Under Kubiak, Raiders Will Search for New Wave of Leaders

The Las Vegas Raiders have had their fair share of issues over the past few seasons. Most of those issues centered around poor coaching and, arguably, an even worse roster. Las Vegas has been among the league's worst in those areas, which they have begun addressing.

New Raiders

The Raiders' front office knows that it will take more than a new coaching staff to turn things around. Additional talent is undoubtedly needed, even beyond the additions Las Vegas has made this offseason. It will take time to continue revamping the roster to Klint Kubiak's needs.

Still, Las Vegas is already well on its way to fixing its roster talent-wise. They will need the new additions already made and the future moves yet to come to bring much more than just talent. After nearly 30 combined losses in the past two seasons, the Raiders need to run deep.

As Las Vegas continues to add players, it will seek those who are not only talented but also bring leadership traits. Talented players are not always leaders, but that is exactly what the Raiders need going forward. Many of their offseason additions are leaders or potential leaders.

This is another layer in the Raiders' rebuild: just as they have various levels of talent, that talent has varying levels of leadership ability. Las Vegas has begun stocking its roster with talented leaders who can be developed over time, such as rookie safety Treydan Stukes.

Stukes' Role

Stukes was a vital part of the Raiders' 2026 draft haul, as Las Vegas will soon have to make a decision on what to do at safety. With Isaiah Pola-Mao and Jeremy Chinn both set to become free agents after the 2026 season, Stokes' development could be crucial to the Raiders' turnaround.

“My path was never the most perfect path, or what you would draw out for yourself. And it's hard to imagine yourself at the highest point watching the best of the best in the world when you're in that time,” Stukes said.

“But I just kept trusting the process, trusting the people I love, and trying to gain knowledge everywhere I was. And I just kept getting confident, more and more confident in my abilities as I kept getting older and wiser. And, yeah, I'm super happy to be here now."

It will take time as he acclimates to life at the professional level. He will have his growing pains just like every other young player in the league. Still, Stukes knows it will be vital for him to do his part to help turn things around in Las Vegas. The sooner Stukes can make an impact, the better.

Raiders — Nov 28, 2025; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats defensive back Treydan Stukes (2) intercepts the ball against Arizona State Sun Devils wide receiver Jaren Hamilton (16) in the second half during the 99th Territorial Cup at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

“I think building a great team starts with being a great teammate first, and that's something I learned the importance of throughout my entire football career, honestly. And coming in as a rookie, you want to be confident, you want to be ready to learn, but you want to learn from the vets,” Stukes said.

“You want to learn from the coaching staff. And that's what I'm here to do. I'm going to steal knowledge from everyone I can. I'm going to copy the vets that have done it right and have been succeeding for years at this level."

“As far as leadership, just kind of continuing to be a guy that I had built at Arizona. If I need to take up a leadership role, obviously playing safety, you're kind of the quarterback of the defense, I'll be ready to step into that position, because I've done it before."

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