The Las Vegas Raiders (3-1) will head to New England on Friday to prepare for their Sunday matchup against the Patriots (2-2) in Boston.
In the Raiders’ rebuild, there is no question that they are ahead of schedule in wins, but that doesn’t mean they’ve been perfect. They haven’t, and neither has any other NFL team.
Klint Kubiak, Andrew Janocko | Darrell Craig Harris
The nature of the game is that the other side has players who are paid millions of dollars, and they have a say in your success or failure. I already gave you my winners and losers from last week; this is not the discussion today.
Football Is a Game of Inches
Dec 31, 1967; Green Bay , WI, USA; FILE PHOTO; Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi on the sidelines against the Dallas Cowboys during the 1967 NFL Championship game at Lambeau Field. The game was deemed the Ice Bowl as the temperature was recorded as the coldest in NFL history. The Packers defeated the Cowboys 21-17. Mandatory Credit: Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The iconic Green Bay Packers coach, Vince Lombardi, is credited with being the first football coach to tell the hard truth about this glorious game centered around a pigskin-covered oblong ellipsoid: “Football is a game of inches, and inches make the champion.”
​Most people remember it from the awesome pregame speech by Al Pacino’s character in the legendary movie “Any Given Sunday.”
Feb 9, 2020; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Robert De Niro and Al Pacino arrive at the 92nd Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
While Pacino said it in a pretend world, quoting Lombardi, who lived it in the real world, the Raiders are learning that to overachieve, they have to find those inches.
Reality or Pretend
Matt Gay has been an exceptional kicker for the Raiders in 2026. On Saturday, he is credited with four made field goals, but he actually had five.
Matt Gay | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI
Kubiak took one of his successes off the board after a Chiefs penalty. This article is not directed towards debating Kubiak’s decision, but when the Raiders’ subsequent play failed, it was a total of five drives that ended with only three points, or no points.
After the game in which the Raiders only lost by three points, QB Kirk Cousins said it best.
“I think there’s a lot to build on. I felt like our defense did just a great job keeping us in the game. We kicked too many field goals, didn’t score enough points but our defense’s play allowed us to still have a lead, to still be in it for so much of the game, so it’s just tough to not finish.”
Kirk Cousins | Darrell Craig Harris
Cousins wasn’t attacking Gay, far from it. He was making it clear that the offense he leads can’t settle for field goals. In a points-driven league, the Raiders need touchdowns.
If any of those four successful field goals had been turned into touchdowns, those four points would have been the difference in a Raiders win, and us discussing today the Raiders being 4-0.
Klint Kubiak | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI
What To Watch
I am not a revisionist. I stand by my takes. As a football nerd, I love and respect how Kubiak is attacking. Cousins does as well, but for the Raiders to go from simply rebuilding to overachieving and becoming an NFL Playoff option, they have to find the end zone at a higher rate.
I agree with Cousins on this, who made it very clear.
Kirk Cousins | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI
“Klint [Kubiak] felt we needed to be aggressive, we needed to be attacking all game long. If you come in here trying to just hang around with a good football team, it may not pan out the way you want. Felt like we needed to attack, just wish there have been, by me, better execution at moments that would have given us that chance to come out on top.”
4-1 on Sunday Predicated on One Thing
Klint Kubiak | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI
If the Raiders get the upset on Sunday, and they are very capable of it, they have to find the inches. The Patriots are the reigning AFC representative in the Super Bowl, and the Silver and Black can make a definitive statement.
What is the statement? Rebuild or not, they are ahead of schedule, and the NFL Playoffs are now on the map.
If the Raiders find the inches on Sunday, they will have changed the season’s narrative. If they don’t, this rebuild is still clearly on the right road.
Klint Kubiak | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI
The playoffs are made up of teams that find the inches. We will learn on Sunday if the Raiders are one of those teams.
I suspect they might be. We’ll see if they can find the inches. I believe in Kubiak; the team does, and on Sunday, I think the nation will as well.
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