Raiders vs. Seahawks: Breaking Down Who's Under More Pressure

The Las Vegas Raiders hope a quarterback change and a return to Allegiant Stadium can help set them in the right direction. The Raiders and the Seattle Seahawks are at opposite ends of the spectrum. The two teams' endings to last season explain it well.

The Seahawks are the reigning Super Bowl Champions. Las Vegas finished last season with the No. 1 overall pick. Seattle's success led to Kubiak's arrival during the offseason. The Raiders' dismal 2025 campaign landed them their quarterback of the future: Fernando Mendoza.

The Raiders are beginning another chapter in the franchise's storied history. Las Vegas has desperately needed a young, mobile, and accurate quarterback. It appears they finally have one; he just had to ride the bench longer than most No. 1 overall picks.

What the Raiders Need Under Center

Las Vegas has taken a cautious approach to Mendoza's development. Raiders' offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko shared his thoughts on what Las Vegas must do to support Mendoza, as there is only so much a rookie can do in his very first start.

“I think every player, especially as they grow, and again, I know I sound like a broken record, but Fernando [Mendoza], all of our players, we ask them to trust their training, trust their assignment, and then go out and make a play and do their job. And that’s when the best players they do play instinctually,” Janocko said earlier this week.

“So, they go out, they rely on that, and that’s part of being successful as a player in this league, is being instinctual. Because if you just run lines on a paper, that’ll take you so far. But it’s about playing the game and then fueling the game. It all comes with experience, and it all comes with just creating that general comfort and feel as you get into a game.”

Mendoza's Rise

Seattle started the season expecting to at least push for a playoff spot, if not make a deep postseason run. Las Vegas simply wanted to get their first season under head coach Klint Kubiak off the ground and running smoothly while building the team's connection internally.

The Seahawks will throw all they can at Mendoza to see how prepared he is and how well he works under pressure. The rookie quarterback praised Las Vegas' coaching staff and his teammates for helping him prepare for this moment.

“The coaching staff and I and personnel staff, we’ve watched, I would say, I’ve watched a good amount of film so far in my routine, especially a routine that I’ve modeled, whether it’s Coach [Andrew] Janocko, Coach [Mike] Sullivan, Coach [Klint] Kubiak, ones that they’ve recommended, and also taking from Kirk [Cousins]’s and Aidan [O’Connell]’s past processes,” Mendoza said earlier this week.

“And so, we’ve been doing the same process every week. So, continue on keeping the same thing and keeping the main thing the main thing, which is the process. They’re a very impressive team. They’re one of the best defenses in the league, so it’s going to be a great challenge. I’m excited to do my 1/11th out there.”

Team Under the Most Pressure

They are not under the most pressure to win the game, but the Raiders are the team under the most pressure on Sunday. This is specifically the case for Las Vegas' offense. The Raiders' defense did not make a major change to the starting lineup this week.

After giving Mendoza extra months of preparation and then starting him for the very first time against the team Kubiak won a Super Bowl with at the top of the year, starting Mendoza for the very first time this season unquestionably puts the pressure on Las Vegas.

Again, the pressure isn't necessarily on Las Vegas to win, but its offense has to benefit from Mendoza's arrival. The Raiders can lose, their defense can struggle, and Mendoza can struggle in his very first start. Both would be expected.

Yet Mendoza, at the very least, has to look ready for the moment mentally and physically. That is where the pressure falls for the Raiders on Sunday. Las Vegas' only competition is itself. If their offense looks better under Mendoza than in the past nine games, that is a win in itself.

Add us as a preferred source on Google