The Las Vegas Raiders Have Nothing to Lose in 2026

The Las Vegas Raiders will head into the 2026 season with a first-time head coach and a rookie quarterback. While hopes and expectations increase somewhat, Las Vegas will be given time to figure things out, as they are in the beginning stages of a rebuild.

Raiders Move Forward

At this point in the offseason, it is difficult to really guess what the Raiders will be in 2026, as many roster moves have yet to be made. Las Vegas' roster will look significantly different when it takes the field next season. They have already made significant moves in preparation.

Still, most first-time head coaches with rookie quarterbacks do not immediately walk into expectations of an overly successful first season. Las Vegas knows their rebuild will take time. Trading their best player, Maxx Crosby, is a move that signifies the Raiders' front office knows this.

The Long Haul

The Raiders have lacked consistency. However, they hope general manager John Spytek, head coach Klint Kubiak, and presumed No. 1 pick, Fernando Mendoza, are the center of what will be a turning point in the franchise's recent history. That means everyone involved is looking further than 2026.

While most teams look past just the next season, the Raiders' front office is beyond even that. Las Vegas' rebuild will be thorough. The Raiders need the type of rebuild that requires trading their best player for assets. Now Spytek and the Raiders have four first-round picks in the next two drafts.

The value of the No. 14 pick to the Raiders goes without saying. However, a small byproduct of the addition of another first-round pick in next year's draft is that Las Vegas has removed any possible pressure for the upcoming season.

The bar is already low, coming off three wins in 2025 and four in 2024. Five or six wins, developing some of their young talent, and building a solid foundation in Kubiak's first season is still progress from what the Raiders have had. Five or six wins would likely net them another top-10 pick.

That would give the Raiders top-10 picks in three consecutive drafts, immediately following the draft in which a potentially generational tight end fell right into their lap.

The Raiders have nothing to lose and only more progress and talent to gain in 2026 and beyond. Spytek and the Raiders are just getting started. Spytek recently explained the importance of where the Raiders currently stand.

"The league is littered with when you get the top pick right, those guys are franchise-altering players. There's probably no more important hire in an NFL organization than the head coach. They're the daily guy. They set the vision, they set the cadence. They are what touches the players every day and demand excellence from players. And the players are the ones that have to go out there and do it,” Spytek said.

“And the more good players you have, and the better person at the helm that you have steering that ship, my experiences is, the more successful you are. And you look at, are there two more important hires in an organization than a quarterback and a head coach? I think we probably all would agree that those two men usually steer the ship, and that's out in front of us right now."