There's Still Hope for One Raiders Fantasy Disappointment

The Las Vegas Raiders' offense has been a mess in the 2025 NFL season. They came into the year with some high hopes. Between the additions of Pete Carroll at head coach, Chip Kelly at offensive coordinator, Geno Smith at quarterback, and Ashton Jeanty at running back, there was a vision that Las Vegas could field a highly potent attack, even if the rest of the roster wasn't quite ready to compete yet.

10 weeks into the season, the Raiders have proven that they're still far from contenders, having gone just 2-7 in their first nine games. However, it's their offense that's mostly held them back. Las Vegas' defense has been surprisingly solid, allowing the 15th-least yards per game at 320.8. Due to the turnovers on the other side of the ball putting them in disadvantaged situations, though, the Raiders' D is tied for 20th in scoring, allowing 24.4 points a week.

On offense, they rank just 30th in average yards with 272.7 and 31st with a paltry 15.4 points per game, above only the Tennessee Titans, led by rookie quarterback Cam Ward. Las Vegas is top seven with 14 giveaways this season, and several of the teams below have played 10 games. Geno Smith is largely to blame for the Raiders' offensive struggles this year, considering he has 13 of the team's turnovers himself.

Las Vegas Raiders, NFL, Denver Broncos, Geno Smith — Nov 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith (7) drops back to pass against the Denver Broncos during the first half at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Can Geno Smith turn things around?

A lot of the optimism for the Las Vegas Raiders' offense in the offseason stemmed from the thought that Geno Smith could significantly elevate this team as its new quarterback. During his time with the Seattle Seahawks, he was a fringe top-10 quarterback, capable of leading some truly elite attacks while extending plays, finding explosive gains, and threading tight-window throws.

Las Vegas Raiders QB Geno Smith | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

Smith had a penchant for taking bad sacks and racking up interceptions, but those were viewed as acceptable flaws for a gunslinger who thrived playing out of structure. This season, those warts in his game remained, but none of the benefits from his gung-ho approach did.

On the bright side, Smith has started to turn things around following the Raiders' Week 8 bye. He's thrown an interception in each of the two games since, but the one he had last week against the Denver Broncos was a catchable pass that simply ricocheted off the shoulder pads of Ashton Jeanty. CBS Sports' Jamey Eisenberg has seen enough to name Smith a solid waiver-wire option at quarterback, at least for Las Vegas' upcoming game against the Dallas Cowboys:

"Smith (quadriceps) was injured in Week 10 at Denver, so keep an eye on his status heading into Week 11 against Dallas. We hope he's healthy because this is a great matchup against the Cowboys, who are No. 1 in most Fantasy points allowed to opposing quarterbacks. Smith has been an up-and-down Fantasy quarterback this season, but he has scored at least 19.5 Fantasy points in three of six games with Brock Bowers. Smith is worth adding..."

Las Vegas Raiders Geno Smith | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

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