The Las Vegas Raiders weren’t expected to be great last season, but it also wasn’t expected that they’d only win four games and be one of the worst teams in the NFL. Antonio Pierce was coming off a 5-4 stint as the interim head coach, so there was some hope he could have the team headed in the right direction.
Instead, they finished with just four wins, which led to Pierce getting fired. The Raiders replaced quarterbacks Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell with Geno Smith and replaced Pierce with Pete Carroll. Arguably, no team upgraded more at quarterback and head coach.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell listed five teams that are most likely to improve in 2025, and he included the Raiders on the list.
“Does all of that add up to a Commanders-esque run into the postseason? Probably not,” Barnwell wrote. “The concerns I’ve raised about the Raiders being stuffed with bad draft picks and ill-advised trades during the Jon Gruden and Josh McDaniels eras still apply, and most of those players are no longer on the roster. The Raiders still have Maxx Crosby, and they imported plenty of veterans to eat snaps on the defensive side of the ball; but even if they project to improve, asking for the D to turn into a top-10 unit would be a lot. There weren’t many changes on offense besides the addition of Smith, so there’s not the same sort of wholesale movement on that side of the ball.
“The bigger problem is the roadblock ahead of the Raiders in the AFC West, where the Chiefs, Broncos and Chargers all made it to the postseason and all project to be good again. The Commanders benefited from facing the league’s third-easiest schedule a year ago, going 11-1 against teams that ended up missing the playoffs. Las Vegas will face a tougher slate, and that probably caps its ceiling at somewhere around seven or eight victories. Then again, who thought the Commanders would go from 4-13 to the NFC Championship Game?”
Will Raiders Be a Playoff Team?
The Raiders could win nine games and miss the playoffs, and it would still be a major improvement over last season. Success in 2025 isn’t contingent on making it to the postseason.
That said, it’s not impossible that the Raiders could take that leap. While the AFC West is tough, it’s possible for all four teams to make the playoffs. Las Vegas doesn’t have a tough schedule, and Carroll only missed the playoffs in four of 14 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. The turnaround could be quicker than many expect.
What Could Undo the Raiders in 2025?
The Raiders have some high-end talent and a very strong coaching staff, but what could undo their 2025 season is a lack of depth and talent at key positions. The secondary is very concerning, and so is wide receiver.
The defensive line is also thin. The Raiders are a couple of key injuries away from having serious roster issues. The team has a lot of potential, but they will likely find more success in future years when general manager John Spytek has had more time to build out the roster.
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