The Las Vegas Raiders' issues have been so glaring during the 2025 NFL season that it has been hard to find even microscopic victories. The offense has put together good drives, the defense has put together great games, but none of it has been sustained enough to churn out more than two wins.
Obviously, the offense is at fault for much of the Raiders' shortcomings, but the defense hasn't exactly been stout in the last few weeks. Patrick Graham's unit has been bending but not breaking for most of the season, but they've finally snapped in the latter part of the campaign.
This Las Vegas defense is just tired. They've been on the field so much more than the offense, and they've taken on some of the league's best units. But in Week 16 against the Houston Texans, they rallied quite well and put together one of their best showings of the year.
DeMeco Ryans has nothing but respect for Pat Graham, Raiders' defense
That strong outing against Houston didn't go unnoticed, either. After Sunday's game, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans spoke to the media and had high praise for Patrick Graham and the Las Vegas defense.
"I feel like the Raiders are a good defensive unit. They haven't gotten enough credit for how good this unit is. Coach Graham has done a great job of coaching this defense. And really good players," Ryans said. "We knew it would be a challenge all week. I tell our guys, 'There ain't any easy wins in this league just because you look at a team's record. That's not indicative of who that team is. Everybody's gonna come out, they're gonna play hard.' We knew we would be up against a challenge, so it's no surprise. We knew we had to work for the yards."
While this is an incredible compliment on the surface, it is even better when considering that Ryans is one of the brightest young defensive minds in the NFL today. Plus, Graham's unit hasn't exactly been raved about this season, so Ryans uttered a bit of the unsaid here.
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Las Vegas' defense is far from being elite, but this is a very capable group. General manager John Spytek and head coach Pete Carroll completely remodeled the unit this offseason, so Graham deserves a ton of credit for fielding a respectable team.
There are still glaring issues, like the pass rush, but overall, this defense has been a problem for several good offenses, notably the Texans, Denver Broncos, New England Patriots and Los Angeles Chargers, at least in the first matchup.
Ryans' compliment should go a long way for Graham in league circles, as the Raiders have been saddled by poor quarterback and offensive play in his years as the defensive coordinator. This has led to very little praise for the veteran coach, but Ryans wouldn't let that stand.