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Jordan Raanan
LAS VEGAS — A loss Sunday would have all but clinched the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL draft. Instead, the New York Giants snapped a nine-game skid by beating the Las Vegas Raiders 34-10 at Allegiant Stadium.
Winning in Week 17 will likely cost the Giants (3-13) the top pick for the second straight year. They beat the Indianapolis Colts almost a year ago to the day before finishing with the No. 3 selection in April.
The Giants would have had a 99.7% chance at the No. 1 pick if they lost Sunday. They’re now at 20%, according to ESPN Analytics.
Sunday’s game was dubbed by some the «Tank Bowl,» with key players for both teams landing on injured reserve in recent days.
As for all that tanking talk?
Jaxson Dart said. «Sometimes that just happens. You know, us not having the year that we wanted and people just start talking.
«But from a player perspective, from a team perspective, I thought we were dialed in all week and, you know, we needed to win. Just from a morale [standpoint], just some excitement finally. We needed to win. And that’s how we felt.»
It really was never close.
The Giants dominated the Raiders, who were without star defensive end Maxx Crosby and tight end Brock Bowers. They outgained Las Vegas 343 yards to 231 with Dart getting back to his running ways. The rookie quarterback rushed for two touchdowns and now has nine scores on the ground this season. That’s the second most for a rookie quarterback since 1950 behind only the 14 Cam Newton had for the Panthers in 2011.
The Raiders (2-14) are now heavy favorites for the No. 1 pick with an 80% chance. New York remains the only other realistic option. For the Giants to jump Las Vegas, they would have to lose to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday at MetLife Stadium. Dak Prescott is expected to play out of «pride» for the division rivals.
In addition, New York would need the Raiders, in the midst of a 10-game losing streak, to beat the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs are out of playoff contention and on third-string quarterback Chris Oladokun. Las Vegas is likely to start backup Kenny Pickett with starter Geno Smith suffering a high ankle sprain against the Giants.
The rhetoric around those games will likely be the same as this week, with the loser viewed publicly as the winner because the No. 1 pick at stake.
«I mean, everybody heard about it,» said wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson, a pending free agent who topped 1,000 yards receiving for the season with a 113-yard game on 11 catches. «I didn’t pay too much attention to it. Obviously, I’m going out there trying to win every game that I play. There’s no guarantee that I’m here next year. So I wasn’t trying to think too much about what that was.»
What it turned out to be was the Giants winning for the first time since early October, snapping a 13-game road losing streak and solidifying that they have their franchise quarterback in Dart.
