The Oakland Raiders return home to Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum for what will mark the club's final home contest of the 2018 campaign. The conclusion of the home slate comes by way of a Christmas Eve primetime tilt against the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football. This will mark the second primetime matchup between the Broncos and Silver and Black in the last three seasons, with the last coming on Sunday Night Football in 2016, a game the Raiders took in convincing fashion by a score of 30-20. The club holds a 62-52-2 advantage in the all-time regular season series and will look to earn a three-game win streak over the Broncos at home when the teams kick off on national television this coming Monday evening at 5:15 p.m. PT on ESPN.
| The Setting | |
|---|---|
| Date: | Sunday, December 24, 2018 |
| Kickoff: | 5:15 p.m. PT |
| Site: | Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum (1966) |
| Capacity/Surface: | 56,057/Overseeded Bermuda |
| Regular Season: | Raiders lead, 62-52-2 |
| Postseason: | Series tied, 1-1 |
The Raiders enter Week 16 following a 16-30 defeat against the Cincinnati Bengals, giving the team a 2-2 record against AFC North clubs this season. In the contest, QB Derek Carr again etched himself in the franchise record books, this time by surpassing Rich Gannon for most consecutive pass attempts without an interception. Carr, now at 299 attempts, bested Gannon's mark of 277 set back in 2001. Carr's nine-game streak without an INT is currently NFL's longest active streak following the conclusion of Week 15. Carr will also enter Monday night's matchup just 303 yards away from his first 4,000-yard season, as his current mark of 3,697 yards rank 10th-most in the NFL in 2018. In his first extensive action on offense, TE Darren Waller notched a career-high 44-yard reception that led to a TE Lee Smith TD reception on the ensuing play, early in the second frame. It marked Smith's third consecutive game hauling in a score from Carr. On special teams, K Daniel Carlson tied career bests with three FGs made and connecting on a boot from 50 yards out. Since Week 10, Carlson has connected on all 12 FG attempts, a number that ranks tied for third in the NFL, and connected on all 11 PATs. On defense, S Karl Joseph led the way with eight stops (six solo) on the day and recorded his first sack of the 2018 campaign, while S Erik Harris hauled in his first career INT.
| Broadcast Information (Television) | |
|---|---|
| ESPN | |
| Play-by-play: | Joe Tessitore |
| Color Analyst: | Jason Witten |
| Sideline/Field: | Lisa Salters & Booger McFarland |
| Producer: | Jay Rothman |
| Director: | Chip Dean |
Here are the connections between the AFC West rivals:
• Broncos offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave served as the Raiders' offensive coordinator from 2015-16, helping the unit rank sixth in total offense last season. Musgrave also began his coaching career with the Raiders, serving as the team's quarterbacks coach in 1997.
• Raiders quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan spent six seasons in Denver holding multiple positions during his tenure – coaching assistant (2010), quality control – offense (2011-12), offensive assistant (2013-14) and offensive assistant/quarterbacks (2015).
• Broncos defensive backs coach Marcus Robertson spent three sea- sons with the Raiders, serving as the assistant defensive backs coach in 2014 before being promoted to defensive backs coach from 2015- 16.
• Raiders assistant defensive line coach Marco Coleman played defensive end for Denver for two seasons from 2004-05.
• Broncos Head Coach Vance Joseph was the secondary coach for Cincinnati from 2014-15 while Raiders defensive coordinator Paul Guenther was the Bengals' defensive coordinator.
• Broncos defensive coordinator Joe Woods was the defensive backs coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2004-05 while Raiders Head Coach Jon Gruden was head coach of the team. Woods also served as the Raiders' defensive backs coach in 2014.
• Raiders strength and conditioning assistant D'Anthony Batiste played tackle for the Broncos in 2010.
• Broncos DE Shelby Harris played in eight games for the Raiders (2014-15), after originally being selected by the team in the seventh round (235th overall) of the 2014 NFL Draft.
• Broncos T Jared Veldheer was drafted by the Raiders in the third round (69th overall) of the 2010 draft.
• Broncos WR Andre Holmes played with the Raiders from 2013-16, where he recorded a career-high 47 receptions for 693 yards with four touchdowns in 2014.
| Broadcast Information (Radio) | |
|---|---|
| Westwood One Sports | |
| Play-by-play: | Kevin Kugler |
| Color Analyst: | James Lofton |
| Sideline: | Scott Kaplan |
| Raiders Radio Network | |
| Flagship: | 740 KCBS |
| Play-by-play: | Brent Musburger |
| Color Analyst: | Lincoln Kennedy |
| Sideline: | Chris Townsend |
| Spanish Flagship: | La Z 1490-AM/107.5-FM |
| Play-by-play: | Fernando Arias |
| Color Analyst: | Ambrosio Rico |
The Broncos travel to Oakland after a 16-17 defeat at home against the Cleveland Browns this past Saturday. The Broncos, now 6-8, currently own a one-game win streak over the Raiders after defeating the team in Week 2, 20-19, on a last-second FG as time expired in the final frame. Following their primetime matchup, the Broncos will return home to face the Los Angeles Chargers in their season finale, while the Raiders will hit the road in Week 17 to conclude their 2018 campaign at Arrowhead Stadium against the Kansas City Chiefs.
