Cowboys 27-12 Raiders, summary: score, stats, highlights | NFL Preseason Week 2
Cowboys beat Raiders, 27-12
Cowboys defeat Raiders in NFL Preseason Week 2: Takeaways
TheDallas Cowboys won their second preseason game over the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium, 27-12. They had Trey Lance in at QB for the majority of the game and he looked much better than he did in the Cowboys' opener.
The Raiders played most of their starters, including both quarterbacksGardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell as they intend to declare which one will be the starter after this game.
Dallas Cowboys - takeaways from win over Raiders
Trey Lance's improvements
The Dallas Cowboys were looking for improvements from their backup quarterback as he battles with Cooper Rush for the QB2 position behind Dak Prescott, and they got that this week.
Lance was 15-of-23 for 151 passing yards and a touchdown and added 36 rushing yards and another TD on the ground with no interceptions and no sacks.
The rest of the Dallas offense
Lance's passing touchdown was to wide receiver Ryan Flournoy on a 1-yard pass as the WR got free from Raiders corner Jake Jones to nab the catch.
The Cowboys' ground game still has a lot of questions that need answering though. Running back Deuce Vaughn rushed for 34 yards on five carries, but they didn't produce much else.
Brandon Aubrey ties would-be field goal record
Kicker Brandon Aubrey was as polished as ever and even made a 66-yard field goal. If this had been the regular season, that would have tied Justin Tucker's record for the longest field goal ever made in the NFL. He also finished with
Mike Zimmer's defense?
Early on in the game, the Cowboysnearly caught two interceptions. Linebacker Willie Harvey dropped one and corner Josh DeBerry nearly picked off a Raiders' 2-point conversion attempt.
With Mazi Smith out after an allergic reaction, the Cowboys got to utilize new sign JordanPhillips, who played alongside rookie Justin Rogers. The defense allowed one touchdown and forced one turnover.
Cornerback Kemon Hall nabbed an interception thrown by Aidan O'Connell and ran it 69yards for a pick-6 to give the Cowboys a 20-12 lead in the fourth quarter.
Las Vegas Raiders - takeaways from loss to Cowboys
O'Connell vs Minshew - who will be the starting QB?
The answer is still not immediately obvious. After playing both Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell, it looked like O'Connell was making the case as the starter, but then he threw that pick-6. O'Connell finished the game going 14-of-20 for 96 yards, one touchdown and the one interception. Gardner Minshew went 10-of-21 for 95 yards and no touchdowns or interceptions.
Neither QB gave a lot of hope during this game, playing against Dallas' backups. Minshew had one great completion, a deep pass to WR Tre Tucker. But he also missed critical throws and several near-interceptions. He completed under 50% of his passes. Despite the pick-6, O'Connell still looks to be the winner, but neither instilled a ton of confidence.
Raiders coach Antonio Pierce has a tough decision to make.
Raiders WRs looking good
DJTurner was battling for the WR4 spot and it looks like he secured it after finishing third on the team with 31 receiving yards, plus a 13-yard punt return and a fumble recovery.
TreTucker had three catches for 66 yards, including a 48-yard catch from Minshew. He looks to be the secure WR3.
KristianWilkerson caught three catches for 35 yards, the third-most of the Raiders receivers, and Tulu Griffin had two big kick-returns of 30 and 28 yards.
What's next?
For their final preseason games, the Cowboys will travel back home to host the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday and the Raiders will host the SanFrancisco49ers on Friday.
Trey Lance's rushing TD
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Trey Lance's big scramble
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O'Connel's TD pass to TE Harrison Bryant
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Cowboys CB Kemon Hall's pick-6
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COWBOYS BEAT THE RAIDERS!
Lance takes the knee and the Cowboys will win their second preseason game!
Raiders go for it on 4th down and Bradley's pass to Keyton is incomplete as Johnson deflected the pass
Bradley's pass is incomplete - 4th and 2
Bradley to McCormick for a gain of 2 - 3rd and 2
Bradley scrambles for 6 yards
Bradley's pass is caught by Bynum for 11yards and the 1st down
Bradley pass incomplete to Keyton
TWO-MINUTE WARNING
With 2 minutes left in the game, the Cowboys are up 27-12 after QB Trey Lance just ran in a touchdown.
The Raiders have the ball at 1st down on their own 23 after the punt return.
Aubrey kicks 70 yards to the Raiders -5 and Griffin takes it up 28 yards to the Raiders 23
Cowboys QB Trey Lance gets his second TD of the night, this one he ran in himself for 2 yards. The Cowboys extend the lead with just 2:06 left in the game.
Aubrey's PAT is GOOD!
Lance scrambled into the end zone for the touchdown.
The Cowboys get a Taunting call on Shepley, 15 yards enforced between downs
Flags thrown late...
COWBOYS TOUCHDOWN!
Lance hands it off to Conner and he gets 2 - 2nd and goal
Lance pass is SNATCHED in the air by McMath for 7 yards - 1st and goal at the 4-yard line
Conner picks up 6, 3rd and 4 at the Raiders 11
Lance's next pass is incomplete to Conner, too low
Lance pass deep is CAUGHT by McMath for a gain of 30yards!
Cowboys take first timeout
Lance tosses it to Holler and he takes off for a gain of 12 - 1st down
Conner's pushed back by Devonshire for a loss of a yard - 2nd and 11
Lance hands it off to Conner and he picks up 5 for the first down
Cowboys going for it on 4th and 2
Lance dumps it to Peat and he gets away for 15 yards to make it to 4th and 2
Second Holding call in a row on the Cowboys, this time on Ballafter an incomplete pass by Lance - 3rd and 17
Conner picks up another 4 yards, but it's called back because of a Holding call on Cowboys' Shepley, 10 yards,
Conner runs it for 3 - 2nd and 7
Lance pass to McMath for a big gain of 17 yards
Cole punts 43 yards to the Cowboys 12 and Johnson calls for the fair catch
Bradley's pass batted down by Huggins - 4th and 10 at the Raiders 45
Delay of Game - Raiders
3rd and 10
Bradley's deep pass to McAllister is incomplete - 3rd and 5
Brown picks up 5 yards - 2nd and 5
Hawkeye confirms the 1st down
Bradley's pass is caught by Fotheringham just at the line for 5 yards, but the officials will check with the virtual measurement
Bradley passes low to Brown and he picks up 11 yards - 3rd and 5
Bradley passes short to McCormick for 4 yards - 2nd and 16
Illegal Use of Hands on Raiders' McKenzie, 10 yards - 1st and 20
Bradley passes deep and it falls off the fingertips of Keyton
Bradley passes to Keyton and he makes the grab in traffic and comes down with it for 8 yards and the 1st down
Bradley to McCormick for 6 - 3rd and 3
Bradley is in at QB. We've seen the last of O'Connell and Minshew for tonight.
Bradley passes to Bynum for a gain of 9 - 2nd and 9
McCormick takes it up 9 yards
Raiders get another Holding call, this time on Keyton, 10 yards
Aubrey kicks 65 yards to Raiders 0 and Griffin gets a nice run of 54 yards
Holding call on Raiders' McCormick, 10 yards
Just after some really impressive drives led by Raiders QB O'Connell and RB Ameer Abdullah, O'Connell threw an interception, caught by Kemon Hall, who ran it 69 yards into the end zone for the TD. Aubrey's PAT was good. Cowboys extend the lead with 14:48 to go in the game.
Aubrey's PAT is GOOD!
O'Connell's pass intended for Bryant was INTERCEPTED by Cowboys' Hall.
Hall runs it 69 yards to the end zone for the TD!
COWBOYS PICK-6!
END THIRD QUARTER
That'll take us to the end of the 3rd quarter.
The Cowboys are in the lead, but the Raiders are gaining on them. With O'Connell in at QB and looking to take the starting role, the Raiders have scored a touchdown in the second half and are looking to up the score.
They have the ball on 2nd and 16 at the Cowboys 35 to start the final quarter.
They need 20, they get 4 with on a Laube run - 2nd and 16
Holding on Raiders' Parham, 10 yards - 1st and 20
O'Connell runs out of the pocket and throws it away but flags are thrown
O'Connell hits Guyton for 7 yards and the 1st down at the Cowboys 29
Abdullah gets 4 yards - 3rd and 5
O'Connell tosses it low to Guyton who dodges some tackles but in the end picks up just a yard - 2nd and 9 at the Cowboys 40
O'Connell's pass was incomplete, but it was a Pass Interference on Cowboys' DeBerry, 15 yards and an automatic first down for the Raiders
O'Connell hands it off to Abdullah again but Wood takes him back immediately for a loss of 4 - 2nd and 14
Abdullah makes the grab from O'Connell in the air and avoids the tackle to get away for 14 yards
Anger punts 55 yards to the Raiders 23 and Abdullah takes it 11 yards to the Raiders 34
Lance pass to Spann-Ford is broken up by Smith - 4th and 7
Vaughn picks up 6 - 3rd and 7
Vaughn takes it up 2 yards
Holding call on Cowboys' Spann-Ford, 10 yards
2nd and 13
Lance pass to Harmon for 7 yards - 2nd and 3
Carlson kicks 70 yards to Cowboys -5 and Vaughn takes it up 24 yards to the Cowboys 19
The Raiders get their first TD of the night when O'Connell passes to Bryant in the end zone for 6 yards. They attempted to go for 2, but O'Connell threw the ball away under pressure and just missed a pick. The Raiders trail by 1 with 5:44 left in the third quarter.
O'Connell's pass in the end zone is nearly intercepted - 2-point conversion fails
2-point conversion attempt by the Raiders
O'Connell hit Bryant and he runs it into the endzone for the TD!
The Raiders will go for 2.
RAIDERS TOUCHDOWN!
Laube picks up 3 - 2nd and 7
DJ Turner on fire
O'Connell hits Turner AGAIN, and he gets 5 yards, good for the first
O'Connell hands it off to Laube and he's stopped after 1 - 3rd and 5
Mattison picks up 4 yards - 2nd and 6
O'Connell hits Turner for 8 yards and the 1st down
O'Connell's pass is too high to Wilkerson - incomplete, 4th and 2
Raiders will go for it
O'Connell hands it off to Mattison, he gets 5 yards - 3rd and 2
White picks up 3 yards - 2nd and 7
O'Connell has time and he makes a short pass to Turner. Turner picks up 12 yards - 1st down
Technology confirms the 1st down
The officials are using the hawk-eye technology to check the measurement
O'Connell pass to Bryant is caught for 4 yards and the 1st down
O'Connell is in for the Raiders - he passes to Turner for 5 yards - 3rd and 3
White picks up 2 yards, Wilson takes him down - 2nd and 8
Anger punts 47 yards to the Raiders 30 and Turner takes it up 13 yards
Lance's next pass is incomplete. Davis takes the ball up 4 yards for 3rd and 6.
On the next play, Lance's pass is caught by Davis but he's taken back 2 yards by Smith - 4th and 8
Lance is in at quarterback for the Cowboys.
He throws an incomplete pass to start, but on 2nd down, he hits Harmon for a 12-yard gain and the 1st down
Starting off Q3 strong with a penalty
And we have a penalty to start off the second half. Raiders' Carlson kicked 66 yards to the Cowboys -1 and Johnson took it 21 yards
Cowboys' Fant was called for Holding, 10 yards
Aubrey hits a 66-yarder!
Cowboys extend their lead just ahead of the half
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Lance gets first TD pass to Flournoy
Trey Lance gets his first touchdown for the Cowboys on a 1-yard pass to wide receiver Ryan Flournoy
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Cropper's fumble
Cowboys wide receiver Jalen Moreno-Cropper fumbles the ball after the punt return and it's recovered by Las Vegas
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Minshew's 48-yard lob to Tre Tucker!
Tucker set up a scoring drive with this 48-yard catch! Carlson hit the field goal to tie up the game in the first quarter.
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Aubrey scored the first points of the game
A 54-yard field goal, easy peezy for Brandon Aubrey.
Cowboys took the early lead.
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END FIRST HALF
And that will take us to halftime, folks!
The Cowboys got a touchdown and field goal just before halftime to take the lead by 7 over the Raiders.
Aubrey made the 66-YARD FIELD GOAL to extend the Cowboys' lead with 3 seconds left in the half!
COWBOYS FIELD GOAL!
Cowboys takes final timeout
Lance scrambles 16 yards for the 1st down, slides just as Dallas takes their final timeout
Lance scrambles for 2 yards - 2nd and 8
Lance and Stephens repeat the play - another 8 yards - 1st down at the Cowboys 30
Lance pass complete to Stephens for 8 yards - 2nd and 2
Cole punts 52 yards to Cowboys 10, Johnson gets just 4 yards, tackled by Masterson
O'Connell is nearly sacked by Muhammad, gets the ball away but it's incomplete - 4th and 10
O'Connell takes another deep shot, this time to Tucker but it's overthrown - good coverage by Booth
3rd down
O'Connell's pass is just too high for Wilkerson, incomplete - 2nd down
O'Connell hits Wilkerson for 10 yards and the first down
Aubrey kicks 62 yards to the Raiders 3 and Abdullah runs it 25 yards
Illegal Formation on Raiders, declined.
On 2nd and goal, Lance pass complete to Flournoy in the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown. Aubrey's PAT is good, and the Cowboys take the lead with just over a minute left in the first half.
COWBOYS TOUCHDOWN!
Raiders take second timeout
Freeman picks up 3 - 2nd and 7
Lance scrambles up for 4 yards and the 1st down
Raiders take first timeout
Officials determined Flournoy was out of bounds ruling, and the play was REVERSED - 3rd and 1
Flournoy breaks away from a tackle for a gain of maybe 7 yards
The play is under review to determine whether he was in bounds or not
Lance hands it off to Freeman but Spillane stops him after just 2 - 2nd and 8
TWO-MINUTE WARNING
That takes us to the 2-minute warning.
With two minutes to go in the first half, the Raiders are up by a field goal, but the Cowboys have a chance to take back the lead before the half. They have the ball on 1st down at the Raiders 17.
Lance was under pressure but got the ball away to Schoonmaker for 11yards - 1st down at the Raiders 17
Lance pass to Flournoy for just 4, pushed out by Jones
Cowboys take second timeout
Vaughn pushes through for 3 yards and the 1st down
Lance pass to Flournoy caught for 8 yards - 2nd and 2
Vaughn breaks away and runs it through for 7 yards and another 1st down
Freeman takes it up the middle for 5 yards - 2nd and 5
Lance pass caught by Flournoy for 10yards and another 1st down
Freeman takes it again, picks up 4 for the first down
Freeman takes it up 7 yards - 2nd and 3
Carlson kicks 64 yards to the Cowboys 1. Davis takes it up 23 yards.
Tre Tucker's 43-yard punt return set up the scoring drive. O'Connell was in under center and led the Raiders the rest of the way. Kicker Daniel Carlson made his second field goal at 27 yards to give the Raiders the lead with 7:29 to go in the first half.
RAIDERS FIELD GOAL!
O'Connell pass to Wilkerson for 11 yards - 4th down and 5
O'Connell hits Shenker for a gain of 4 - 3rd and 16
O'Connell under pressure, pass incomplete to White - 2nd and 20
White takes it up 3 yards
Raiders' Meredith is called for Holding, 10 yards - 1st and 20
O'Connell comes in at QB for the Raiders and hits Wilkerson for another big gain of 14 yards
On the punt, Cowboys' Thomas is called for Player Out of Bounds on Kick, 5 yards
Anger punts it 52 yards to the Raiders 24 and TUCKER takes it up 43 YARDS to the Cowboys 33!
Lance pass to Cropper is bobbled and dropped, incomplete - 4th and 5
Lance hands it off to Davis for a gain of 3 - 3rd and 5
Lance hits Schoonmaker but he only gets 2, taken down by Deablo
Minshew throws a rocket to Bryant but he misses it - incomplete.
After turning it over, the Cowboys get the ball back again on a Raiders turnover.
Minshew pass hits the helmet of Laube - incomplete
Raiders go for it on 4th and 6
Minshew escapes the pocket, scrambles for 4 yards - 3rd and 6
Raiders offense come back on the field.
Minshew passes short to Shenker for no gain, taken down by Hall - 2nd and 10
Cole punts 69 yards to the Cowboys 11. Cropper takes it up 9 yards but FUMBLES, RECOVERED by Raiders' Turner at the Cowboys 23.
Minshew pass incomplete to Turner with Hall there to break up the pass - 4th and 4
Minshew pass long to Tucker, but he didn't get there in time and didn't look back early enough either - 3rd and 4
Minshew is still in at QB for the Raiders.
He passes short to Bryant for 6 yards - 2nd and 4
Anger punts 51 yards to Raiders 14, Sieg out of bounds.
Lance pass too high to Flournoy, broken up by Jones - 4th and 2
Lance scrambles for 8 yards - 3rd and 2
Lance is in at quarterback for the Cowboys. He's under pressure and throws way too long, misses Johnson - 2nd and 10
END FIRST QUARTER
That takes us to the end of the 1st quarter!
The Raiders and the Cowboys are tied 3-3 at the end of the first quarter after making a field goal each.
The Cowboys have the ball on first down at their own 27.
Vaughn takes it again and this time he makes the escape for 12 yards
Vaughn runs it up 6 yards, stopped by Deablo - 2nd and 4
Cole punts 51 yards to the Cowboys 9 and Cropper takes it up 19 yards
Holding call on Cowboys' Goodwin,10 yards
Minshew under pressure and he gets lucky it wasn't an interception - throws right towards Mukuamu - incomplete, 4th down
Mattison picks up 6 - 3rd and 11
Mattison takes it up just at the mark but a flag was thrown late
Holding on Raiders' Wilkerson, 10-yard penalty - 2nd and 17
Minshew pass to Mayer for 2 yards - 2nd and 8
The ruling on the field stands.
The pass was complete to Tucker for 11 yards.
Dallas loses a timeout.
Minshew makes a quick pass long to Tucker and he makes the catch for 11 yards, but the play is under review after Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy challenges the ruling, wondering if he was out of bounds or if he had control.
Mattison is pushed back by Kneeland for no gain - 3rd down
Minshew pass batted away by Thomas - 2nd and 10
Minshew pass to Mayer is caught for 9 yards - 1st down
Minshew pass to Turner is caught and he's tripped up by Booth after a yard - 3rd and 4
Minshew hands it off to Mattison for 5 yards - 2nd and 5
Anger punts it 54 yards to the Raiders 20 and Tucker takes it up 5 yards.
Raiders called for an Illegal Block in the Back on Smith, 10-yard penalty
Cowboys decide to run it on 3rd down and 17 - Freeman gets just 8 yards - 4th down
Rush pass incomplete to Schoonmaker - 3rd and 17
Rush passed to Schoonmaker for 6 yards, but Waletzko is called for Illegal Use of Hands, 10-yard penalty
Handoff to Freeman for 3 yards - 2nd and 7
Carlson kicks 65 yards from to Cowboys 0 - Johnson pushed out of bounds at the Cowboys 25
A 48-yard pass to Tucker set up the Raiders on this scoring drive. Daniel Carlson made the 29-yard field goal to tie up the game with 8:13 to go in the 1st quarter.
RAIDERS FIELD GOAL!
Minshew is under pressure again and throws too high, misses Meyers - 4th and 9.
Raiders will go for the field goal.
Minshew under pressure by Kneeland throws it away - 3rd and 9
Liufau makes his second stop, this time on White after just a yard - 2nd and 9 at the Cowboys 11
Minshew makes a DEEP pass to Tucker and IT IS CAUGHT for 48 yards!
Aubrey kicks 47 yards to the Raiders18, out of bounds.
That's a penalty on Aubrey - Kickoff Out of Bounds, placed at Raiders 40.
Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey, who scored all 12 points for Dallas in last week's preseason opener, makes the 54-yard field goal attempt to put the Cowboys in the lead with 9:53 still to go in the first quarter.
COWBOYS FIELD GOAL!
Rush passes to Tolbert and it's bopped up into the air by Jones again, but it comes back down into Tolbert's hands to make the catch for 6 yards - 4th and 4. Cowboys will go for the field goal attempt.
Rush hands it off to Davis and he's swallowed up by Crosby for no gain - 3rd down and 10
Rush tosses it to Brooks and he makes the catch but Jones knocks it out of his arms - incomplete - 2nd and 10
Rush takes it up the middle for 1 yard, good for the 1st down
Cooper Rush is in at QB for the Cowboys to start the game.
He hands it off to Davis and he runs it up 9 yards - 2nd and 1
Minshew throws low and it's nearly picked off by Harvey - incomplete. Cowboys will take over at their own 47.
Minshew gets the ball away to Turner, but he's taken down by Liufau after 7 yards - 4th down and 3. They go for it...
Minshew passes left to Meyers and it's too high - 3rd down
Minshew passes deep to Meyers but he's hit by Thomas just before he has a chance to catch it - 2nd down
White takes off and breaks through for 17 yards! 1st down Raiders
Minshew pass to Mayer for 5 yards - 2nd and 5
GAME TIME!
Raiders have won the toss and elected to receive. Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey kicks it 64 yards to the 1 and Mattison runs it up 23 yards to the Raiders 24.
Minshew is in under center for the Raiders and we're seeing all the healthy starters for Las Vegas.
Almost game time!
We're just moments away from kickoff at Allegiant Stadium!
Jerry Jones and Mark Davis meet ahead of the game
Cargando...
We'll hopefully be seeing a lot of Puka Nacua's relative in tonight's game - the Cowboys' third-round pick, rookie linebacker Marist Liufau.
Minshew pumping up the Raiders ahead of the game
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Can Trey Lance finally prove something?
The Cowboys traded a fourth-round pick for quarterback Trey Lance last August. It was a strange decision, and one they made once the preseason had already ended, so Lance ended up spending the entire season on the sidelines without anyone getting to see him play at all.
Lance was the 49ers' third overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. He made his on-field debut for the Cowboys in last week's preseason opener against the Rams and the results were underwhelming. He completed 61% of his 41 passes for 188 yards and rushed for 44 yards on six carries. He was up and down throughout the game, but his accuracy was the biggest issue, with several passes going too high and missing touchdowns on wide open targets.
Of course, it's expected that Lance might be a bit rusty after an entire year off. Head coach Mike McCarthy feels hopeful that Lance will improve this week against the Raiders.
“Just take another step in the efficiency [of the offense],” McCarthy said. “I thought he got the first part going, and as far as the drives, I mean, I don't know how many seven plus [play] drives in a game, I think [we had] three 10 plus [play] drives in a game, so the operation component I thought we got off to a good start. So just getting more in tune with the receivers, I thought he saw the game as far as the scheme, what we were doing to attack the coverage, so I thought he saw cleanly. So we just got to get the execution up but I thought he got off to a good start.”
Here are some of the key players to watch on both teams as the Raiders take on the Cowboys.
Beebe to start at center vs Raiders
The Cowboys will put rookie Cooper Beebe at center against the Raiders tonight, so we'll get to see what he can do at the position, something we haven't seen much of yet.
Dallas' third-round pick was the Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year in each of his last two seasons with Kansas State, but he was primarily as a guard. Occasionally he played at tackle, but never at center.
Still, when Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy saw Beebe play, he "saw a center".
“With some of these guys, that’s why there’s a difference with the grades of these players from team to team," said McCarthy. "Maybe not everyone looked at him as a center. Maybe some people thought he was a guard. Maybe some people thought he was a right tackle. I don’t know. But when I saw him play, knowing his makeup and the background our scouts gave us on him, I just thought he’d be a natural center.’’
Beebe immediately took on the task with all his energy. Video clips of him taking snaps with his mother went viral on the internet and he's improved greatly throughout training camp already. In Dallas' preseason opener, Beebe split time between center and guard.
“It was definitely a transition," said Beebe. "OTAs was a pretty good learning experience for me. But now, as I continue to get reps, I’m comfortable now. This is my job. This is the position they want me to play and I’m going to continue to get better at it."
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The Dallas Cowboys have been dealing with several injuries during training camp and even more have come up just days ahead of the game tonight.
The Raiders have been a bit more lucky.
QB battle heating up in Vegas
The Las Vegas Raiders still do not have their franchise quarterback. It's a battle between Aidan O'Connell and Gardner Minshew, both of whom are expected to play again tonight.
Gardner Minshew
The Raiders are Minshew's fourth NFL team. Last season, he was Anthony Richardson's backup with the Indianapolis Colts, but ended up getting 13 starts after Richardson suffered injuries. In the games Minshew started, the Colts were 9-6. In the games he didn't, they were 0-2. He threw for 3,305 yards and 15 touchdowns to just nine interceptions. This year, the Raiders have better weapons on offense for him to throw to.
Aidan O'Connell
O'Connell is in just his second year in the NFL after he started as the backup to Jimmy Garoppolo last season in Las Vegas. He was named the starter in November. By the end of the season, O'Connell started 11 games andcompleted 62% of his passes with 2,218 passing yards, 12 passing touchdowns, seven interceptions, and one rushing touchdown. In fact, in the last four games of the season, O'Connell had eight touchdowns and no interceptions, averaging around 215 passing yards per game with three divisional wins in that time.
Who will win the battle?
It's anyone's game at this point. Minshew has experience and arguably superior athletic ability. But O'Connell is younger and perhaps has his best days still ahead of him.
Today's game could be the determining factor in what the Raiders eventually decide for the future of the QB position in Vegas.
The Cowboys and Raiders last week
In their preseason openers, both the Cowboys and the Raiders lost by a point. The Raiders lost 24-23 to the Minnesota Vikings and the Cowboys lost 13-12 to the Los Angeles Rams.
The Cowboys started third string quarterback Trey Lance, who struggled with his accuracy. Despite the Dallas defense getting four turnovers in the game, the Cowboys offense couldn't get in the end zone. Kicker Brandon Aubrey scored all 12 points on four field goals.
The Raiders had the lead throughout the first half of the game against the Vikings. Aidan O'Connell started the game and immediately led the team to a scoring drive (a field goal). Gardner Minshew came in after that and for the rest of the game, finishing 6-of-12 for a team-high 117 yards and a touchdown.
Good evening, everyone and welcome to our live text coverage of tonight's preseason Week 2's game, Dallas Cowboys at Las Vegas Raiders!
Kickoff from Allegiant Stadium is at 7 p.m. PT (10 p.m. ET). It's Jen here, taking you through all the live action with highlights, scores, and commentary before, during and after the game.