Naysay all people want, but the fact that the Las Vegas Raiders are 2-0 to start the 2026 campaign under rookie head coach Klint Kubiak is impressive.
This variant of the Silver & Black looks different than prior incarnations with Kubiak and Co.. I’ve said this to our Matt Holder: A professional football team. I know, that sounds asinine as Las Vegas is indeed one of the 32 teams in the NFL and “professional” is the status quo of the league. But for far too long, the Raiders were cellar dwellers as a moribund franchise.
But teams play the opponents in front of them and Las Vegas stacked two victories so far. And there’s a very good test on the Raiders’ plate with the Week 3 road trip to face the New Orleans Saints.
Like the Silver & Black, the Black & Gold engaged in a franchise course correction hiring a hotshot offensive-minded head coach Kellen Moore in February of 2025 to helm the team. Similarly to Kubiak, Moore is young (he’s 38 while Kubiak is 39) and brings a wealth of play-calling experience to the table. Both young leaders are instilling new cultures in their respective places and despite being 1-1 in the standings, the Saints easily could be unbeaten just like the Raiders.
New Orleans boasts talent in all three phases — offense, defense, and special teams (including a very familiar face to Las Vegas) — and present quite the challenge for the visiting Raiders.
Moore Is Required
Elite edge rusher Maxx Crosby is keen to say and post on social media “More is required.” That’s definitely an apt mentality heading into this matchup with the Saints.
Moore’s offense is seventh overall in the league averaging 383.5 yards and 27.0 points per game. The aerial attack led by quarterback Tyler Shough is second overall with 305.5 passing yards per game. And the second-year quarterback is the league leader with 662 passing yards heading into Week 3 action.
Shough’s leading target — wide receiver Chris Olave — is off to an explosive start with 18 receptions for 268 yards and a touchdown. His 13 catches for first downs leads the NFL and he comes into this matchup with the Raiders off an eight-catch, 86-yard, and one-touchdown outing against the Baltimore Ravens in the Saints’ Week 2 24-17 win. Fellow wideout Devaughn Vele and tight end Juwan Johnson round out the top three pass catchers for Shough with 12 receptions for 133 yards and a touchdown and seven catches for 120 yards and a score, respectively.
Crosby and the secondary have played well for Las Vegas in the first two matchups of the season and the battle with Moore’s offense will rigorously test the Raiders’ ability this Sunday. The pass rush and coverage need to b e on point to combat the productive passing game as Moore loves to attack all over the field to truly stress the opposition.
And even though New Orleans has the 28th ranked ground game — 78 yards per game average thus far — running backs Travis Etienne and Alvin Kamara are capable ball carriers and pass catchers.
Young & The Restless
Kubiak made it clear after the Raiders’ Week 2 26-14 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers: Quarterback Kirk Cousins was hit way too much for his liking.
And there’s a high likelihood the Saints matchup can be a repeat of what displeased Cousins.
Brandon Staley’s defense did a tremendous job containing and limiting the Ravens offense last week (233 passing yards and 65 rushing yards yielded) and the attacking style New Orleans deploys can be quite the predicament for a pure pocket passer like Cousins if the Raiders offensive line isn’t on point.
Keeping Cousins upright against edge rushers Chase Young (team leading 1.5 sacks alongside three quarterback hits) and Carl Granderson (one sack), and linebacker Pete Werner (team leading 18 tackles with 1 sack) is a sound challenge for Kubiak and offensive line coach Rick Dennison. Veteran linebacker Kaden Elliss paces the Saints with five quarterback hits and has 15 total tackles.
The Saints secondary features young talent with a veteran safety Julian Blackmon (who sealed the win against Baltimore with an interception) creating a similar front end/back end capability the Rob Leonard’s Raiders defense has shown on the young season.
Head-to-Head
Sunday’s contest marks the 17th between the Raiders and Saints and the Silver & Black leads the overall series 8-7-1. All games are regular season matchups as the two squads haven’t met in postseason play. Las Vegas won the last meeting between the two teams in New Orleans 25-10 back in December of 2024. Before that, the Saints won handily 24-0 back in 2022. The Raiders were victorious in the pair of meetings before that in 2016 and 2020, however.
Quotes of Note
“It’s been a huge part to the first part of the season, these victories, these team victories. Like I said, they have the attention of the other side of the ball. We just got to keep working to get better, and every week is a whole new game.”
—Las Vegas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak on how significant the team’s pass rush is despite not having to blitz much
“I just think it’s important that we come back in every day, every week, regardless of the outcome win, loss, tie – the same person, same locker room. I think you just have to have your process, your way of getting ready for Sunday. That’s got to be consistent. You got to trust that routine, that rhythm, and not allow an outcome from a day before to suddenly change that. I think if you do that, you’re grasping at the win.”
—Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins on if he’s noticed a difference in the locker room from the start of the season to a 2-0 record
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