Oakland Raiders wide receiver Michael Crabtree (15) and quarterback Derek Carr (4) celebrate after connecting on a touchdown pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

By Jeremy Kahn

OAKLAND-Marshawn Lynch wanted to come back to the Oakland Raiders, so that he could play in front of his family and friends.

In his first game back in the Bay Area as a member of the Raiders, Lynch did not disappoint the Raider Nation, as he carried the ball 12 times for 45 yards and a touchdown and the Raiders defeated the New York Jets 45-20 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

You knew that Lynch was having fun, as he began to dance on the sidelines with the Raiders firmly ahead with 12:49 remaining in the game.

“Looked like our crowd had some fun,” coach Jack Del Rio said. “Good, solid day. Once again, I thought all three phases contributed. Awesome to see.”

Derek Carr also did not disappoint in his first game in the building where he broke his leg in the home finale on December 24 against the Indianapolis Colts, as he threw three touchdowns, all of them to Michael Crabtree.

Carr went 23-of-28 for 230 yards, including those three touchdown passes of 2 yards, 26 yards and 1 yard.

Cordarrelle Patterson scored on a 43-yard run late the third quarter, and Jalen Richard scored on a 52-yard early in the fourth quarter to essentially put the game away.

With the victory, the Raiders are 2-0 for the first time since they won the AFC Championship in 2002 on their way to Super Bowl XXXVII against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Despite being on the losing end of a 25-point loss, Josh McCown threw a pair of touchdown passes to JermaIne Kearse.

Giorgio Tavecchio kicked a 29-yard field goal with just 25 second remaining in the game to close out the scoring for the Raiders.

Marquette King continues to be one of the best punters in the NFL, as he hit a 65-yard and 55-yard punt and it was the 55-yard punt with under two minutes remaining.

King’s punt was called for a fair catch by Khalif Raymond; however, Raymond was unable to gain control of the punt and Johnny Holton recovered it at the Jets’ four-yard line.

“I give Marquette all the credit, because he did a good job punting the ball,” Holton said. “I was just focusing on whether he caught it or not. He called a fair catch, I broke down, he made a mistake and we capitalized on the mistake.”

Three plays later, Lynch scored on a two-yard touchdown run and what was a 14-10 Raiders lead turned into a 21-10 Raiders lead at the half.

NOTES: Once again, the Raiders head out on the road, as they travel to Landover, Maryland, where they face the Washington Redskins on Sunday Night Football.

The Lynch touchdown was his first in a game since scoring on three-yard run on November 15, 2015 against the Arizona Cardinals.