The Raiders became used to their new surroundings in Las Vegas over the 2020 season, playing eight games at brand-new Allegiant Stadium. However, a subpar record of 2-6 in those home games could very well be attributed to zero fans at the games, the direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Monday night, with a national television audience watching on ESPN, the Las Vegas Raiders opened their sparkly, $2 billion stadium to spectators for the first-time, and rallied from an early 14-0 deficit to beat the Baltimore Ravens in overtime, 33-27.
Moments before the game ended on a 31-yard pass from Derek Carr to Zay Jones, the Raiders appeared to have the game won on a 33-yard pass to Bryan Edwards. However, a stadium-wide celebration was halted after instant replay ruled Edwards was tackled short of the goal line. A stop on 1st-and-goal, a false start penalty by rookie Alex Leatherwood, and a tipped ball resulting in a Baltimore interception gave the visitors new life.
However, on the Ravens drive, Las Vegas defensive end Carl Nassib had a strip sack of Lamar Jackson, giving Vegas the ball already in field goal position. After a delay of game penalty flubbed up the potential game-winning try, coach Jon Gruden put the offense back onto the field, with Jones slipping behind a Ravens defense playing the run, catching the ball to ignite a second celebration.
The Raiders travel to Pittsburgh on Sunday, with the Ravens hosting the Chiefs on Sunday Night Football.
Week #2 of the NFL season opened on Thursday night, with the Washington Football Team defeating the NFC East rival New York Giants 30-29, with backup quarterback Tyler Heinecke leading Washington to its first head-to-head victory over New York in the last five matchups.