Why No One's Buying Into the New-Look Raiders in Week 13

After a grim 2-9 start to the 2025 NFL season, the Las Vegas Raiders have opted to go in another direction. After just 12 weeks, the franchise has elected to part ways with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly. In his short tenure, the Raiders ranked 30th in yards per game at 268.9 and tied for last in the league at just 15.0 points per game.

The final straw was Las Vegas' 24-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns. In that game, the Raiders gained just 2.9 yards per carry on the ground, took 10 sacks, had one touchdown to one turnover, and went 4-of-17 on third-down conversions. The reviews of his time running the offense came in after his dismissal, and they weren't exactly rosy.

Word was that Kelly's play-calls were bland, predictable, and ill-fitted to his personnel, and the tape matched the criticism. Then, there were the reports that he would straight-up call the wrong plays or even try to run something that he never installed in the offense. Now, it's on Greg Olson to try to pick up the pieces for this broken Raiders team.

Las Vegas Raiders, NFL, Arizona Cardinals, Greg Olson — Aug 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterbacks coach Greg Olson against the Arizona Cardinals during a preseason NFL game at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Greg Olson's warm welcome

The good news is that Greg Olson won't have to do much to improve upon his predecessor's performance. Regardless of what happens in the remainder of the season, firing Chip Kelly was the right move for the Las Vegas Raiders. Olson has held this exact role with the team before and had some success at it, leading Head Coach Pete Carroll to feel comfortable elevating him as the interim offensive coordinator.

Greg Olson and the #Raiders OC job: https://t.co/uDwL4Xmmna pic.twitter.com/kuxNAMWhiH
— Matt Holder (@MHolder95) November 24, 2025

Olson will face a stiff test in his first game calling plays again, matched up with a stout Los Angeles Chargers defense that ranks fifth in yards allowed per game and 10th in average points given up. While he has an extremely low bar to clear from Kelly, he didn't exactly inherit an ideal situation with this Raiders roster. All five of the editors on NFL.com's panel picked LA in Week 13. Tom Blair outlined why he didn't expect much from Olson's new-look offense, predicting a 27-12 loss for the Raiders:

"Oh, man. How could I not? One rule of thumb I generally try to abide by here is to not pick teams that struggle to play competitive football. Throw in a decent-to-good opponent, and, well, good night. I don't want to deny the memory of the Raiders' two wins and two one-point losses, but that quartet of games sure look anomalous next to the other seven outings this season, in which Vegas was outscored by a combined 127 points, or 18.1 per game."

Las Vegas Raiders Pete Carroll | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

"The Chargers weren't exactly at their most crisp the last time out, getting stomped by the Jaguars, 35-6 in Week 11, but that is the outlier on their slate so far this season. Since then, they've had the bye to rest up and clear the cobwebs. The embattled O-line will have to account for Maxx Crosby, and there's the chance that a change in offensive play-caller could spark something for the Raiders, plus of course I could always get punished for my hubris, but let's not get too cute. Slot Jim Harbaugh's group for win No. 8."

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