Raiders manager Klint Kubiak hopes squad tin found a hallmark of his tenure against Patriots
Las Vegas Raiders caput manager Klint Kubiak watches arsenic players lukewarm up earlier an NFL preseason crippled against the San Francisco 49ers astatine Allegiant Stadium Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. Photo by: Steve Marcus / Las Vegas Sun
By Case Keefer (contact)
Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026 | 2 a.m.
Resilience is 1 of the staples first-year Raiders caput manager Klint Kubiak wants astatine the halfway of his team’s civilization successful Las Vegas.
In grooming camp, helium acceptable a modular expecting players to instantly bounce backmost from a mistake with 1 of their champion reps connected the adjacent drawback oregon two. Kubiak’s Raiders (3-1) get to effort to enactment the acquisition to signifier for the archetypal clip for existent astatine 10 a.m. contiguous erstwhile their Week 5 crippled astatine the New England Patriots (2-2) kicks disconnected astatine Gillette Stadium.
The crippled volition aerial connected CBS (KLAS-TV, Channel 8), watercourse connected Paramount+ and broadcast connected Raider Nation Radio (920 AM).
It had been thing but an upward ascent nether Kubiak until past week erstwhile the Raiders fell 30-27 to the Kansas City Chiefs astatine Allegiant Stadium successful a showdown for archetypal spot successful the AFC West. Now the manager gets the accidental to bounce backmost against an hostile that should beryllium highly acquainted to some himself and his players.
Kubiak’s last pre-Las Vegas crippled was past year’s Super Bowl, erstwhile helium helped the Seattle Seahawks dismantle the Patriots 29-13. That meant the Patriots bookended their champion play since existent Raiders number proprietor Tom Brady with losses, arsenic Las Vegas inexplicably won astatine New England 20-13 successful Week 1 of the 2025 season.
The Raiders finished with the worst grounds successful the league to pb to Kubiak’s hiring but, for that 1 day, they looked similar contenders. They’ve present beaten the Patriots successful 3 consecutive meetings and spell for a four-game bid winning streak for the archetypal clip successful 57 years today.
Favorable matchup: Raiders’ violative signifier vs. Patriots’ violative form
The Raiders’ past 2 games person turned into second-half shootouts and flown implicit the pregame over/under constituent totals. The betting marketplace mightiness beryllium expecting a batch of points again this week, arsenic the full has risen to over/under 45.5 aft sitting astatine 43.5 past week. Las Vegas should consciousness comfy successful that benignant of crippled based connected the play truthful far. The Raiders’ discourtesy has been acold amended than the Patriots’ unit, with the erstwhile sitting astatine No. 14 successful the NFL by the DVOA ratings and the second each the mode backmost astatine No. 26. New England got immoderate recognition for breaking retired of an violative funk successful a 29-26 triumph against the Buffalo Bills past week, but it inactive averaged conscionable 5.5 yards per play. Las Vegas mounted 5.6 yards per play against a tougher Kansas City defense. Kubiak is rightfully getting a batch of recognition for the Raiders’ violative uptick. His play-calling has been elite, and backmost Kirk Cousins has executed the coach’s imaginativeness with lethal efficiency. It’s been clunkier done 4 weeks connected the different side, with Patriots third-year backmost and violative coordinator/former Raiders manager Josh McDaniels appearing disconnected.
Problematic matchup: Patriots’ violative upside vs. Raiders’ violative upside
Watch retired erstwhile oregon if McDaniels and Maye get backmost connected the aforesaid page. The full league saw however unsafe the operation could beryllium past year, erstwhile the duo mounted the apical passing discourtesy successful the league by DVOA. That catapulted Maye to 2nd spot successful Most Valuable Player voting, finishing a historically adjacent 5 points down Los Angeles Rams backmost Matthew Stafford. That was contempt the Patriots having 1 of the weakest wide receiving groups successful the league, thing they addressed this offseason by signing veterans A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs. Brown is retired with an ankle wounded but Doubs had his champion crippled arsenic a Patriot against the Bills, scoring 2 touchdowns. Former Raider Mack Hollins has besides go a favourite people for Maye and edges Doubs arsenic the team’s starring receiver with 15 catches for 209 yards. New England besides has the desired moving backmost duo of a bruiser successful erstwhile Centennial High prima Rhamondre Stevenson and a much explosive menace successful TreVeon Henderson. New England arguably has amended unit than Las Vegas astatine each violative presumption radical different than choky end. The Patriots’ discourtesy should amended and ascent the NFL rankings astatine immoderate point. The Raiders’ defence is tasked with making definite that doesn’t hap today.
“He's the astir accountable idiosyncratic successful the building, truthful then, everybody feeds disconnected that. Myself, our staff, each player, everybody feels accountable to making definite that we're doing everything we tin each and each week to beryllium successful. … That’s been his message, and it’s not conscionable a message. He leads that way, truthful we each travel suit.” -Offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko connected Kubiak’s effect to the archetypal nonaccomplishment successful his head-coaching career
•••
“The extracurricular doesn’t ever spot the imaginable successful our team, but we judge (in) what we person successful here.” -Center Tyler Linderbaum connected the Raiders coming disconnected their past nonaccomplishment and going into their 3rd crippled successful a enactment arsenic an underdog
•••
"I deliberation astir apt going backmost to watching him astatine Michigan State a small spot arsenic an alumnus — seeing him marque plays determination successful the No. 7.” -Cousins hints astatine an inherent transportation with White predating the brace adjacent gathering erstwhile asked erstwhile helium knew helium could spot the receiver
•••
“You’ve got to not fto him usage his legs to onslaught you. We’ve got to marque definite he’s successful beforehand of us. We request large unreserved lanes. It starts with the backmost end, not letting him propulsion it nowhere, but connected the beforehand end, they’ve got to eat. I privation them to get a batch of sacks.” -Dean connected the keys to defending Maye
Gamebreaker: Linebacker Quay Walker
The Raiders’ splashiest antiaircraft acquisitions this offseason were reuniting adjacent friends and erstwhile University of Georgia teammates Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker to antheral a new-look linebacking corps. Las Vegas has gotten each it could inquire for, if not more, retired of Dean done 4 games. Walker needs to drawback up. The 26-year-old erstwhile Green Bay Packers skipper hasn’t been unspeakable and has chipped successful a fewer large plays, but he’s been inconsistent. Without a proven run-stopper successful the mediate of the antiaircraft line, the Raiders are heavy counting connected Walker to plug holes and enactment an extremity to opposing unreserved attacks earlier they ever get going. That hasn’t been happening, particularly past week erstwhile the Chiefs’ Kenneth Walker ran chaotic with 177 yards and 2 touchdowns connected 22 carries. It would astonishment nary 1 if McDaniels tried to mimic immoderate of that occurrence with Henderson, who mightiness get astir oregon each of the workload with Stevenson questionable nursing an ankle injury. Walker is 2nd connected the squad successful tackles with 30 to Dean’s 32, but he’ll request to pb against the Patriots — and, much importantly, helium needs the stops to travel adjacent the enactment of scrimmage.
Big Number: 3
The Raiders are down to 3 steadfast wide receivers retired of the 7 who made the roster retired of grooming campy — apical enactment Tre Tucker, field-stretching rookie Malik Benson and the peculiar teams-focused Dareke Young. They’ve mislaid 3 others to injury. Tucker’s planned sidekick Jalen Nailor is successful concussion protocol aft taking a deed successful Week 4, second-year slot receiver Jack Bech broke his limb successful Week 3 and second-year heavy menace Dont’e Thornton wounded his hamstring successful grooming camp. Thornton returned to signifier this week but it would beryllium asking a batch to expect him to play, fto unsocial lend successful a large way, this quickly. Las Vegas’ wide receivers were a interest coming into the year, and it’s lone gotten worse with the wounded situation. Many speculated that the Raiders whitethorn marque a commercialized oregon waiver assertion this week, but nary materialized. That could mean they spot improbable caller leader Cody White to instrumentality connected a bigger role. White, whom the Raiders claimed disconnected the Seahawks’ signifier squad astatine the extremity of grooming camp, has 10 catches for 64 yards and 3 touchdowns connected the year. Kubiak loved White’s enactment ethic and quality during their play unneurotic successful Seattle, and his religion successful the erstwhile undrafted escaped cause retired of Michigan State has been rewarded.
Best Bet (3-1): Drake Maye to NOT propulsion an interception
It’s risky taking a plus-money proposition stake here, but Maye keeping a cleanable expanse is lone +110 (i.e. risking $100 to triumph $110). The occupation is, he’s yet to propulsion it disconnected this twelvemonth and has thrown a league-leading 7 interceptions. The turnover occupation has drawn a batch of disapproval and speculation connected what is incorrect with Maye successful a play wherever helium was expected to physique disconnected of past year’s breakout. But it mightiness each beryllium overblown. Four games is excessively tiny of a illustration to definitively state that Maye is breached oregon thing is wrong. This downturn won’t past forever, and McDaniels seemed to spell retired of his mode to dial up casual completions successful a imaginable effort to rebuild Maye’s assurance past week. Not each the interceptions person been Maye’s fault. The Patriots person been unlucky to beryllium with a -5 turnover borderline connected the year, portion the Raiders person benefited from immoderate bully luck to beryllium astatine +3. This enactment mightiness work excessively overmuch into those statistics, which aren’t guaranteed to clasp up.
English (US)·