Raiders’ Geno Smith Breaks Las Vegas Record in Debut Against Patriots
It was an impressive debut for Geno Smith of the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday against the New England Patriots. The Raiders went into Sunday’s game with some questions on the offensive side of the football, but Smith was excellent, throwing for 362 yards on 34 attempts, adding a touchdown and one interception. The Raiders will have things to clean up, but they beat a much-improved Patriots team on the road, showing some promise in their first week.
Smith also enjoyed other things in that game, including making Raiders history in more ways than one. According to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, Smith’s 362 passing yards broke Dan Pastorini’s record for the most passing yards in a Raiders debut.
“Smith was 24-of-34 for 362 yards, a touchdown, and an interception in the 20-13 road win over the Patriots. The 362 yards broke Dan Pastorini’s record for most passing yards in a Raiders debut and it marked the eighth time since the start of the 2022 season that Smith threw for at least 300 yards while completing at least 70 percent of his passes,” he wrote.
The Raiders also announced in an article released by the team that Smith had nine completions for 20-plus yards, which tied for the most in a game in his career. It also tied for the most in a single game by a Raiders quarterback since 1991.
“Another impressive feat for Smith was his nine completed passes for 20+ yards against the Patriots, tied for the most in a game in his career. It also tied for the most in a single game by a Raiders quarterback since 1991. He accomplished this while completing a pass to seven different receivers,” Levi Edwards wrote.
Raiders QB Geno Smith Proves to Be a Late Bloomer
Smith has been a polarizing player around the NFL due to his play at times.
For much of the past few years, he’s been one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL.
Of course, he isn’t elite by any means, but he threw for 4,320 yards and 21 touchdowns last season. The issue, however, is that he turned the ball over 15 times. Despite that, the Las Vegas Raiders finally seem to have an above-average quarterback again, and for Pete Carroll, this might be all he needs.
“He’s been doing this now. Geno had a regular game today,” Carroll said, per NFL.com. “I don’t think it was a big statement game or anything like that. I just think that’s what he does. And we’ll do better than that. He’s got it in him to do better than that.”
Geno Smith’s Honest Take on Raiders Start
While Smith had an impressive game, this is just the start of what the Las Vegas Raiders need to do. He found seven different receivers in a great effort by the entire team, but there are questions about how the Raiders will look offensively still, despite the above-average performance.
For Smith, however, he’s just doing what he’s asked to do, adding that he wants to make the right reads and get everyone the football when he can.
“That’s how we want to play football,” Smith said. “We want to make sure that we make the right reads. I want to make sure that I’m making the right decisions and getting the ball into the hands of the playmakers. We’ve got a lot of great players and that’s something that we can take advantage of. I want to spread the ball around if need be but I want to find the open guy, first and foremost.”
Joe Flacco Gets Honest on Quinshon Judkins Joining Browns
The Cleveland Browns could have a new-look running back room in Week 2.
The Browns officially signed rookie Quinshon Judkins to his deal, as he was the last draft pick to sign. Although Judkins signed, he may not play in Week 2, but he will be back practicing with the team.
Ahead of Judkins returning to the team, the Browns’ starting quarterback, Joe Flacco, is excited for the rookie running back to be a part of the offense.
“I think it’s exciting for him,” Flacco said about Judkins after the Week 1 loss. “I mean, we got to see him a little bit in the spring, and he, you know, looked like a hell of a ball carrier. So, listen, I think we’re going to need all the pieces at some point, and different guys are going to need to step up at different points in the season. I think he’s a big part of what this football team could be, so it’s good to have him back. And I’m excited for him to kind of get in there and feel like he can be part of the team again.”
Judkins will be a key part of the Browns’ offense once he is able to play, but it’s uncertain if he will be in the lineup in Week 2.
Judkins was selected 36th overall by the Browns in 2025.
Browns Noncommittal on Judkins Playing Week 2
Although Judkins signed before Week 1, he missed all of training camp and preseason, so he will need some time to ramp up.
However, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said he isn’t sure if Judkins will play in Week 2.
“We’ll see,” Stefanski said. “Gotta get through this week of practice. I don’t know.”
The NFL is also set to meet with Judkins to discuss his legal issue, which has now been resolved.
In Judkins’ absence, the Browns used Jerome Ford and Dylan Sampson in Week 1. Sampson rushed for 29 yards on 12 carries, while Ford rushed for 8 yards on 6 carries. Sampson, however, added 64 receiving yards on 8 receptions as he was a big part of the Browns’ passing game.
Cleveland is set to go on the road to play the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2.
Cleveland Had High Praise for Judkins
The Browns used an early Day 2 pick to select Judkins to be a star running back for the team.
Following the pick, Browns general manager Andrew Berry said they viewed Judkins as a bell cow running back.
“We feel like he’s just a very well-rounded back,” Berry said. “We’ve obviously been spoiled over the past couple of years, particularly with Nick and Kareem (Hunt). And we feel like he is very much in that mold in terms of skill set. Not necessarily saying that he’s going to, with certainty, develop into one of those players. We certainly hope that’s the case. But we think that he can be a bell cow runner that can really carry the load for us.”
The hope for the Browns is that Judkins will be able to play in Week 2. But it is likely he will need at least another week to get up to speed.
