Kubiak Likes His Team, But Lack Of Resilience Is a Problem

The Las Vegas Raiders are sitting at 4-5, and in theory that makes them a potential playoff team. The graphics are starting to show up in graphics during games that list the Raiders as being “in the hunt,”and coach Klint Kubiak has used variations on that expression several times in the last couple of weeks in some of his decisions, most notably the one not to start rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza. 

But Kubiak was forced to defend a disaster after the Raiders got beaten badly by the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday by a score of  38-17. The game was non-competitive from the start, and the specific noted by Sam Warren of The Athletic was that the Niners had 14 points on the board before the Raiders got their initial first down. 

The stats Warren used were ugly, and there were plenty of them. Warren focused on the most obvious one, noting that San Francisco gained 94 rushing yards and scorws two rushing touchdowns in the first quarter alone. 

The 49ers ran for 190 yards in total, and the Raiders now have allowed more than 100 rushing yards in eight consecutive games. Even worse, they’ve given up more than 150 on the ground in five of their last six.

The coach said he "still likes his team," but Kubiak doesn’t have a solution when he was asked what it’s going to take to tighten things up. 

“It’s got to take something different,” Kubiak said. 

Per Warren, the Raiders aren’t even sure why they’re putting themselves in these kinds of holes. Safety Jeremy Chinn said the Raiders have had a mindset change in the second half after getting behind as they become “[expletived] off,” and he thinks they need to start games that way. 

Be that as it may, the results were better in the second half initially, as safety Treydan Stukes intercepted 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy on the first drive. The Raiders were then able to force a turnover on downs on the next series as the run defense stiffened.  

But quarterback Kirk Cousins threw a pick six, and after that all bets were off. Kubiak chose to focus on the ability to create the turnovers and the ability to get the ball back, but the reality is that the Raiders have almost no margin for error at all against top competition. 

Las Vegas has to find balance and play complementary football, and the coach knows that as well, saying it’s “not a new problem.” Playoff teams solve their problems, but the Raiders' tendency to compound them instead is getting especially ugly against top teams, and it’s starting to look like it’s going to define the Raiders season.