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Seattle Seahawks

Raiders third-string QB Peterman leads 20-7 win over Seahawks in preseason opener

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) looks to pass against the Las Vegas Raiders during the first half of an NFL preseason football game, Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021, in Las Vegas. (Associated Press)
Associated Press

Associated Press

LAS VEGAS – Third-string quarterback Nathan Peterman completed 29 of 38 pass attempts for 246 yards and the Las Vegas Raiders opened the NFL preseason Saturday night with a 20-7 victory over the Seattle Seahawks.

With starter Derek Carr predictably skipping the opener and backup Marcus Mariota nursing a leg injury, Peterman looked solid while playing nearly the entire game. Case Cookus replaced him after the 2-minute warning to hand the ball off to fullback Garrett Groshek in his only play.

Peterman targeted 12 players and connected with 11. He also threw one interception.

DJ Turner had seven receptions, Keelan Doss hauled in six passes, and Zay Jones and Trey Ragas each had three.

Ragas also rushed for 62 yards on 13 attempts.

With a lot of talk at the start of training camp about improving in the red zone, the Raiders showed spunk in their four trips inside Seattle’s 20-yard line, with two touchdowns and two field goals.

Las Vegas scored on its opening drive when coach Jon Gruden chose to go on fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line, with Ragas punching it in midway through the first quarter. The Raiders settled for two field goals in their next two trips, before B.J. Emmons dived over the pile on first-and-goal at the 2-yard-line midway through the fourth quarter.

Geno Smith started for the Seahawks at QB, and finished 4 of 10 for 46 yards before leaving with a concussion in the first half. Alex McGough replaced Smith and was 6 of 10 for 54 yards with one touchdown. Sean Mannion finished the night for Seattle, completing 5 of 8 for 15 yards.

McGough took advantage of blown coverage and hooked up with DeeJay Dallas for a 43-yard TD strike in the third quarter to give Seattle its only points.

Hello folks

The Raiders were playing in front of a home crowd for the first time since relocating from Oakland. Las Vegas played in front of a crowd in just three road games last season and went 2-6 inside its empty 65,000-seat Allegiant Stadium with fans barred due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Up next

The Seahawks host the Denver Broncos next Saturday.

The Raiders head to Los Angeles on Wednesday for intrasquad practices with the Rams. The teams play next Saturday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.