Josh McDaniels, Raiders win; Dominique Robinson makes MNF debut; CJ McCollum starts strong

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels received a round of applause in the press room before he started his opening statement following Sunday's afternoon's game. “Better than the alternative” was the McKinley High School graduate's remark when he step onto the podium.

The Raiders picked up their second win of the season, pulling away from the Houston Texans for a 38-20 win Sunday. This was less than two weeks after suffering a one-point loss to their division foe, the Kansas Chiefs, on Oct. 10 on "Monday Night Football" ahead of their bye week.

“We talked a lot about a few things during the bye week," McDaniels told Raiders media after the game. "We saw some fruit of our labor here show up today.“

McDaniels spent the extra prep time ahead of the Texans game stressing improvement in the red zone on both sides of the ball, while protecting the ball better offensively. The Raiders have been playing in tight games all season, with three of their losses being in one-possession games. Sunday, they broke open a tight game by outscoring the Texans 21-0 in the fourth quarter.

"I'm proud of our guys and I thought Houston fought hard,” McDaniels said. “You know every game they play, every game we've played, basically it comes down to what happened in the fourth quarter. Today was no different.”

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Thayer Munford helps power Josh Jacobs to a big day in Raiders win

Raiders rookie offensive tackle Thayer Munford Jr. from Massillon stepped in at right tackle after Jermaine Eluemunor left the game with an ankle injury on the team's first drive. Munford played for the rest of the game, totaling 43 snaps.  According to PFF, Munford had a 79.1 grade and allowed no pressures, sacks or hits in his pass block snaps. His work up front helped running back Josh Jacobs gain 143 yards on 20 carries, scoring three TDs.

“I think it’s a credit to the offensive line,” Jacobs said to the Raiders media after the game. “I come back to them all the time because I feel like it’s the first time in a long time where I had 4 to 5 yards of being touched by anybody. They make it easier on me and I make sure I take care of them.”

Munford has made two starts this season and played the majority of the snaps in Weeks 3 and 4.

Dominique  Robinson plays his first 'Monday Night Football' game

McKinley grad Dominique Robinson played on 'Monday Night Football' for the first time as the Chicago Bears routed the New England Patriots 33-14. Robinson knocked down a pass in the win. It was his second prime-time game in his young career. Robinson entered Monday with eight tackles and 1.5 sacks, which ties him fifth among NFL rookies this season.

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Colts place Ashton Dulin on injured reserve

Former Malone wide receiver Ashton Dulin was placed on injured reserve by the Colts two weeks after sustaining a foot injury, which required him to miss four games. Dulin is expected to return in Week 9.

CJ McCollum drops 28 in overtime loss

CJ McCollum is averaging 23.3 points per game through his first three games this season with the New Orleans Pelicans, including 28 in their overtime loss to the Utah Jazz on Sunday.

McCollum is entering his first full season with the Pelicans after being traded by Portland to New Orleans last season. The Pelicans opened the season with road wins over the Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets, with scoring 21 in each before their home opener against Utah.

The Pelicans will be back on the court tonight as they face the Dallas Mavericks at 7:30 p.m. The game will be broadcasted on TNT.

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This article originally appeared on The Repository: McKinley grad Josh McDaniels gets second win with Las Vegas Raiders