Oct 19, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll looks on during the second quarter of the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images Denny Medley-Imagn Images

What the Raiders Are Looking for Down the Stretch

Originally posted on Las Vegas Raiders on SI
By Ezekiel Trezevant | Last updated Nov 1, 2025 11:00 AM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders' roster is in the early stages of what will likely be a lengthy rebuild.

What The Raiders Need

Josh Edwards of CBS Sports recently analyzed what every team in the National Football League needs ahead of the trade deadline. The Raiders' needs have been apparent since before the start of the season, the first seven games of the season just confirmed them.

"Coming into the season, the defense was not very impressive aside from Maxx Crosby. The Raiders have drafted multiple cornerbacks in recent years, but they did not work out," Edwards said.

Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

"Defensive tackle, linebacker and safety are other spots that could cost them games this season. The offensive line suffered the loss of tackle Kolton Miller, who is on the Injured Reserve."

Heading into Week 9, Raiders Offensive Coordinator Chip Kelly noted it is difficult to call plays minus some of his best players. Kelly has taken the correct approach, as the National Football League is all about the next man up.

Still, realistically, most teams missing several of their top players on one side of the ball are bound to struggle. This is especially the case for an offense in their first season with a new offensive coordinator. Injuries have plagued a Raiders offense that struggled even when healthy.

"Yeah, I think anytime you don't have Jakobi [Meyers], anytime you don't have Brock [Bowers], anytime you don't have Kolton [Miller] - three of your top players - that has to impact you. But everybody in the NFL deals with the same thing. I don't think there's anybody right now that's playing with the same starting lineup that they started the season with, you know, so that's just part of the deal,” Kelly said.

“There's that fine balance of getting the backups ready, but you only have x amount of reps in practice because the rosters are so much different than college. In college, you've got 120 guys on a team, in the NFL, you have half of the that. So you have to be conscious of how many reps can you get. And if you're going to get those reps, if it's a 10-play rep period, how many go to the ones, how many go to the twos."

This article first appeared on Las Vegas Raiders on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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