The Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders will meet in a showdown of unbeatens, and one NFL insider believes Patrick Mahomes will come out on the wrong end of the divisional battle.
Both teams are off to a surprise start of sorts, with the Raiders quickly rebounding from a league-worst season in 2025 and the Chiefs showing that Mahomes has fully recovered from the knee injury that cut short his season.
Though the Chiefs head into the AFC West showdown as favorites, CBS Sports writer Garrett Podell believes the Raiders defense will be too much for Mahomes to handle.
Patrick Mahomes Could Face Upset Loss on Sunday
Podell predicted that Mahomes would struggle against a resurgent Raiders defense, which has been lights out in fourth quarters so far this year.
“The Raiders will upset Mahomes and the Chiefs to take sole possession of first place in the AFC West entering Week 5,” Podell wrote. “Everyone knows Mahomes is a late-game wizard, but Las Vegas’ defense can say the same this season. They are the first team with no points allowed and seven-plus takeaways in the fourth quarter through three games since the 1992 Pittsburgh Steelers, a team that started 3-0 under rookie head coach Bill Cowher.”
The Raiders nearly lost start edge rusher Maxx Crosby this offseason, coming to terms on a trade to the Baltimore Ravens that fell apart at the last second. The Raiders changed their plans for Crosby, deciding to keep and build around him.
That could spell trouble for Mahomes on Sunday, Podell predicted.
“While Las Vegas’ Klint Kubiak is also a first-year head coach, the Raiders’ five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby is no stranger to taking down Mahomes: his 6.0 sacks of the Chiefs’ quarterback are the most by any player,” Podell wrote. “Crosby and the surprisingly frisky Raiders will shock the world on Sunday with an upset victory over the Chiefs to become the first team in NFL history to start a season 4-0 after back-to-back 13-loss seasons.”
Mahomes Shows Little Signs of Impact From Knee Injury
The lingering question during the offseason was whether Mahomes would recover from the knee injury in time to start the season, and whether he would look like his former self. Mahomes wiped away any doubt with a hot start, showing off a dangerous long ball.
As ESPN reported, Mahomes completed 8 of 14 passes where the ball traveled at least 15 yards — all of that coming within the last two games, both wins.
“We’ll have to continue to do that,” Mahomes told reporters this week. “Obviously, we want to run the football, but if defenses are going to come up and try to stop the run, we have to be able to hit it over the top.”
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes Faces Dire Prediction Against Raiders