Jimmy Garoppolo wins over teammates in debut with Raiders: 'He's a dog'

Jimmy Garoppolo‘s first game with the Las Vegas Raiders included the 12th fourth-quarter comeback of his career, as he spearheaded a 17-16 road victory of division rival Denver.

“He’s a good leader. He’s won a lot of games in this league,” head coach Josh McDaniels said, via the team’s official website. “I think the guys in the locker room know who they have and what this guy can do, how competitive he is. He’s a very good leader. He’s a great communicator. Just does what it takes to win.

“Doesn’t care about his statistics or anything like that, it’s just ‘whatever I can do at my position to try to help the team win, I’m going to try to do it.’ Super happy that he’s a Raider.”

Garoppolo endeared himself to new teammates by taking an early illegal shot scrambling for a first down that knocked him out two plays. The Raiders quarterback, however, sprinted from the blue medical tent to the field after being cleared to throw the game’s first touchdown.

“Man, he’s a dog,” running back Josh Jacobs said. “Any quarterback that’s willing to take a hit in a big moment to secure a win got my respect.”

After the early success, Garoppolo and the offense got stymied, kicking a short field goal on the next drive. On the first drive of the second half came Jimmy G’s biggest mistake, an end zone interception that squelched a chance for the Raiders to tie or take the lead.

“The pick [was] a terrible, stupid decision,” Garoppolo said. “Just got to take the points there and throw it away when nothing’s there. I thought mental toughness kicked in and guys stuck with. They believed in me, so I appreciate that.”

After the Broncos took a six-point lead on an ensuing field goal, Garoppolo bounced back, leading a go-ahead TD drive that included passes of 18, 16 and 20 yards before he capped it with a six-yard score to Jakobi Meyers.

On the final drive, Garoppolo iced the game with an 8-yard scramble on third-and-7 at the two-minute warning to ensure the Broncos didn’t get the ball back.

“He’s a dog,” defensive end Maxx Crosby said. “We see that every day in practice. He put it on display today. It’s exciting to see.”

Garoppolo finished 20-of-26 passing (76.9%) for 200 yards and two TDs with one INT for a 107.9 passer rating.