Las Vegas Raiders @ Houston Texans
Sunday, December 21st, 4:25 PM ET
I honestly feel bad for the Las Vegas Raiders. I am not sure Vegas is going to put up a single point in this one, and if that is the case, they would be shut out for the second game in a row, which feels fake, but it’s not.
The Raiders traded legitimate NFL Draft capital for Geno Smith and also hired Pete Carroll. It was clear what this team was trying to do this year, and I understood it a bit, as they took Ashton Jeanty in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Vegas wanted to get competent QB play from Smith and run the heck out of the ball, perhaps being able to establish some competency in the process, but the complete opposite has happened, as the decision-makers in Vegas overrated the roster and probably overrated Geno Smith and Pete Carroll, who are both extremely bad at their respective jobs at this point.
Houston, on the flip side, has gone 9-2 since a brutal 0-3 start. The Texans are seeing a top-tier defense play well most weeks, and the offense has begun to come alive. This game should be over before the first half is over.
CJ Stroud is going to dice up the Raiders’ secondary, and Vegas may struggle to cross midfield. The Raiders are last in points scored and have hit the 20-point mark just five times this year. They have scored single-digit points in five games and have been shut out twice.
This could be a bloodbath, and I think the Texans’ defense is going to hold the Raiders scoreless in this one. Give me the Texans in a drubbing. Could Pete Carroll be one-and-done in Vegas? It feels like that will be the case.