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Fight breaks out between Giants, Raiders players after sideline collision

Brian Jones Profile Picby: Brian Jones12/28/25brianjones_93

A fight broke out between a New York Giants player and a Las Vegas Raiders player during the game on Sunday. Late in the second quarter, Giants cornerback Rico Payton was battling Raiders cornerback Chigozie Anusiem. Payton pushed Anusiem out of bounds and into the Gatorade coolers on the sideline. That led to Anusiem going afterPayton, and the two began to fight.

The Giants and the Raiders were battling in a game that had offseason implications. Both teams entered the game with a 2-13 record, the worst in the NFL. Whoever has the worst record in the league at the end of the season will have the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft.

The Giants entered the 2025 season looking to turn things around after finishing 3-14 in 2024. Russell Wilson began the year as the Giants’ quarterback, but the team then went to Jaxson Dart after Wilson lost the first three games.

After 10 games, the Giants fired head coach Brian Daboll and named Mike Kafka the Giants’ interim head coach. “The past few seasons have been nothing short of disappointing, and we have not met our expectations for this franchise. We understand the frustrations of our fans, and we will work to deliver a significantly improved product,” Giants president John Mara and chairman Steve Tisch said in a joint statement in November.

More on the Giants and the Raiders

“We appreciate Coach Daboll for his contributions to our organization. We wish the Daboll family all the best in the future.”

The Raiders hired Super Bowl champion head coach Pete Carroll during the offseason to turn things around. They also acquired quarterback Geno Smith from the Seattle Seahawks to be the starting QB.

After having a career season in 2024, Smith could not get anything going this year. Through 14 games, Smith completed 67.1 percent of his passes for 2,849 yards, 18 touchdowns, and an NFL-leading 15 interceptions.

It will be interesting to see if the Giants or the Raiders end up with the No. 1 pick. It’s likely the Raiders will take a QB at either No. 1 or No. 2, but the Giants could trade down to acquire more picks since they have Dart as their franchise QB.