The Las Vegas Raiders have struggled to put together a complete game on both sides of the ball this season. While they had their best offensive showing in Week 9, scoring a season-high 29 points against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the defense let them down, as they gave up 30 points in the loss.
Las Vegas had a short turnaround before its Thursday Night Football matchup with the Denver Broncos. The defense answered the call, however, holding their division rivals to just ten points, which was tied for the Raiders' fewest points given up all season.
Unfortunately, it was the offense's turn to lay an egg, as the group finished with just seven points, thanks in part to numerous mistakes by their skill position players. Part of the reason for the defensive turnaround was the significant improvement in tackling.
Patrick Graham helps lead Raiders' defensive turnaround in Week 10
This was a key area that defensive coordinator Patrick Graham emphasized during the short week. After all, the Raiders' defense had an ugly outing in Week 9, as they missed 15 tackles in the loss for a missed tackle rate of nearly 19%.
Their inability to finish plays allowed the Jaguars to finish with over 150 rushing yards in the close overtime loss. Graham stressed the importance of tackling during his weekly press conference on Tuesday.
"There's never any excuses. One, I got to do a better job of getting them prepared during the week. That starts there with me," Graham said. "Some of the issues that came up, the guys were trying. There were plenty of good tackles and just the consistency, but again, it starts with me just making sure that we're tracking the near hip, trusting to shoot, and just doing a good job of getting our eyes where they need to be and pursuing through it, and just with the right angles. But I just got to find ways to just keep emphasizing it and making sure that it's consistent throughout."
RELATED: Geno Smith said what every Raiders fan was thinking about Jakobi Meyers
The defense answered the call against the Broncos, as they finished the game with just seven missed tackles, a significant improvement from their previous performance. The unit did a great job of shutting Denver's offense down and put the team in a position to pick up their third win of the season.
Their missed tackle rate of 11% was not great, but it was an improvement. Plus, Las Vegas forced two turnovers, had two sacks, and allowed just 220 total yards. That marked the fewest yards allowed by the Raiders' defense this season, and also the fewest yards gained by the Broncos' offense in 2025.
While the defense has shown flashes, the consistency has simply not been there on either side of the ball. Las Vegas sits at 2-7 and will have over a week to attempt to bounce back as their next matchup will come on Monday Night Football against the Dallas Cowboys, where, hopefully, they take another step.