3 Bold Takeaways From the Raiders’ Disappointing Loss to the Bears

Where Do They Go From Here?

According to FOX Sports, the Raiders would have the sixth overall pick if the NFL draft were to happen right now. That's exactly where they selected Ashton Jeanty a year ago, which means that this team hasn't changed despite the multiple things they added in the offseason.

All hopes of them competing for a Wild Card spot in the playoffs are virtually gone, if not for one of their divisional rivals having a generational collapse. For another year in a row, it looks like the Raiders will be at the bottom of the AFC West, as every team in their division has looked more complete to start off 2025.

One of the biggest reasons why the Raiders aren't nearly as competitive as they can be is due to Geno Smith. Smith leads the NFL with seven interceptions, and he's hurting the Raiders more than helping them at this point.

Smith is playing like a bottom-of-the-barrel quarterback in the NFL, and it's due to his poor performances that the Raiders feel like a bottom-of-the-barrel team. This team has so much potential to be more than what it currently is.

Encouraging Signs

In one of the predictions made before the game, it was theorized that Jeanty could have a breakout performance due to how vulnerable the Bears' defense is against the run. That prediction ended up coming true in a massive way, with Jeanty having one of the best games a rookie running back could have.

He had 155 yards total, which included three touchdowns, one of them being an explosive 64-yard run. He was the entirety of the Raiders' offense against the Bears, and hopefully, his performance inspires confidence within the Raiders coaching staff to give him more opportunities as the season progresses.

For the first time in his NFL career, Jeanty was given more than 20 carries, and it resulted in him tying a Raiders franchise record for most touchdowns in a game by a rookie. Chip Kelly didn't shy away from giving him the ball, and that trend should continue regardless of how good or bad the opposing defenses are against the run.

Another encouraging sign from the Raiders offense is that they looked Jeaty's way in the passing game. Jeanty is their most dynamic playmaker, and the Raiders should be doing everything in their power to get him the ball as often and as quickly as possible.

Where Did Their Defense Go?

For the large majority of this game, the Raiders' defense was in control and forced Caleb Williams into making throws he wasn't comfortable making. They only had 69 rushing yards as a team, and the defense was able to sack Williams ten times.

It's hard to pin their loss on the defense, especially with Smith giving the ball to the other team three separate times, but the defense took its foot off the pedal when it mattered the most. Maxx Crosby had an excellent game, where he got his first career interception, but his stellar performance is muddied by the fact that his team lost.

The Raiders' defense had a chance to ice the game after their offense scored a field goal to put them up by five points in the last six minutes of the fourth quarter. Instead, their defense allowed the Bears to get consistent yardage through the air and on the ground, which resulted in the game-winning touchdown.

Their defense played amazingly for the majority of the game, but in the drive they needed to show up, they didn't. They could've been exhausted at this point, which is valid, but with how great they were playing and mitigating Smith's mistakes to field goals for the opposite team, it felt like a game they could've dragged their team to a win, and they simply couldn't.