The Las Vegas Raiders, as Maxx Crosby and several other players have already put it, are playing for pride at this point in the 2025 NFL season. This losing campaign has continued to snowball, as the Raiders will enter Week 15's matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles on a seven-game losing streak.
Of course, this is the NFL, and anyone can beat anyone on any given Sunday. It is certainly possible that Las Vegas walks into Lincoln Financial Field with their backup quarterback and takes down the defending Super Bowl champions in what could be a snow game. But it's not likely, nor beneficial.
Las Vegas could play spoiler to the Eagles, who are on a three-game skid of their own. That is certainly what the coaching staff and players will be focused on. But as far as Raider Nation is concerned, they, by and large, just assume lose a close one and stay atop the 2026 NFL Draft board.
Raiders' Week 15 rooting interests as battle for No. 1 pick intensifies
If the draft were today, the Silver and Black would have the No. 2 pick. But they only need three things to happen on Sunday to ascend to the No. 1 spot alone. A handful of other results would widen their margin in tiebreakers and give them a bit of a cushion. Here are those desired results in Week 15:
Eagles over Raiders
Giants over Commanders
Titans over 49ers
These three games are the most important, as the Giants and Titans are the other two-win teams in the NFL. While Las Vegas could eventually surpass both of them with tiebreakers anyway, both of these teams pulling out wins would mean that the Raiders are alone at the bottom of the standings.
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As far as helping to lower Las Vegas' strength of schedule, which is the first tiebreaker when determining the draft order, or having quarterback-needy teams near the top of the board losing to give the team some breathing room, the following results would be beneficial for the Raiders' cause:
Falcons over Buccaneers
Saints over Panthers
Cardinals over Texans
Jets over Jaguars
Bills over Patriots
Seahawks over Colts
Packers over Broncos
Lions over Rams
Vikings over Cowboys
Dolphins over Steelers
Browns over Bears
Bengals over Ravens
Lastly, this game does not have a direct impact on Las Vegas' draft order in any statistical way, but there is still a preferred result:
Chiefs over Chargers
If the Chiefs win, their playoff hopes will remain alive, and the Raiders desperately need them to be in the hunt. Otherwise, fans can rest assured that Kansas City will play its backups in its Week 18 matchup in Las Vegas, giving the Raiders an easier route to victory.
Obviously, some of these outcomes are more likely than others. The Falcons already took down the Bucs on Thursday Night Football, so the week is off to a good start. But now, it is time for Raider Nation to sit back and consult this list as they take in the final month of the regular season.