Breaking Down How Raiders Can Balance Offense

Everyone knows the Las Vegas Raiders must be better on the offensive side of the football in 2026.

That's why they hired one of the best offensive minds in football to be their head coach. Klint Kubiak led the Seattle Seahawks offense to a Super Bowl victory in his first season calling plays.

Now, the Raiders are betting on him to take on more of a workload as the team's main decision-maker on Sundays. If he can carry over what he did in Seattle, the Raiders will take a serious step forward offensively.

But what should the offense look like? Let's take a deeper look at how they can approach that side of the ball.

Attacking the Run Game

Kubiak's Seahawks offense featured a strong run game, with an emphasis on dominating the trenches and controlling the line of scrimmage. He utilizes a wide zone run scheme, which he should be able to do better than Chip Kelly last season.

Ashton Jeanty should get the lion's share of the carries, even though Kubiak liked to split carries between Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet for most of the 2025 season. Rookie Mike Washington Jr. isn't the caliber of backup running back that Charbonnet is, so there should be a heavy dose of Jeanty.

May 2, 2026; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders running back Mike Washington Jr. (30) runs through a drill during a Rookie Minicamp at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

We should see a much better and more efficient version of Jeanty this season and a better Raiders' rushing attack as a whole. They were last in the league in rushing efficiency, which won't happen again this season.

The Passing Game

Las Vegas Raiders TE Brock Bowers | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

Whether Fernando Mendoza or Kirk Cousins starts more games at quarterback, the Raiders should build the plane out of Brock Bowers.

That means he will be -- and should be -- the focus of the passing game. With how dynamic of a player he is and what he can do with the ball in his hands, Las Vegas should find every way to get him the football.

Having a more efficient run game will open up the passing game, which allows players like Bowers, Michael Mayer, Tre Tucker, and Jack Bech to thrive. They'll need a bounce-back season from Cousins if they ride with him for much of the season, otherwise the offense will be stuck spinning its tires.

Balancing the Attacks

Kirk Cousins | DARRELL DRAIG HARRIS, ON SI

Complementary football is the most important way to attack the game. No teams respected the passing game because teams knew they could sell out to stop the run, and it would work. By improving how the offensive line plays and allowing Jeanty to have a better season, Kubiak's offense will keep defenses on their toes.

That will then allow more play-action, where Cousins has made his bread and butter throughout his career. There's a simple way for the Raiders to improve on offense. They just have to do it.

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