By Monday morning, Klint Kubiak and the Las Vegas Raiders had put their Week 1 win over the Miami Dolphins in the past, focusing all of their attention on this Sunday's AFC West grudge match against the Los Angeles Chargers. And rightfully so, as despite their 0-1 record, the Chargers are imposing.
With Justin Herbert under center, Omarion Hampton in the backfield, Ladd McConkey out wide, two stud tackles in Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater, a solid crew of edge rushers highlighted by Tuli Tuipulotu, and Derwin James always patrolling, Los Angeles is fittingly the land of stars.
But that doesn't mean other players can't hurt the Raiders. And McConkey may not play in Week 2, so it is paramount that the Silver and Black don't overlook the next wideout in line: Quentin Johnston. Opinions of him are mixed in the NFL landscape, but he'll have a longer runway to succeed on Sunday.
And he can add to an already impressive list of outings against Las Vegas.
Raiders cannot overlook Chargers' Quentin Johnston in Ladd McConkey's absence
Johnston's statline from the Chargers' Week 1 loss to the Arizona Cardinals is easy to scoff at: two catches for 17 yards. And through three full seasons, he has mustered just 144 catches for 1,877 receiving yards, albeit with an impressive 18 touchdowns. But that's not game-changing production.
However, Los Angeles picked up his $16.5 million fifth-year option for next year, so he is clearly in the team's plans, even if it didn't come to fruition on opening day in his first game with Mike McDaniel now calling the plays. Johnston is still a weapon that needs to be respected by the Las Vegas secondary.
The Raiders, for all the good that their secondary did vs. the Dolphins, have to limit explosive plays better in the coming weeks. And Johnston is nothing if not an explosive play waiting to happen, with a career average of 13.0 yards per reception and an average depth of target of 12.6 yards.
He has several 60+ yard plays on his résumé at the NFL level, and Johnston really cleaned up his drop issues last season. As a big target at 6-foot-2 and 208 pounds, Johnston could really challenge the physicality of Las Vegas' young secondary. Eric Stokes should be fine, but what about Zeke Masses?
Darien Porter's status for Week 2 is very much in question, and Masses, the fifth-round rookie, only played 10 snaps last week after Porter left the game. He did play well in limited snaps, but as a slightly undersized player on the boundary, Masses could run into problems with Johnston out wide.
Los Angeles potentially not having McConkey hones the game plan, though. Wherever Johnston is, the Raiders can shade toward his side or have more safety help over the top. It's not like the Chargers have a ton of proven weapons in the passing game other than him at this moment in time.
Still, Johnston has proven time and again that he has the recipe to cook up a masterpiece against Las Vegas.
Quentin Johnston has a history of great performances against Las Vegas
Johnston has now played 51 games in his career, and six of them have come against the Silver and Black. Here's the catch, though: 19% of his career yards have come against the Raiders, despite just 11% of his games being played against his division rival. That's twice as high as it should be.
Now, to be entirely fair, that number is driven up quite a bit by two performances, one of which was monstrous (and against a cornerback no longer in Las Vegas, but I digress). Still, Johnston has found a way to have success against the Raiders plenty in the past.
Game | Catches | Yards | Touchdowns |
|---|---|---|---|
2023 Week 4 | 1 | 18 | 0 |
2023 Week 15 | 2 | 23 | 1 |
2024 Week 1 | 3 | 38 | 0 |
2024 Week 18 | 13 | 186 | 0 |
2025 Week 2 | 3 | 71 | 1 |
2025 Week 13 | 3 | 23 | 1 |
Of course, that 13-catch, 186-yard performance in the 2024 finale stands out as quite an outlier. And he had the bulk of his production in that game against Decamerion Richardson, who was waived by the Raiders before Week 1 and is now a member of the New Orleans Saints.
But in the last three games, Johnston has notched 186 yards, 71 yards and a score, and 23 yards and a score. So he's either put up solid yardage totals, scored a touchdown, or both. Either way, his 359 receiving yards in six games against Las Vegas average out to just under 59 yards per contest.
His three touchdowns in six games mean that he scores in basically every other matchup. Let's hope this is the other. Simply put, Johnston has a potentially larger opportunity to impact the game against a Raiders secondary prone to giving up explosive plays, and history says he could take advantage.
Rob Leonard and Co. surely have Johnston circled on their game plan, even if the hype about him hasn't hit the mainstream. And that's a good thing, because Las Vegas cannot afford to overlook him in Week 2.
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