The Las Vegas Raiders rebuilt their roster from top to bottom. Here’s why John Spytek and Klint Kubiak’s massive gamble could define 2026.
Let the record show: the Raiders spent an entire offseason trying to convince everyone, themselves included, that better days are finally coming. General manager John Spytek and rookie head coach Klint Kubiak didn’t just tinker around the edges.
They gutted, rebuilt and rebranded almost every unit on the roster, and now they’re asking fans to trust the process one more time. Fair enough. Let’s dig into the receipts.
Start with the quarterback situation, which for years resembled a rotating cast of temp workers filling in until someone permanent showed up. That permanent hire, in theory, is Fernando Mendoza, the No. 1 overall pick who threw for 3,535 yards and 41 touchdowns at Indiana and won a national title while he was at it.
No need to rush Fernando Mendoza from Day 1…
But Las Vegas isn’t throwing him to the wolves right away. Kirk Cousins arrives as the veteran babysitter, a four-time Pro Bowler who already speaks Kubiak’s language fluently. It’s a short-term and long-term plan at the same position, which for this franchise counts as downright revolutionary.
The supporting cast got an upgrade too, at least on paper. Ashton Jeanty quietly posted 1,321 yards from scrimmage as a rookie despite a line that offered him roughly the protection of a chain-link fence. Tyler Linderbaum, now the league’s highest-paid center, should fix that problem in a hurry. Brock Bowers remains the engine, a tight end good enough that opposing coordinators reportedly lie awake designing coverages that still don’t work.
We need to talk about the receivers for the Raiders…
The receiver room, led by Tre Tucker’s modest 696 yards, is banking on Jalen Nailor rediscovering the form he flashed in Minnesota, plus second-year leaps from Jack Bech and Dont’e Thornton Jr. It’s less a finished product than a group project where half the team swears the work will get done eventually.
Defensively, things get more interesting, because this is where Spytek actually opened the checkbook with real purpose.
Maxx Crosby, who survived a near-trade to Baltimore that fell apart before it ever came together, returns to Las Vegas with actual company for once. Kwity Paye arrives with 30.5 career sacks and a body that has proven it can stay on the field, which is a novel concept for Raiders edge rushers not named Crosby. Third-round rookie Keyron Crawford adds even more juice, and Malcolm Koonce, more than a year removed from a knee injury, gives this front the kind of depth it hasn’t had in years.
Linebacker, somehow, went from punchline to legitimate strength. Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker, former Georgia teammates and now a combined $76.5 million investment, give the Raiders two players who can actually run sideline to sideline instead of just watching from a safe distance.
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The secondary got younger and faster too, stocked with four draft picks plus a couple of veteran corners, though “younger and faster” has also been known to mean “prone to rookie mistakes in prime time.” So maybe pump the brakes a little there.
Nothing’s guaranteed for this version of the Silver & Black…
Here’s the twist in all of this: none of it guarantees anything in 2026. Defensive coordinator Rob Leonard is installing a scheme modeled after Mike Macdonald’s blueprint in Baltimore and now Seattle, and Kubiak’s wide-zone offense borrows liberally from Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay disciples who’ve turned average quarterbacks into stars almost overnight. History says these systems tend to pay off eventually. The Raiders are simply betting that “eventually” means this year, or at worst, next.
So, is Las Vegas better? By the numbers and the names now on the depth chart, undeniably yes. Better line, better front seven, better linebackers, an actual quarterback plan and a coach with a track record of making passers look better than they are. Whether all of that translates into playoff football in 2026 is a separate question, and even the front office seems to be hedging its bets toward 2027.
The Raiders didn’t just buy talent this offseason; rather, they bought themselves the benefit of the doubt. Now it’s on Kubiak to cash it.
*Top Photo: Ramble Illustration/Getty ImagesÂ