Given where Pete Carroll's roots are as a head coach, the Las Vegas Raiders had a lot of defensive turnover this offseason. Patrick Graham was retained under his third Raiders head coach, as he remains one of the most underappreciated defensive coordinators in the league.
As things played out during training camp, there were easy questions about the defense as a whole, but particularly, the cornerback pecking order in Las Vegas. Eric Stokes was seemingly locked into one starting spot, but everything else was wide open to competition, just the way Carroll likes it.
Through two games, the Raiders have the league's 27th-ranked pass defense, allowing 256 yards per game. They are generally more toward the middle of the pack otherwise against the pass though, so, so far, so good.
Can the Raiders perceived weakest link sustain things going forward?
The Raiders enter Week 3 ranked fourth in the league with just 70.5 rushing yards allowed per game. They are also tied for fifth in points allowed at just 16.5 per game. In Week 2, Graham's unit kept the team in the game from the start and held the Los Angeles Chargers to three second-half points.
ESPN tabbed its NFL beat writers to analyze if something surprising for the team they cover is "real" or not after two games. Raiders beat writer Ryan McFadden thinks the Silver and Black's top-five scoring defense is actually sustainable.
"Las Vegas has allowed 16.5 points per game through two weeks. Against the Chargers, the defense kept the game within reach, allowing just three points in the second half," McFadden wrote. "Even though the Raiders still have question marks in the secondary, coach Pete Carroll and defensive coordinator Patrick Graham have shown they can find a way to get the best out of the talent at hand."
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Kyu Blu Kelly has emerged as the starter opposite Stokes, with a top-40 overall Pro Football Focus grade among cornerbacks, 11 total tackles and a 91.9 passer rating allowed. He has also played all but one of the Raiders' defensive snaps so far.
Stokes' overall PFF grade is outside the top-80 cornerbacks through two weeks, but he has also allowed just an 80.4 passer rating in his coverage. Time will tell if McFadden is right about the Raiders being able to maintain a top-five scoring defense this season, and it will be hard to do.
But Raider Nation can lean into finally having a full set of competent coaches in place, and the idea of the defense being able to sustain what it's doing is rooted there.