The Las Vegas Raiders are 3-0 and have joined rare NFL company once occupied by Vince Lombardi. Is Klint Kubiak building something special?
The Silver and Black remain undefeated and the company they keep is instructive. According to OptaSTATS, they are the second team in NFL history to start a season 3-0 with a rookie head coach after holding the No. 1 overall pick in the most recent draft. The other was the 1959 Green Bay Packers, coached by Vince Lombardi.
Start by acknowledging the limitations of this comparison. Three games do not constitute a full season. The Packers finished with a 7-5 record in 1959, which means that a strong start did not ensure success back then, nor does it guarantee anything now. Lombardi’s arrival is celebrated as the beginning of a dynasty due to the success that followed, not because of a promising September alone.
Still, the pairing points to something specific. A team that holds the top pick has typically finished at or near the bottom of the standings, which means it has a talent deficit, a culture problem or both. Winning immediately under a first-year coach suggests the deficit was overstated or that the problem was correctable. Both possibilities favor the coaching staff.
That reading fits how the Raiders have played…
The offense has moved the ball with a clear plan, and the defense has improved without a wholesale rebuild. Roster turnover mattered, but the more significant change has been structure and preparation, the areas a head coach controls most directly.
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The caution is that a quick start raises expectations faster than it builds depth. Injuries, including the concussion sidelining rookie safety Treydan Stukes, will test whether the scheme travels beyond its best personnel. A tough test against Kansas City and Patrick Mahomes is next.
So the statistic is best read as a starting point, not a verdict. It says the early evidence favors the coach over the excuses. What remains unanswered is whether the Raiders can sustain it once opponents have film to study and the schedule stops being forgiving.
That question, more than the record, will define this season.
*Top Photo: Ramble Illustration/Getty Images