To sum up the emotions in the Raiders’ locker room after their 19-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars: gratitude.

It has been 84 calendar days since their last win in Week 4 against the Cleveland Browns and they are now on a 10-game losing streak in front of their home crowd. As we dealt with the adversity of injuries, coaching changes and poor performances over the last three months, the locker room got closer.

“Long overdue,” head coach Antonio Pierce said after the game. “It’s nice to see all the smiling faces of our players, our staff and everyone involved in our organization. Of course you don’t want to go through what we’ve been through in the last ten weeks, but that’s behind us.”

“I thought it was a great win. Great job,” he added. “Our home audience found them very loud and active. That was positive, especially for our defense. … I’m very proud of this group for being resilient, blocking out the outside noise and playing for each other.”

It was an all-round successful team performance, with offense and defense complementing each other well. Aidan O’Connell went 24 of 38 for 257 passing yards and a career-high 12 rushing yards after missing the previous game with a knee injury. It was also the offense’s first game this season without a single turnover.

“I think the guys appreciate more than ever how hard it is to win,” O’Connell said. “Definitely taking a load off your shoulders. It was just fun to see the smile again. … Super proud of our coaches, administration and players who just did a great job.”