Big Blue View
The Coal Bowl arrives just in time for the holidays: the New York Giants vs. the Las Vegas Raiders. The Grinch descends on Sin City as two despondent 2–13 teams meet, each desperate to snap impressively long losing streaks. Both teams have dropped nine straight games, with the Raiders losing 13 of their last 14.
There are serious stakes in this game. The winner of this game will significantly improve their odds of securing the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft—a prize the Giants currently hold.
If the Giants leave Las Vegas with a victory, their chances of securing the first overall pick would drop to just 6%. Unfortunately, the draft has become the primary storyline surrounding this matchup—but that’s the reality the Giants have repeatedly faced in recent years as their seasons wind down.
The Giants are coming off a 16–13 loss to the Vikings, a game in which Jaxson Dart and the offense looked lost. Halloween may be long gone, but the unit saw ghosts all afternoon. Meanwhile, the Raiders pushed the then 9–5 Texans to the brink in Houston. The return of Geno Smith brought new life to the offense, but Las Vegas ultimately fell 23–21 despite a strong performance from rookie running back Ashton Jeanty, who rushed for 128 yards on 24 carries.
Houston’s offense was stifled for much of the game by a familiar face—Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Graham, along with offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo, facing their former team, adds a fun subplot to what many would label the league’s latest iteration of the “toilet bowl.”
The Raiders’ defense has surrendered the eighth-most points per game (25.7), while the Giants have allowed the sixth-most, giving up an average of 27.5 points per contest. The Raiders rank 15th in yards surrendered with 326.1 yards per game. Las Vegas allows 116.5 rushing yards per game (17th in the league), and they’re also 17th in passing yards allowed per game (209.7 passing yards per game).
Las Vegas ranks 21st in red-zone touchdown percentage at 59.65%, and they have the league’s worst third-down defense, surrendering the sticks at a 48.74% rate. The Raiders blitz at a 20.5% rate and get pressure on just 18% of snaps. Las Vegas ranks third in missed tackles with 116. Patrick Graham runs a similar defensive structure with hybrid fronts and a mixture of softer zones that surrender check-downs and expect defenders to rally and tackle.
Edge defender Maxx Crosby is the best player on the team. He receives a lot of attention and may be in for quite the game against Jaxson Dart, since the Giants will likely be without star left tackle Andrew Thomas. Crosby has 53 pressures on the season. He has 10 sacks and an insane 28 tackles for a loss with 46 STOPs, which leads the edge defenders and defensive linemen.
Crosby mostly aligns on the left side of the defense, so he’ll see a lot of his former...
