The Las Vegas Raiders are in the midst of their second four-game losing streak of the 2025 NFL season, which is quite remarkable, considering they have only played 10 games. But, such is the state of the Silver and Black under the tutelage of head coach Pete Carroll.
Looking ahead, the Raiders also have a tough schedule. Only two games really stick out as potential wins: Week 12 against the Cleveland Browns and Week 17 against the New York Giants. Both of those opponents are hapless this season as well, and both contests will take place in Las Vegas.
This Sunday, not only will the Raiders be at Allegiant Stadium taking on the 2-8 Browns, who have dropped three straight games, but they'll likely be facing rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who will be making his first career NFL start.
Raiders poised to face Browns' Shedeur Sanders in first NFL start
In Week 11, Cleveland's starter, Dillon Gabriel, went down with a concussion. Browns reporter Mary Kay Cabot reported that Sanders is expected to start against the Raiders in Week 12, as Gabriel figures to remain in the protocol until at least next week.
Sanders got his first taste of NFL action last week, as he was thrown in against a putrid Baltimore Ravens defense. Still, the young player struggled tremendously, completing just 4-of-16 passes for 47 yards.
He also took two sacks for a whopping 27 yards, threw an interception, and tossed a handful of other passes that easily should have been picked off. It was an ugly showing for the rookie, as he finished with a quarterback rating of 13.5 and a QBR of just 2.4.
During his post-game press conference, even Sanders himself said that he played terribly. Sanders also confessed, albeit not in these exact words, that he has a lot of work to do this upcoming week if he wants to put a respectable product out there on the field this Sunday.
For a Raiders defense that has struggled immensely in three of its last four outings, getting to face off against Sanders is a massive gift. Maxx Crosby and Co. should be able to tee off on the young signal-caller, whose tendency to drift backwards in the pocket can be debilitating for an offense.
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It wasn't that long ago that Raider Nation was all-in on the idea of drafting Sanders as high as No. 6 overall in last April's draft. Clearly, the general public was misinformed about Sanders or under the illusion that he was better than he is, as he fell to the fifth round.
Las Vegas passed on him a whopping seven times during the 2025 NFL Draft, opting instead to roll with Aidan O'Connell as their chief backup and taking a swing on an FCS project in Cam Miller during the sixth round. Time will tell if those gambles will pay off.
While the Browns' defense will still make life difficult on Geno Smith and the offense, it is hard to imagine this Cleveland offense doing any damage against Patrick Graham's unit, especially with Sanders at the helm.
This would be a much-needed morale boost for the guys in Las Vegas' locker room, and head coach Pete Carroll would surely be thrilled about a win. But it may complicate things for the segment of Raider Nation that has its eyes fixated on getting a high pick in next year's draft.
Beating another two-win team isn't exactly the best way to climb up the draft board. But, as the Associated Press's Josh Dubow so lovingly reminded Raiders fans, their track record against quarterbacks making their first career start isn't exactly stellar.
After all, this is the same Raiders team that gave up 41 points to a Marcus Mariota-led Washington Commanders team earlier this season. Still, getting to face off against Sanders should be a blessing for this defense.
But yet, in a weird way, Raider Nation almost feels like Sanders is guaranteed to have his breakout performance against the Silver and Black. That, of course, would cause bedlam within the fan base and send the kind of shockwaves throughout the league that only Las Vegas is capable of producing.