Week 5 is rapidly approaching, and the Las Vegas Raiders have a difficult opponent on the schedule in the New England Patriots, who are ascending once again. Thankfully, Klint Kubiak and the coaching staff don't seem to be underestimating their 2-2 foe, even if New England is without a few key players.
It is paramount that the Raiders get back on track and win this crucial AFC matchup, displaying their resilience and once again cementing themselves as a team to be reckoned with in this league during the 2026 NFL season. Competing with great teams isn't enough; they have to pull out victories, too.
Before we get to this critical showdown, though, let's catch you up on all of the latest news from Las Vegas that you may have missed. We'll go over the final injury report, some quick hitters, Denver Broncos drama, remembering Al Davis and the best pre-game quotes during Patriots week.
- Final injury report
- Quick hitters
- Broncos drama
- Remembering Al Davis
- Best pre-Week 5 quotes from Las Vegas
Final injury report
As seems to be the case every week for the Raiders, they have one starter out in Jalen Nailor. He suffered a concussion during Week 4's game against the Kansas City Chiefs and was in protocol all week. Nailor did not practice ahead of Week 5, so his being out is no surprise.
Everyone else appears to be good to go, other than Thornton Jr., who just returned after a multi-month hiatus. Plus, it would require a corresponding move to activate him from the IR. Las Vegas is banged up in a lot of rooms, but those players are seemingly healthy enough to suit up on Sunday.
Player | Position | Injury | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
Jalen Nailor | WR | Concussion | Out |
Jackson Powers-Johnson | RG | Groin | - |
Brock Bowers | TE | Knee | - |
Ashton Jeanty | RB | Ankle | Questionable |
Spencer Burford | LG | Knee | - |
Foley Fatukasi | DT | Shoulder | - |
Segun Olubi | LB | Wrist | - |
Dont'e Thornton Jr. | WR | Hamstring | Out |
Cody White | WR | Ankle | - |
Trey Zuhn III | OL | Knee | Out |
New England is completely depleted, especially at the cornerback position. Again, not to make light of injuries, but who played corner at practice this week, and what does a guy named Christian have to do to get a clean bill of health from the Patriots?
Mike Vrabel's team will be without several starters and key players, and they have a handful more who are clearly not going to be operating at 100%.
Player | Position | Injury | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
Christian Gonzalez | CB | Shoulder | Out |
Carlton Davis | CB | Neck | Out |
Rhamondre Stevenson | RB | Knee | Questionable |
Christian Barmore | DT | Shoulder | Questionable |
Christian Elliss | LB | Chest | Questionable |
Craig Woodson | SAF | Shoulder | Questionable |
Mack Hollins | WR | Calf | Out |
Dre'Mont Jones | OLB | Shoulder | Questionable |
Morgan Moses | RT | Foot | Questionable |
Channing Canada | CB | Hamstring | Out |
Reggie Giliam | FB | Ankle/Knee | Out |
Karon Prunty | CB | Hamstring | Out |
Charles Woods | CB | Shoulder | Questionable |
Drake Maye | QB | Rt. Shoulder | - |
Quick hitters
Ravens spiraling without Tyler Linderbaum
Baltimore's center struggles have gotten so bad that they abandoned their original plan to get a comp pick for Linderbaum and just sent a higher pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for an overpaid Cam Jurgens. Between injuries and overreaching in this trade, Eric DeCosta is fumbling right now.
Maxx Crosby is having a career year, despite what the box score says
Crosby's 2.0 sacks don't lead the team, nor jump off the page after four games. But he is playing a lower snap share and is wreaking havoc like never before. According to one metric, he has the second-most pressures in the NFL, and 65% of them have come in under 2.5 seconds.
That is utter domination.
Klint Kubiak drawing Kyle Shanahan comps
Even after a loss in which Klint Kubiak claimed to have screwed up at the end of the game, he is drawing comparisons to Kyle Shanahan, arguably the best play-caller in the league. Specifically, his ability to see into the future and predict defensive adjustments was highlighted.
The thing that stands out the most about Raiders HC Klint Kubiak?
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) October 7, 2026
He's always ahead of the next defensive adjustment. Shanahan-like ability to set up the next play/drive/gameplan off the last one. pic.twitter.com/YaGRPFrNZk
Broncos drama
Remember when a lot of Las Vegas Raiders fans (including me) wanted Davis Webb as head coach when it was unclear if Klint Kubiak was going to leave Seattle? For two reasons, it seems like the Silver and Black should be glad that they chose Kubiak over Webb.
One is that, simply, Kubiak's offense has looked a lot better than Webb's has this year. The former is much more experienced, and the latter was always going to need time, but Raider Nation has to be happy that they look ahead of schedule in the rebuild at 3-1, and the Broncos sit behind them at 2-2.
But even more pressing is that the whole Webb-Sean Payton relationship has seemingly crumbled, and things are falling apart in Denver. On Thursday, Payton officially and publicly stripped Webb of play-calling duties after just four games, and a mountain of theories is piling up.
Did Payton want Webb to work out, and is he just making a desperate effort to control things in a title window? Did the ownership group or Bo Nix want Webb to call plays in the first place, and is Payton now going rogue? No matter how you slice it, this is a bad look and only adds to the drama over there.
I could see the Broncos dropping this Sunday's game amid all of this on the road against a lowly Los Angeles Chargers team that has been knocking on the door and showing signs of life, but still hasn't earned their first win yet.
Remembering Al Davis
Thursday marked 15 years since Al Davis passed, and Friday marked 15 years since the legendary owner helped the Raiders win from beyond the grave. Week 5 and this part of October should always remind fans of Davis, and it would be great if Las Vegas could win in his birth state on Sunday.
Best pre-Week 5 quotes from Las Vegas
Klint Kubiak spoke to his team's maturity and approach after the Week 4 loss and heading into this weekend:
"They're a very mature group that wants to win. So, we're fixing the corrections. We're trying to make ourselves better. Whether we win or whether we lose, we're telling each other the truth and just seeing what we can do to be a better team moving forward. ... Here's the tape. Here's what we got right. Here's what we got wrong. Here's where we're not correct as coaches. Here's where we didn't make the play as a player. And if we can just put it in front of those guys and everyone sees it, and as a team we can learn from it and get better, then we're going the right direction. ... I'm very blessed to have this roster of players that care about each other, that want to win, that winning is important to them, and doing things the right way is important to them. So, I'm very fortunate."
Kirk Cousins is also enjoying his change of scenery at the quarter-way mark in the season:
“Well, I think it's been a resilient group. I think our defense has played very well. I think guys are making plays. I think it's probably less learning and more confirming what I learned about them back in the spring or even in training camp. These guys, they want to do it the right way. Football means something to them. They're hardworking, listen well, and it makes it a joy to be the quarterback for a group of guys like that. But you got to go prove it again every week.”
Andrew Janocko praised how Klint Kubiak has handled his first loss as a head coach (and first loss in a while):
"It's next up, next day mentality. We have another game coming, so you win, you lose. Either way, you got to evaluate the next day. So, when you come back into the office the next day, whether it's a win or lose, you're trying to scrutinize every part of the plan, every technique we use. Whether it's sometimes wins, you can even be more critical. But you want to be uber critical of yourself, uber critical of what you're doing, so you can fix mistakes and build on the stuff you're doing well."
"I think accountability starts with the head guy, and he is the most accountable person to himself. He's the most accountable person in the building, so then, everybody feeds off that. Myself, our staff, each player, everybody feels accountable to making sure that we're doing everything we can each and every week to be successful and go 1-0 that week. That's been his message. It's not just a message; he leads that way. So, we all follow suit."
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