It can be easy to get held up on a loss, especially after what could’ve been for the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 4 against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Raiders led at multiple points in the game, but mistakes for a team still considered to be in a rebuild proved costly in their 30-27 defeat to their AFC West rival. However, they are still 3-1 and remain the talk of the NFL. They went wire-to-wire with Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, and that could be a morale booster as they travel on Sunday to face the reigning AFC champions, the New England Patriots.
The Patriots Are Vulnerable
It feels like the Patriots are learning the hard way what a first-place schedule can lead to early in the season. The team is 2-2 heading into Week 5, but there are issues to sort out, especially protecting the football, offensive line play, and consistency. Patriots quarterback Drake Maye has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns, but he had a much better display against the Buffalo Bills a week ago.
Yet this is a vulnerable team on both sides of the ball that didn’t handle facing teams like the Seattle Seahawks and Jacksonville Jaguars well. I wouldn’t call the Raiders similar to those two seeming juggernauts, but they are proving to be a difficult matchup for their opponents.
Much of the credit should go to two individuals from this franchise: head coach Klint Kubiak and defensive coordinator Rob Leonard. When you have coaches who can get the best out of their players by putting them in key roles and positions to succeed, everything else works itself out.
Coaching Helps Raiders’ Early-Season Success
When you have a roster in its current state, as Las Vegas does, you need good coaching to get the best out of it. So far, they’ve done that, and it has led to some interesting situations, like Kirk Cousins leading the NFL in touchdown passes after four games; rookie Hezekiah Masses being the top Raiders cornerback; Cody White emerging as a go-to playmaker; or Nakobe Dean being the second-best player on the defense after the first quarter of the season.
Playing in New England is always tough, and the Raiders know it. They did win here last fall, and they can do it again with a better team this weekend.
The Raiders have a chance to bring down the reigning AFC champions and bolster confidence to take down other quality opponents remaining on the schedule in what will be a challenging seven-game stretch filled with postseason and championship contenders.
If the Raiders lose, they’re likely exposing cracks in an already unstable foundation that likely never had a chance to compete for the postseason. Yet if they win, it’s a sign Las Vegas will be incredibly competitive all season long and will have a chance in late November and December to do some magical things with the playoffs in sight.
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