Patrick Surtain II returned an interception 100 yards for a touchdown and Bo Nix had two touchdown passes and a rushing touchdown as the host Denver Broncos beat the Las Vegas Raiders 34-18 on Sunday afternoon.
Nix completed 19 of 27 passes for 206 yards to fuel Denver’s third straight win. Jaleel McLaughlin and Josh Reynolds had touchdown catches for the Broncos (3-2), who beat the Raiders for the first time since 2019, ending an eight-game drought.
Gardner Minshew completed 12 of 17 passes for 137 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions before being replaced by Aidan O’Connell. Brock Bowers had eight catches for 97 yards and a touchdown and Maxx Crosby had two sacks for the Raiders (2-3).
The Raiders scored on their first possession when Minshew and Bowers connected on a 57-yard touchdown pass for a 7-0 lead. After the Broncos were forced to punt, the Raiders turned to Daniel Carlson for a 40-yard field goal and a 10-0 lead.
It would be the last Las Vegas points until late in the fourth quarter as Denver scored 34 straight points. The Broncos’ defense had sacks from Jonathon Cooper, Nik Bonitto and Zach Allen. Surtain had two interceptions and Riley Moss added another.
A 51-yard field goal by Denver’s Wil Lutz cut the Raiders’ lead to 10-3 midway through the second quarter.
On the Raiders’ third drive, Minshew was under pressure in the red zone and threw into double coverage. Surtain pulled the Broncos even at 10-10 with the longest interception return for a touchdown in Denver history.
As time expired in the first half, Lutz’s 59-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left. But, a personal foul on the Raiders gave Lutz a second chance, which he turned into a 44-yard field goal and a 13-10 Denver lead.
A screen pass to Lil’Jordan Humphrey, whose jersey was ripped as he twisted through tackles, gained 27 yards to set up the Broncos’ first offensive touchdown, a swing pass from Nix to McLaughlin that went for a 4-yard score and a 20-10 Denver lead at 7:01 in the third quarter.
Moss followed the score with his first NFL interception, leading Minshew to be benched in favor of O’Connell at 1:31 in the third quarter. He didn’t fare much better as his third pass led to Surtain’s second interception.
Denver led 27-10 when Nix jumped over a pile of linemen to cross the goal line.
Reynolds had a 9-yard touchdown catch from Nix with 8:14 left for a 34-10 Denver lead. The Raiders’ Ameer Abdullah had a 3-yard touchdown to account for the final margin.
–Field Level Media
