Raiders 3-0 start faces biggest test against Chiefs

Three games into the season, the Raiders have already shown they can win in different ways.

They have leaned on Kirk Cousins and an offense that has consistently found the end zone. They have benefited from field position, protected the football and, when things started falling apart last week in New Orleans, watched their defense force four fourth-quarter turnovers to fuel a 35-27 comeback victory.

Now that formula gets its toughest test yet.

Las Vegas will put its 3-0 start on the line Sunday when the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs visit Allegiant Stadium for an AFC West matchup between two teams that have yet to lose.

Klint Kubiak has spent the opening month refusing to make one game bigger than another. Earlier this week, he described every Sunday as its own championship-level challenge.

“Every game is a one-game Super Bowl and this is the best of the best competing against each other every week,” Kubiak said. “So, this should be no different than Week 1 or Week 17.”

Against Kansas City, maintaining that approach could be as important as anything the Raiders do schematically.

Raiders have found different ways to win

Las Vegas’ response in New Orleans offered the clearest example of the identity Kubiak is trying to build.

The Raiders watched a 16-13 halftime lead turn into a 27-16 deficit after the Saints scored twice in 54 seconds. Mike Washington Jr. answered with a 36-yard touchdown run, then the defense took over.

Malcolm Koonce, Hezekiah Masses, Jeremy Chinn and Nakobe Dean each created fourth-quarter turnovers as Las Vegas scored the final 19 points.

Kubiak believes that ability to adjust matters because opponents eventually find ways to remove what an offense or defense does best.

“Every week you’re working on your identity and then someone takes away your identity, takes away something you’re good at,” Kubiak said. “So you got to find multiple ways to win, and that’s what good teams do.”

The Raiders may need several of them Sunday.

Jackson Powers-Johnson has been ruled out with a groin injury after missing practice throughout the week. His absence creates an immediate challenge for an offensive line preparing for Chris Jones and a Kansas City defense Kubiak holds in high regard.

“Every year, I’d say they’re the best coached unit in the league,” Kubiak said. “It shows on tape.”

For Cousins, that means preparing for a Steve Spagnuolo defense known for creating pressure and changing pictures before and after the snap.

Cousins said earlier this week that Kansas City plays fast because its defenders understand exactly what Spagnuolo wants from them. He emphasized knowing the Raiders’ own answers as much as trying to anticipate every possible wrinkle.