The Las Vegas Raiders are heading into Sunday with plenty on the line, but the stuff that may swing this one isn’t all under their control.
That’s the reality of a matchup like this against the AFC’s reigning Super Bowl representative. The Raiders, now 3-1, got in from the desert last night and are set for a game that could help flip the season’s storyline. If these two teams played 10 times, the feeling here is that the Raiders would take five.
One of the biggest wild cards is Ashton Jeanty. The Raiders’ sophomore running back looks like a natural fit for Klint Kubiak’s wide-zone run game, and that system lines up well with the way the Patriots have struggled this season. But Jeanty is dealing with an injury, and even though he is expected to play, he won’t be at 100%.
Kubiak confirmed Jeanty traveled with the team and said of the running back, “He's going to do his best to go."
Jeanty’s season has already drawn scrutiny after that breakout Week 1 showing against the Dolphins, and Kubiak was also asked whether the back has been dealing with a nagging issue since before the first game that had his teammates kneeling in prayer. Kubiak pushed back on that idea.
"I don't. I think he's been doing a great job.
And again, he's a leader on our team. He's a guy we're counting on.
I couldn't be more happy with Ashton [Jeanty]. We got to keep getting him and the entire offense playing better every week.
But no, I don't think so."
Another major variable is the Patriots’ battered secondary. New England’s defensive backfield is banged up, but the Raiders are bringing a passing attack led by 15-year veteran Kirk Cousins. The problem for Kubiak is simple: he doesn’t know who will actually be out there on the other side.
His answer was straightforward.
"Yeah, you just worry about yourself and worry about our guys getting better and it’s the NFL, injuries happen and the next guy steps up."
There’s also the Raiders’ receiver depth to consider. With Jalen Nailor out and Dont’e Thornton not yet back, Cody White and rookie Malik Benson are carrying more of the load. Kubiak isn’t treating that like a setback.
"They've been challenged all year, and that's no different this week."
Then there’s the number that can tilt a tight game in a hurry: the Rule of Five. It’s the Raiders’ way of measuring sacks and turnovers together, and the idea is simple enough. Win the margin by enough, and the game usually goes your way.
A plus-four day means something like three sacks to two allowed, or four takeaways against one giveaway. The goal is a plus-five ratio every game, and teams that hit that mark win 91 percent of their NFL games on average.
In a matchup this close, that kind of edge matters. The 2026 Raiders have already “shocked” NFL executives, and Sunday could give them another chance to do it.
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Raiders Have Extra Motivation In New England After Incognito's McDaniels Blast
Richie Incognito added another layer to the Raiders' trip to New England by publicly revisiting Josh McDaniels' brief and rocky run in Las Vegas. On a podcast, Incognito said McDaniels treated players poorly during his time with the team, a reminder of how quickly that tenure unraveled before he was fired on Oct. 31, 2023, after 21 months as head coach.
There are only a handful of players left on the current roster who were around for McDaniels' final season, but the memory of that stretch still lingers in the building. Malcolm Koonce is among the holdovers, and his rise after McDaniels' departure stands as one of the clearer examples of how different things looked once the coaching change was made, which helps explain why this matchup carries a little extra edge for some in the locker room. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Face An Early Prove It Spot In New England
The Raiders head to New England in a spot that already feels more revealing than the calendar suggests. Las Vegas has opened 3-1 and still looks like a team with real early-season credibility, even after a loss to the Chiefs, but the trip to Foxborough comes against a Patriots squad riding the momentum of an upset in Buffalo and trying to turn one statement win into something sturdier.
Oddsmakers have made New England a 3.5-point favorite, a sign the market is giving the Patriots more respect than it did before the weekend. From the Raiders' side, the trip raises familiar questions about whether their offense can control games the way a contender needs to, especially against a defense that is being viewed as one of the league's tougher early assignments. [Read more 🡒]
Maxx Crosby Trade Buzz Puts Raiders At Center Of A Huge Debate
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For the Raiders, the noise matters because Maxx Crosby is not just a name in speculation, he is the centerpiece of a defense and one of the most recognizable players on the roster. Any idea of moving him would put Las Vegas at the center of a huge debate about where the team is headed and how much it would take to even consider listening, while the talk around Dallas keeps circling the same basic question: how far would the Cowboys go to fix a problem that showed up again on a national stage? [Read more 🡒]