The Las Vegas Raiders came close to pulling off the upset in Week 4 as they fell 30-27 to the Kansas City Chiefs. Moreover, Las Vegas made believers out of those who were skeptical of their impressive start to the 2026 NFL season.
Nonetheless, the Silver and Black have to turn the page and focus on the New England Patriots, who are coming off a big win in Week 4 against the Buffalo Bills. At 2-2, they are looking to get over .500. Meanwhile, the Raiders will want to avoid having their loss to the Chiefs turn into back-to-back losses.
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.”
Patriots Need to Take Care of the Football Against Las Vegas
Furthermore, Vrabel touched on needing to take care of the football against the Raiders’ pass rush, which can get after the quarterback, as they sacked Patrick Mahomes twice in the loss to Kansas City. Outside of the Chiefs game, the Las Vegas defense has been able to generate turnovers against opposing offenses.
“We want to take care of the football,” Vrabel added. “… We got to hold up a little quicker or a little longer than what we did [against the Bills] and continue to work on it and understand when you want to look downfield.
“Then obviously when you start to see things caving in, you got to have two hands on the ball in the pocket and be able to rip through or pull through defenders and try to decide if you’re going to keep your eyes downfield and try to find a checkdown. It’s just that’s tough, and we have to do a great job inside out, but also give the quarterback somewhere to transfer up into the pocket.”
Raiders Get Strong Playoff Prediction Despite Week 4 Loss
Despite the loss to Kansas City, the host of “Up & Adams,” Kay Adams, is buying even more into the Raiders after what they’ve done and predicts Las Vegas will be postseason-bound.
“I don’t feel bad for you with this loss,” Adams said on the Oct. 5 edition of “Up & Adams.” “I’m so impressed with your team. I know the schedule is not easy. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say they’re a playoff team. The Chargers aren’t looking great. Broncos, we’ll see.
“I was already a big believer, right? We talked about this 3-0 start, dominant fashion, the turnaround from Klint Kubiak, one to be studied for years to come, but they went toe-to-toe with Kansas City [in Week 4], and it really showed me what they’re made of.”
Patriots’ Mike Vrabel Issues Blunt Thoughts on Raiders Ahead of Week 5