LAS VEGAS - The Raiders’ final preseason game ended the way a lot of preseason games do: with plenty of caution, plenty of sloppiness and not much reason to overreact. The 49ers left Allegiant Stadium with an 18-12 win Thursday night after Eddy Pineiro outkicked Matt Gay 6-4 in a game that turned into a field goal competition more than anything else.
Las Vegas finished the preseason 1-2, and coach Klint Kubiak said the Raiders were cleaner in some areas, even if the offense never found the finish line.
“We played much better technically,” Kubiak said. “Fewer penalties. But we have to find a way to get the ball into the end zone.”
That was the story all night. Missed tackles, empty seats and stretches of uneven football filled the stage, though the grass at Allegiant Stadium looked sharp and the Raiderettes were, as ever, in midseason form.
The bigger takeaway for the Raiders came at quarterback. Kirk Cousins remains the clear leader of the offense, and Thursday did nothing to change that. He played the first two series and completed 8 of 11 passes for 51 yards, continuing to look like the guy running the show.
“You’re always looking to be better,” said Cousins. “It’s about progress. You have to find your edge beyond practice."
Fernando Mendoza, meanwhile, had another uneven night. He finished 7 of 14 for 57 yards with one interception, took two sacks and added nine rushing yards on two carries. Most of that work came against the second unit, but the performance matched the larger picture: he’s not ready to start in the NFL.
“I think it’s been a great experience,” Mendoza said of his time on the field in the preseason. “In the NFL, there’s monsters on the other side of the ball. It’s a big jump from college (to the NFL).”
One player who keeps making a case is rookie running back Mike Washington Jr. The fourth-round pick from late April once again made his chances count, working behind the first unit offensive line and getting downhill quickly.
He ran for 49 yards on eight carries before his night ended in the first quarter. With Ashton Jeanty recovering from a sprained ankle, Washington may have put himself in position to start against Miami on Sept.
“He runs hard. Runs fast,” Cousins said of Washington.
“But he’s a rookie. He’s not a fifth-year guy.
We have to be alongside him, make him feel comfortable.”
The only injury of the night came late in the third quarter, when rookie defensive end Keyron Crawford went down with an ankle injury and needed help leaving the field. He did not return.
Now the Raiders move toward roster cuts, a day Kubiak knows will be difficult.
“It’s not going to be fun,” he said of cutdown day. “There’s guys who’ve been here since April working their butts off. But that’s the NFL.”
For Mendoza, the message is simpler. No roster drama, no starting debate, just more work.
“I’ve grown a lot in the preseason,” he said. “If there were three more preseason games, I would love that. But I’m going to keep working, keep learning.”
Right answer.
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Thorntons recovery remains up in the air, while Crawford is being rechecked after the ankle injury he suffered in the final preseason game. For a roster in transition, those are the kinds of details that can ripple beyond one position group, forcing the Raiders to weigh short-term availability against longer-term value as the cuts come due. [Read more 🡒]