Raiders' Starters Control the First Half, Backups Struggle in 24-23 Preseason Loss to Vikings

The Las Vegas Raiders fell 24-23 to the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday.

Aug 10, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce looks on during the second quarter against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports / Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

The Las Vegas Raiders started their preseason with tale-of-two-halves loss in Minneapolis on Saturday.

The Raiders fell to the Minnesota Vikings 24-23, capped off by a walk-off 37-yard field goal by Vikings kicker Will Reichard. Despite a poor second-half showing from the Raiders' backups, there is reason for optimism.

The Raiders' offense was led by solid passing performances from both its premier quarterbacks -- Aidan O'Connell and Gardner Minshew II.

Las Vegas' defense set the tone early. Despite allowing a 66-yard drive to open the game, the Raiders bent but didn't break, stopping the Vikings on downs in the red zone.

After a rather lackluster camp in Costa Mesa, both O'Connell and Minshew came out on fire right off the bat. O'Connell got the start but would only play the first drive of the game. He threw for 76 yards on seven of nine completions.

The second-year Raiders quarterback led the pack down to Minnesota's 13-yard line, setting up kicker Daniel Carlson for a 31-yard field goal to give Las Vegas the early 3-0 lead.

The Raiders' defense returned to ruffle Minnesota yet again, as cornerback Jack Jones picked up where he left off last season, intercepting a pass from Vikings rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy. Las Vegas would be set up on its own 33-yard line.

Minshew would take over for the rest of the half, finishing with 117 yards and a touchdown to Raiders wide receiver D.J. Turner.

The Raiders distributed the ball well throughout the first half, as wide receivers Tre Tucker and Jakobi Meyers led the way, with 73 yards on two receptions and 45 yards on three, respectively. Rookie tight end Brock Bowers started off strong, hauling in 25 yards on two passes from O'Connell on the first drive.

Bowers' fellow tight end Michael Mayer recorded a 7-yard reception as well.

Meanwhile, running backs Zamir White and Alexander Mattison led the ground game for the Silver and Black. White rushed for 23 yards and a touchdown while Mattison turned in 15 rushing yards.

Las Vegas went into halftime with some serious momentum that had been fueled by a blocked field, a 56-yard field goal from Carlson and a forced punt on defense for the final three drives of the half.

The Raiders committed no penalties the entire first half, but that quickly changed after halftime.

Right off the bat, Las Vegas' backups committed three penalties on the team's first three possessions of the third quarter. The offensive line also allowed third-string quarterback Anthony Brown Jr. to be sacked four times on those drives. Each of those possessions resulted in punts from Raiders punter A.J. Cole.

Defensively, the Raiders gave up back-to-back touchdowns on the Vikings' opening drives of the game, allowing Minnesota to take a 21-20 lead.

From there, however, the defense locked back in, as the Raiders forced two-straight punts, which sandwiched a 23-yard field goal from Carlson that retained the lead for the Las Vegas, 23-21.

That would be the final score of the contest. Carlson finished the day with three made field goals for 9 points.

The Raiders would make another quarterback change with roughly 8 and a half minutes to go in the contest, as fourth-string quarterback Carter Bradley subbed in for Brown.

Bradley never got to showcase his arm, as the Raiders kept the ball on the ground from there on out. That ultimately proved to be Las Vegas' downfall, as the Raiders concluded the contest with three straight punts.

Minnesota then got the last say with its game-sealing field goal.

It's quite concerning that the backups, the players who have the most to prove before 53-man roster cuts, struggled in this contest. At the same time, it's encouraging that the starters, the most vital players, of course, played a clean game in this first preseason outing.

Fans should also leave this contest feeling positive about the state of this quarterback battle after what's been an underwhelming camp from the two competitors.

The Raiders will be back in action at home next week when they host the Dallas Cowboys in Week 2 of the preseason. Kickoff is set for 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST.

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