The Raiders have slipped into a three-game skid, and the defense is starting to look like the bigger problem than the record itself.
Las Vegas is now 3-3 after a narrow loss to the Buffalo Bills, and Klint Kubiak’s team heads into this week trying to stop the slide against an injured Los Angeles Rams squad. The concern on that side of the ball is hard to ignore: the Raiders are allowing 27.0 points per game, and what looked like an encouraging start has faded badly since the takeaway numbers dried up.
The pass rush has followed the same frustrating pattern. Las Vegas opened the year with eight sacks over its first two games, then managed only one sack in each of the last two.
The pressure is there in flashes, but the finish hasn’t been. That’s why a unit that looked disruptive early now sits 31st in sack percentage.
A lot of that points back to the interior. The Raiders rank 10th in the league in pressure rate at 41%, but that number is being propped up mostly by Maxx Crosby.
He has 35 pressures, second-most in the NFL, yet only 2.0 sacks on the season. Crosby is doing his part, but he’s not getting enough help inside, and that has let quarterbacks climb the pocket and get comfortable.
Inside, the production has been thin. Thomas Booker is the only defensive tackle on the roster with a pass-rush win rate above 10%, and he has the fewest pass-rush snaps among that group.
Tonka Hemingway is also out with a concussion, which only makes the situation worse. Right now, the Raiders simply aren’t getting enough from the defensive tackle room to change the shape of games.
There is at least one possible in-season wrinkle. Defensive end Kwity Paye could move inside to help the pass rush, and two of his team-leading 3.0 sacks have come from the interior. That kind of switch may be the cleanest short-term answer if the Raiders want more disruption up the middle.
Long term, though, the bigger fix may not arrive until the 2027 NFL Draft. The defensive tackle class is expected to be loaded in April, with Will Echoles, A'Mauri Washington, and Xavier Gilliam listed as three first-round options who could upgrade the position. That’s a promising thought for later, but it doesn’t help a team trying to survive the present.
A trade could change that. The source points to someone like DeForest Buckner as the kind of deadline addition that would make sense if Las Vegas wants immediate help.
For now, the reality is less comforting. John Spytek has not heavily invested in a position that matters deeply on the defensive line, with Hemingway standing as the highest pick he has made there, taken in the fourth round. Unless something changes soon, the Raiders may be stuck dealing with this weakness for a while.
In Other News...
Raiders Defensive Line Shuffle Could Matter More Than Fans Realize
The Raiders Week 7 inactive list brought a quiet but meaningful tweak to the interior of their defense, with the team setting its depth before facing the Rams. Las Vegas also listed Aidan OConnell as the emergency third quarterback, but the bigger roster note was up front, where the defensive tackle rotation will look different than it did a week ago.
Tim Keenan III was elevated from the practice squad and is set for his Raiders debut, a move that adds fresh legs to a group trying to hold up against a Rams offense that has Puka Nacua available. The timing matters for Las Vegas, too, because Thomas Booker IV and Jonah Laulu are inactive, leaving the Raiders to manage the middle of the line with a thinner margin than usual. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Suddenly Have A New Worry About The Rams Passing Game
The Raiders preparation for the Rams just got a little trickier, because Los Angeles is still holding out hope that Puka Nacua will be available for the matchup despite the calf issue that had him on the injury report. Nacua was feeling better Saturday and is now being treated as a game-time decision, which matters even more for a Rams passing game that already lost Davante Adams to a hamstring injury.
For Las Vegas, the concern is less about any one name than what happens if Nacua suits up and becomes the centerpiece of the Rams aerial attack. With Adams unavailable, Los Angeles is leaning harder on the passing game than it otherwise would, and the Raiders will have to plan for the possibility that Nacua is on the field after all. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Have A Real Chance To Exploit One Rams Weakness
The Raiders head into Week 7 with a matchup that could tilt in their favor if they can press a Rams roster dealing with injury issues at wide receiver. Las Vegas has reasons to like this spot, too, especially with its own tight end group looking like a usable part of the passing game and the Rams potentially forced to lean more heavily on their tight ends to keep the offense moving.
For the Raiders, that creates an opening to attack a weakened spot while still leaning into what has been one of their more workable personnel groupings. Michael Mayer and Dylan Laube are both names to watch in that conversation, since the game could push Las Vegas toward more involvement from the tight end position and more opportunity for backfield help in passing situations, even if the exact shape of that usage remains to be seen. [Read more 🡒]