Last Week: Raiders 16, Browns 14

Kicker Daniel Carlson made a 48-yard field goal as time expired, his second game-winner in the past four weeks. The fourth-year veteran also made two other kicks at FirstEnergy Stadium on a night when Las Vegas’ offense struggled to finish, aside from a game-opening drive on which it scored its only touchdown—on a five-yard pass from Derek Carr to Bryan Edwards.

The Browns were down to their third-string quarterback, Nick Mullens, with several other starters out because of positive COVID-19 tests, but hung with the Raiders before scoring two touchdowns in a 16-minute stretch near the end of the game. Carr committed two turnovers—a fumble and an interception—but managed a 2-minute drive at the end of the game to get Carlson into field goal range.

This Week: Broncos (7-7) vs. Raiders (7-7)

When: Sunday, December 26, 1:25 p.m.

Where: Allegiant Stadium

TV: KLAS (Channel 8)

Radio: 920-AM, 92.3-FM

Betting line: Raiders -2.5, over/under: 42.5

Matchup: Las Vegas soundly defeated Denver on the road earlier this year, 34-24, and the matchup should be more favorable this time around. The Broncos lost starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to what looked like a severe head injury in a 15-10 loss to the Bengals last week, and the offense didn’t look in sync under backup Drew Lock. The Raiders already beat Lock twice last year, putting them on an overall three-game win streak against the rival Broncos. This is arguably the most important meeting between the two sides in years, with both teams now one game out of the playoffs. The loser will be all but eliminated, while the winner will move a step closer.

Raider to Watch: Wide receiver Zay Jones

Jones was promoted to the de facto No. 1 wide receiver role midseason, and it hasn’t gone all that smoothly. He has struggled to get open and has also committed a few drops, with the miscues arguably reaching a peak last week against the Browns before a late turnaround. Carr encouraged Jones after the receiver was apparently at fault for a fourth-quarter interception, and the latter came back out with a vengeance. He caught three passes on the game-winning drive (though one was wiped out bt a holding call) and finish with six receptions for 67 yards, both team-highs. Now it’s time to see if Jones can build on the late success down the stretch of the regular season.