The Las Vegas Raiders are entering their Week 7 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams on a three-game losing streak. Still, no heads are hanging in Las Vegas' locker room. The team has responded nearly the same way after three losses as it did after three wins.
Las Vegas' offseason moves were about more than progress on the field. John Spytek and the Raiders' front office wanted to change the culture. Fully turning around the roster and the culture within the locker room takes time. It also takes a team handling both wins and losses well.
Fighting Raiders
That is where Klint Kubiak's Raiders find themselves after six games. After playing three of the league's best teams, the Raiders now face a reeling Rams team. Yet both teams are on a losing streak, with the Rams losing in a row and three of their last four.
On paper, the Rams have the better roster, but they are far from unbeatable. Los Angeles has sustained injuries to several of their best players, who may either be out for Sunday's game or not at full strength. Still, as their loss to the New England Patriots proved, none of that really matters.
During their three-game losing streak, the Raiders have confirmed that if they play their best football, they can compete with the league's best teams. When they do not play their best football, games like Week 5 happen. It really is that simple for this Raiders team.
Right now, the Raiders' success depends not only on what they do, but also on what they do not do. In two of the three games they lost, the Raiders did not play bad football or fail to do many things, but the things they failed at were significant.
Notably, Las Vegas has failed to capitalize on moments in the game that could put them in better positions down the stretch. Against the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills, the Raiders had chances to take a lead in the second half, but failed to do so.
Repeated three-and-outs at critical moments are easy to overlook until a team loses by three points twice in three weeks against two of the league's best teams. The Raiders would not need gargantuan fourth-quarter comeback bids if they took care of business in the third quarter.
Multiple Things Can Be True at Once
Yes, Las Vegas has struggled to finish games, but finishing strong starts with strong second-half starts. Not halfway through the fourth quarter, when down by double digits to Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. Finishing games will be a focus of Kubiak's staff moving forward.
“It's such a competitive game and if you're just hoping to keep it close in the fourth quarter, that's not a winning mindset. So, just having the mindset when you have an opportunity to make a play, when you're playing complementary football on one side of the ball, special teams gives you good field position, you got to go score on that drive,” Kubiak said before Wednesday’s practice.
“[Our] Defense gets a turnover; you got to go score on that drive. If there's a sudden change defensively, then we got to get a stop. So, just having the ultimate competitor's mindset of not being okay with having the game be close in the fourth quarter. That's not what we're here to do.”
The Raiders are ahead of schedule, and losing close games as they did in Weeks 4 and 6 is undoubtedly better than what happened in Week 5.
The Raiders are only six games into a rebuild that will take multiple offseasons' worth of roster additions. They are further along than nearly anyone expected after six games. It will naturally take them more time to grow together.
In this league, growth and rebuild often coincide with losing winnable games against elite teams. The Raiders have shown they belong. However, with them already ahead of schedule, it is not unfair to believe that with more time together and overall growth, they can actually beat those teams.
Kubiak's Raiders are close. The growth and need for growth they have shown through six games are consistent with a .500 team. There is no making a three-game losing streak better, but last year's Raiders would have loved to be as good as this year's.
Yet there is another level for Las Vegas can get to, and they can get to that level this season.
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