The Raiders can’t afford another flat Sunday, and Week 7 brings a brutal test in Buffalo. Las Vegas is trying to halt a three-game skid, but the Bills come in at 4-1 with Josh Allen under center. The one silver lining for the Raiders is that Buffalo is coming off a short week.
That context only sharpens the pressure after Las Vegas’ loss to the New England Patriots, a defeat that left plenty of concern behind. The Raiders need real production from a few key players if they want to keep this one from getting away.
At quarterback, Cousins did not single-handedly sink the Raiders in the 28-point loss, but the position is already under a microscope. With a No. 1 overall pick quarterback waiting on the bench, fans are already talking about Fernando Mendoza whenever the losses pile up.
Cousins is expected to remain the starter for now, and his job security should not hinge on one game. Even so, another rough outing would only intensify the noise around a possible change.
If Las Vegas drops a third straight, especially with the Los Angeles Rams next, the chatter around Mendoza figures to get louder. Still, Klint Kubiak is not expected to make a quarterback switch anytime soon.
Jeanty is another player who has to start giving the Raiders more. He entered the season already dealing with an injury from training camp, and that issue carried into Week 1.
He has been fighting through injuries ever since, and the production has reflected it: 85 rushing yards on 25 carries over the last two games. He also has not scored a rushing touchdown this season, and he has three games in which he averaged fewer than three yards per carry.
None of that means Jeanty isn’t a good player. It does mean he has to start asserting himself between the tackles, though the injuries may be keeping him from doing that.
The idea of sitting him for at least one week has been floated, but if he plays, the expectation is that he produces.
The receiver group has its own problem: someone needs to emerge as the true WR1. Right now, the Raiders’ passing game has gone through Brock Bowers, while Jeanty ranks third on the team in receiving yards.
Tre Tucker is second with 274 yards on 19 catches, but the offense still lacks a legitimate outside threat beyond Bowers. That leaves Las Vegas without much room for error against a Buffalo defense that can make life miserable fast.
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