The Raiders’ 2026 season is shaping up as a year of evaluation, with Klint Kubiak taking over as head coach and John Spytek already keeping one eye on the offseason. Las Vegas has enough moving parts to make this a fascinating reset, and a handful of players will help define what the team learns along the way.
At the center of everything is Mendoza, the top overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. His first career start for the Raiders will instantly become the focal point of the season, even if the timing of that debut is still unknown. Once he’s on the field, the organization will be measuring how much progress he’s made, how much more he needs, and what kind of help the team truly has around the former Heisman Trophy winner and national champion.
Jeremy Chinn is another name worth tracking closely. After years of wondering how best to deploy him, this could be the season a defensive coordinator finally puts him in the right spots in the defensive back-seven. Rob Leonard’s job is to maximize Chinn’s range on the back end and his size and physicality in the box, and if that happens, Chinn could become a real bright spot for Las Vegas.
The Raiders also need answers at wide receiver, where the search for a dependable go-to option remains unfinished. Tucker has drawn plenty of attention since early in OTAs, and the team likes the speed, quickness in space, and reliable hands he brings. The question is whether he can bring enough consistency to become the kind of target the passing game can lean on.
In the backfield, Ashton Jeanty is the clear No. 1 running back if he’s healthy, but an injury has made his Week 1 status uncertain. That opens the door for rookie Mike Washington, the Raiders’ fifth-round pick, to take on a bigger role. He brings a physical style with enough explosion to add something different to the offense.
Then there’s McCoy, whose recovery and development may be one of the most revealing storylines on the roster. Nearly two years after a torn ACL, his health will shape both his snap count and his place in the defense. If he gets rolling once he’s back on the field, he could emerge as one of the Raiders’ best young talents; if not, he may need more time to get fully reacclimated to football.
In Other News...
Raiders Depth Chart Just Settled Several Big Week 1 Battles
The Raiders finally put some structure around the opening weeks of their 2026 season by releasing an official depth chart before Week 1, and it answered several of the roster questions that had lingered through camp. Kirk Cousins is the starting quarterback, while battles at right guard and the second cornerback spot are now settled on paper, giving Las Vegas a clearer sense of how the first game plan will come together.
There is also some important clarity on special teams and the back end of the defense, where Dylan Laube and Dareke Young will handle kick returns and Malik Benson is listed as the punt returner. On defense, veteran Foley Fatukasi has carved out a meaningful place in the defensive tackle rotation, and Stukes is set to start at free safety ahead of Isaiah Pola-Mao, a sign the Raiders are leaning into a few different lineup choices as they head into the opener. [Read more 🡒]
Brock Bowers Suddenly Leaves Raiders With A Big Week 1 Problem
Brock Bowers knee situation has quickly turned into one of the biggest early storyline shifts around the Raiders, because the tight end is not just another piece of the offense. After undergoing a meniscus trim, he is expected to miss one or two games, leaving Las Vegas to navigate the start of the season without one of its most important playmakers.
For a Raiders team trying to get its footing in Week 1, the timing is far from ideal. Bowers had already dealt with a knee issue earlier in 2025, and his absence has even moved the betting market for the upcoming matchup with the Miami Dolphins, a reminder of how much pressure now falls on the rest of the offense to pick up the slack. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders May Be Ready To Use Brock Bowers Very Differently
The early read on Brock Bowers in Las Vegas is that the Raiders may not be treating him like a conventional tight end at all. Head coach Klint Kubiak is expected to feature the first-round pick heavily in the offense, and the buzz around the league has only grown as former coaches and media voices have described him as the kind of weapon who can shape how a passing game is built.
That shift matters for a team that took plenty of heat when it used a first-round pick on Bowers in the first place, only for the move to start looking smarter to outside evaluators. The more intriguing question now is how far the Raiders are willing to go in pushing his role beyond the traditional tight-end label, especially with some around the game already talking about him in terms usually reserved for wide receivers. [Read more 🡒]