Las Vegas Raiders Will Have a 10-6 Season

Sports Illustrated's Raider Maven writer Hikaru Kudo makes his predictions for the upcoming Raiders season.
Las Vegas Raiders Will Have a 10-6 Season
Las Vegas Raiders Will Have a 10-6 Season /

We’re under a week away until game day.

On Sunday, the Silver and Black are kicking off their inaugural season as the Las Vegas Raiders by traveling to play the Carolina Panthers.

With the season just around the corner and the rosters finalized, right now is the prime time to make predictions about this season.

I believe the Raiders will have a 10-6 season. Here’s why.

Offense Will Deliver

With a young offensive core, the Raiders have a pretty solid offense, filling the much-needed empty void at wide receiver with first-round pick Henry Ruggs III out of Alabama.

Looking at the depth chart, almost everyone is back healthy this year – a major issue for the Silver and Black last season and a major reason the Raiders went 7-9 last year.

I believe quarterback Derek Carr is underrated and deserves more credit than he gets. For those wondering, Carr has no excuses now since he has one of the best and youngest receiving corps in the league.

Protection also is back in gear as guard Richie Incognito and center Rodney Hudson are both back and healthy to defend Carr. The line must allow Carr to get comfortable in the pocket early this season, another thing I believe is key to a successful Raiders season.

Defensive Changes

As soon as the 2019 season ended, Coach Jon Gruden and General Manager Mike Mayock knew the defense needed help this off-season.

The biggest addition to the Raiders this off-season has to be first-round pick rookie Damon Arnette. The cornerback had a phenomenal season with Ohio State and should immediately make an impact on the field in the secondary with Johnathan Abram, who is coming off of injury. This is Abram’s defacto first year as he suffered a torn rotator cuff last season in the opener, sidelining him for the year.

Linebackers Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski, pickups during free agency, have pretty much rebuilt the linebacker group. Little came from the Los Angeles Rams and Kwiatkoski from the Chicago Bears, and both have proven that they can deliver and defend.

Having a solid unit the midfield will be a major key to a successful Raiders defense. They must limit opponents' options and force them to throw down the field.

Record Prediction

Realistically speaking, two of the teams the Raiders are going to lose to are the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos, which are major blows to the Silver and Black fan base and probably not what most want to hear. Both are stacked and well established, and the Chiefs are coming off a Super Bowl win.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers game will be a loss because, by the time the Raiders meet them in Week 7, I think Tom Brady has figured out his new system.

The Buffalo Bills are a loss for the Raiders because of their defense. The Bills allowed only 16.2 points per game, the second-fewest in the league last season, the Silver and Black offense is just too young this year to beat them.

Ultimately, I think no matter how it works out, it’s going to be a 10-6 season for the Raiders. That's an improvement from last year and a way to wiggle into the playoffs, something that would be remarkable for the franchise that made a huge transition to the gambling capital of the world this off-season.

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Hikaru Kudo
HIKARU KUDO