Raiders are 3-3, and that's a lot better than anyone expected

Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty (2) celebrates a touchdown against the Buffalo Bills in an NFL game at Allegiant Stadium. PHOTO: Courtesy Raiders

Six games into a season that began with little optimism, the Las Vegas Raiders have given their critics something they didn't expect: a reason to believe, with three wins and two competitive losses.

By W.G. RAMIREZ

LAS VEGAS -- I'll admit something.

If you had told me before the NFL season that the Las Vegas Raiders would be 3-3 after six games, I probably would have laughed.

And if you told me their only losses would come against the Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, and New England Patriots, with legitimate chances to beat two of them, I would have questioned how closely you'd been following this franchise.

Yet here we are.

Six games into a season that began with expectations somewhere between modest and miserable, the Raiders are sitting at .500.

And while coach Klint Kubiak wants absolutely nothing to do with moral victories, there's something to be said for recognizing that this football team is further along than most people imagined.

Let's be clear. I'm not suggesting the Raiders should celebrate Sunday's 33-30 loss to Buffalo. I'm not suggesting they should be satisfied with being competitive. And I'm certainly not suggesting coming close to beating a championship contender deserves a participation trophy.

But there's a difference between accepting defeat and acknowledging progress.

Whether anyone in that locker room wants to admit it, we're witnessing progress.

Remember where expectations began

Think about where this team stood in August.

Sportsbooks established a preseason regular-season win total of 5 1/2 games. The expectation wasn't that Las Vegas would contend for a division championship. It was whether the Raiders could avoid another disappointing season.

Had someone predicted a 1-5 or 2-4 start, few would have argued.

Instead, they've beaten the New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Chargers.

Their losses? Kansas City, Buffalo and New England.

That's not exactly a collection of NFL bottom-feeders.

The Patriots represented the AFC in last season's Super Bowl. The Chiefs and Bills entered this season with legitimate championship aspirations.

Nobody should have expected the Raiders to run through that trio.

But here's what makes their record intriguing.

They had opportunities to beat Kansas City. They had opportunities to beat Buffalo.

We're not talking about games where Las Vegas was hopelessly outmatched, just hanging around until a superior opponent decided to put the game away.

We're talking about games the Raiders put themselves in position to win.

Could they be 5-1? Absolutely.

Could they have stumbled against the Saints or Chargers and found themselves 1-5? Certainly.

But the standings don't recognize hypotheticals.

They recognize three wins and three losses.

And considering where expectations stood before the season, that's a record worth putting into perspective.

The numbers reveal something different

If the record alone doesn't convince you, consider what the Raiders have accomplished offensively.

Las Vegas has scored at least 26 points in five of its first six games, tying Buffalo and Detroit for the most in the NFL.

According to the Raiders' postgame notes, it's only the second time in franchise history, and the first since 1971, that they've scored at least 25 points in five of their first six games.

Their 162 points are the franchise's most through six games since 2022.

They've also thrown 14 touchdown passes, tying their highest total through six games in the past 50 years.

And 38-year-old Kirk Cousins has provided the veteran leadership and production this offense desperately needed.

Cousins has thrown for 1,582 yards and 14 touchdowns, tying Jeff George for the most touchdown passes by a quarterback through his first six games with the Raiders.

Those aren't the numbers of an offense merely trying to survive Sundays.

Those are the numbers of a team that can compete.

Tre Tucker caught two touchdown passes against Buffalo. Michael Mayer established a career high with 95 receiving yards. Brock Bowers added 70 yards, giving the Raiders two tight ends with at least 70 receiving yards in the same game for the second time in franchise history.

And Maxx Crosby remains one of the league's most disruptive defenders, with 30 quarterback pressures through six games.

There are legitimate building blocks here.

Listen to the players

Perhaps the most revealing assessment came from Tucker, who has experienced what it's like when the Raiders aren't even competitive.

"I've been a part of some games where we weren't very competitive, and just felt like you were out there, just participating," Tucker said after Sunday's loss.

"This is more of competition, competing. This is what the NFL is about."

That distinction shouldn't be dismissed.

In some seasons, Raiders fans simply hoped their team wouldn't embarrass itself against superior competition.

Now they're watching a team capable of taking those opponents into the fourth quarter with a chance to win.

Offensive lineman Caleb Rogers offered an even more telling perspective.

"As of right now, we're just a really good team who hasn't closed in some games, and we got to close," Rogers said.

He also emphasized the bond in the locker room, saying players don't question one another when adversity hits.

That matters when you're trying to establish a winning culture.

And it's a far cry from the uncertainty that surrounded this franchise entering the season.

Progress doesn't excuse the mistakes

None of this means the Raiders should be satisfied.

They shouldn't.

They converted just two of five red-zone opportunities against Buffalo. They rushed for only 65 yards. They committed seven penalties.

And the inability to finish games against quality opponents is becoming a troubling pattern.

Kubiak knows it.

"We're not satisfied with any moral victories, and we're a 3-3 football team with everything ahead of us," he said.

That's precisely the attitude a head coach should have.

He shouldn't be celebrating competitive losses. Neither should his players.

Cousins understands that the difference between winning and losing can come down to a handful of plays.

"You got to find the inches in the fourth quarter," the veteran quarterback said.

And he's right.

But I would argue there's another important distinction worth recognizing.

Six weeks ago, the conversation surrounding this team was whether it could compete with the NFL's elite.

Today, we're criticizing the Raiders because they haven't figured out how to beat those teams.

Read that again.

We've gone from questioning whether the Raiders belonged on the same field to questioning why they couldn't finish the job.

That's a meaningful difference.

The next step is the hardest

I'm not ready to call the Raiders playoff contenders.

I'm not ready to suggest they've permanently turned the corner.

And I'm certainly not ready to ignore the possibility that these close losses become a season-long frustration.

But I am ready to acknowledge something that deserves more attention.

This football team is better than most people expected.

The Raiders are scoring points. They're making explosive plays. They're demonstrating resilience. And they're giving themselves opportunities against teams with legitimate championship aspirations.

The next step is learning how to win those games. Like next Sunday at home, where they’ll host the preseason Super Bowl-favored Los Angeles Rams.

Kubiak's challenge is turning competitive football into winning football.

That may prove harder than getting this team to believe it belongs.

But there's a difference between a football team that isn't good enough and one that's learning how to become good enough.

After six games, I'm increasingly convinced the Raiders belong in the latter category.

No, there are no moral victories in the NFL.

But progress exists.

If you can't see how far this team has come just because it hasn't reached its destination, you're missing what's happening right in front of you.

The Raiders are 3-3.

Considering where many expected them to be, that's not something to apologize for.

That's something to build upon.