The Las Vegas Raiders will be looking for a bounce-back win in Week 5 after losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 4. Nonetheless, they’ll be facing a New England Patriots team that’s coming off a big win over the Buffalo Bills on Oct. 4.
At 2-2, the Patriots are looking to get over .500. Meanwhile, the Silver and Black will want to avoid having their loss to the Chiefs turn into back-to-back losses. One key to a victory will be containing Patriots QB Drake Maye, who had impressive production against the Bills.
In Week 4, Maye went 22-for-37 on his pass attempts, leading to 269 passing yards, three touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 97.7. As a result, Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak shared his thoughts on facing offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and the 24-year-old, who is coming off a Super Bowl appearance last season.
“Everywhere [McDaniels] goes, they move the ball and have Drake Maye playing at a high level,” Kubiak said during the Oct. 6 edition of “1-on-1.” “Obviously, Drake caught a hard time for having a bad game, but he just went and beat Buffalo and played extremely well.
“He’s a player that we have a ton of respect for. [Maye is] very dangerous with his legs, with his ability to throw the ball down the field, and a player that has all of our respect and all of our attention.”
Raiders’ Klint Kubiak on New England’s 2-2 Start
Moreover, Kubiak knows that New England is a good team even though they got off to a challenging start, especially on offense. Nonetheless, the win over Buffalo could be what kickstarts a winning streak, which is what the Raiders want to avoid.
“That’s the NFL [and] some weeks don’t work out the way you want, but you have 17 opportunities to go play, and it’s a dogfight every week,” Kubiak added. “It just shows their resilience, and we know that we’re going to get their best football.”
Patriots’ Mike Vrabel on Facing Las Vegas in Week 5
Ahead of the Week 5 game, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel spoke on the Oct. 5 edition of “The Greg Hill Show” and shared his initial thoughts on the Raiders team, whom he’s seen for a second straight season but with a different head coach and quarterback.
“I think Kirk [Cousins is] doing a fantastic job,” Vrabel said. “Obviously, there’s a reason he’s had a lot of success in this league. He’s very good situationally. Smart, accurate. Again, they’re playing well. I think they’re playing with a lot of confidence, which is where you want your team to be.”
The Silver and Black are playing at Gillette Stadium for a second straight year, as last year the Raiders came away with a win on what would turn out to be a disastrous season under former head coach Pete Carroll.
This time around, Las Vegas needs to get a win in New England to keep themselves in the hunt for the AFC West division and playoff picture now that a month has gone by in the season.
Raiders’ Klint Kubiak Gets Candid on Patriots’ Drake Maye