The Raiders might not be a Super Bowl contender in Pete Carroll’s first year in Las Vegas, but things can only get better, right?
Last year saw the Raiders win just four games, finish dead last in the AFC West, and miss out on the postseason for the third consecutive year. For a franchise that used to be a common fixture in the playoffs, winning Super Bowls along the way, it has been a rough time recently for the fans.
For the first time in almost 20 years, the Raiders failed to win a single game against any of their divisional rivals and ended up having the fourth-worst record in football. The NFL is well-known for its parity and a good offseason can turn a losing team into a contender. But can the new regime really change things around so quickly? Is there any hope at all for football fans wanting to bet on the Raiders making it to the playoffs this year?
In this article, we will look at the strengths and weaknesses of the 2025 Las Vegas Raiders, the difficulty of the schedule, and just what we should honestly be expecting from the black and silver this year.
New Look Raiders
Everyone knew that a change was coming and the clean sweep of the coaching staff is probably the best thing that could have happened to the Raiders during this offseason. There were forced changes during the 2024 regular season, but the new arrivals have now been able to plan to play their own way.
Pete Carroll is the obvious big change on the coaching staff and he will bring a wealth of expertise and knowledge, including a Super Bowl ring, to the role. Chip Kelly has moved from college football to the big league, but he will have some excellent new recruits to work with, and the defense will benefit from keeping coordinator Patrick Graham. That was the only bright spot from last year and we expect the Raiders D to come on strongly once again.
New Quarterback
It doesn’t matter how good a team is, if the quarterback is not a level above, there is no chance of postseason success. Geno Smith may not be up there with the best in the league – or even the finished article – but he is a step up from what has gone before and offers some real hope for the Raider Nation in 2025.
Smith’s relationship with Pete Carroll is an obvious boost for the team, with playoff experience adding a valuable plus. Together, they enjoyed winning seasons for the last three years with the Seahawks and there is little doubt that the new QB can lead this team to more wins in 2025 than we saw in 2024. Just how many more is the real question here, however.
Divisional Rivals
If you don’t win a single game against your divisional rivals, there is no way that you are going to the postseason. Many football pundits look at the AFC West as the toughest division in the NFL – but there should be hope here too, as the division might not be quite as foreboding as it is made out to be.
The Chiefs were humbled by the Eagles at the Super Bowl in February and it will be interesting to see whether Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid can recapture the magic of previous years. The Chargers went from last to second and may not show the same challenge in 2025, while the Broncos are another team that could go either way. You might be hearing a lot of hopeful “ifs” and “buts” in that reading of the AFC West, but we won’t know for sure until the first few games have been played. Until that point, the Raiders have as good a chance as anyone of doing well in the division.
2025 Schedule
The bye week for the Raiders comes in week 8 this year and that should act as a target for the team to have established a challenge this season. There are just two games against divisional rivals in that time, and at least three very winnable games elsewhere. Even if the Raiders go into the bye week with a 3-4 record, there will be some promise for the remainder of the year.
Jacksonville, Denver, Dallas, and Cleveland come up next – with three of those games at home. Another three wins there would put the team in a good position for the run to the end of the regular season. Some tough games against divisional rivals, the current Super Bowl champions, and Houston after that does mean that it will be a close run thing. But it seems inconceivable that we will see a paltry four wins this season.
Playoff Hopes
We have already mentioned that the AFC West is a tough division. And the top teams in the AFC, as a whole, are very good. But there is not as much depth in the conference as in the East. Once you get past Baltimore, Buffalo, and Houston, there is a whole host of teams fighting at around the same level.
Even if the Raiders are not good enough to get past the Chiefs and win a first divisional title in 23 years, the battle for the Wild Card spots will be wide-reaching. Ten wins were enough for Denver and Pittsburgh last year and it could be that even just a 9-8 record will suffice this time around. The Raiders are capable of achieving that goal with a bit of luck and everything clicking into place in the first part of the season.
Moving to Las Vegas may have brought a lot of new things to the Raiders but it has not improved the team’s playoff chances. That could be about to change and even just a one-and-done Wild Card game would be a huge step up this season. From there, Pete Carroll, Geno Smith, and further new arrivals could turn the franchise into a postseason regular – and real contender. It might not have seemed like it at the end of last year, but the future is bright in Las Vegas.