run, taking a massive hit as he went for the score. The second rushing touchdown came late in the fourth quarter after he led a nearly nine-minute drive to tick time off the clock and help secure the win. Dart showed personality and swagger that were missing last week, and he also showed growth when he ran out of bounds on runs — an evolving part of his game. — Carroll
Great season for Robinson continues
Robinson surpassed 1,000 receiving yards for the first time in his career, and it couldn’t have come at a better moment. The 2022 second-rounder has played a stellar season as he’s set to hit free agency this offseason and command a nice payday. After top receiver Malik Nabers suffered a season-ending torn ACL in Week 4, Robinson moved into the No. 1 role. The move paid off with Robinson’s best year. — Carroll