Derek Carr and the Las Vegas Raiders got the third-down help they needed from Dallas cornerback Anthony Brown.
Daniel Carlson kicked a 29-yard field goal in overtime after Brown’s fourth pass-interference penalty kept the drive alive, and the Raiders beat the Cowboys 36-33 on Thursday.
Carlson’s fifth field goal came after Brown was called for interference on Zay Jones on third-and-18. All four of Brown’s interference penalties came on third-down incompletions.
The Raiders had just two third-down conversions total the previous two games and were just 3 of 13 in this one. But Brown topped that total all by himself.
Both teams had season highs in penalties and yards. Dallas, the NFL leader in penalty yards coming in, had 14 for 166 and Las Vegas 14 for 110.
“Twenty-eight penalties, I don’t know what the hell you want me to say,” Dallas coach Mike McCarthy said. “Write what you want. I’m all for it.”
The Raiders (6-5) ended a three-game losing streak with their first Thanksgiving victory since 1968. It was their fourth appearance on the holiday since then, with the previous two losses coming at the Cowboys.
“It kind of gave me goose bumps, I’m not going to lie,” Carr said. “When that kick went through, I had a a lot of memories as a kid.”
Dak Prescott had 209 of his 375 yards passing in the fourth quarter. His 32-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Schultz and 2-point conversion toss to the tight end pulled the Cowboys (7-4) even at 30 with 2:54 remaining after they trailed almost from the start.
Carlson put Las Vegas ahead 33-30 with a career-long 56-yarder with 1:52 remaining. Greg Zuerlein, who missed an extra point after the first Dallas TD, answered with a 45-yarder with 19 seconds to go.
Tony Pollard had a 100-yard kickoff return for Dallas in the third quarter, but was stopped inside the 15 to start overtime. The Cowboys went three-and-out starting from their 7, and the Raiders finished off the third victory for the AFC West against the NFC East-leading Cowboys in the past four games.
Brown had his back to Jones when Carr threw the pass with Las Vegas at its 43. The penalty put the Raiders at the Dallas 24, and the winning kick came after the Cowboys were penalized twice for rushing past the line of scrimmage before the snap.
Carr threw for 373 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown strike to DeSean Jackson. Marcus Mariota had a short scoring run on a shotgun keeper.
The Dallas offense struggled early without top receivers Amari Cooper (COVID-19 protocols) and CeeDee Lamb (concussion) and running back Ezekiel Elliott nursing a right knee injury.
Jackson tip-toed successfully on the sideline to open the scoring and drew one of the interference penalties against Brown in the end zone to set up Josh Jacobs’ 1-yard TD.
Sean McKeon had his first career touchdown, a 10-yard catch for the Cowboys’ first points. Elliott, who was limited to nine carries for 25 yards, had a 1-yard TD.
