Still, the Raiders offense looked the best it had all season, as second-year quarterback Aidan O’Connell threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns in a solid performance on the road. O’Connell looked like a starting quarterback against the Chiefs, albeit in a losing effort.
Ben Rolfe of The Sporting News recently released his power rankings for each team in the National Football League. Unsurprisingly, the Las Vegas Raiders are near the bottom of the list.
Rolfe ranked the Raiders as the 31st-best team in the league, only above the New York Giants. The Raiders achieved this ranking even after nearly beating the Chiefs while missing multiple starters on the defensive side of the ball.
“The Las Vegas Raiders nearly pulled off the heist of the season in back-to-back years,” Rolfe said. “After looking like they could offer nothing offensively, they fought back and were in a position to win it before a moment of madness cost them against the [Kansas City] Chiefs.
“This is a performance that they need to build onin the next few weeks. It will amount to nothing for 2024, but it would be a huge step in the right direction entering 2025. Aidan O’Connell showed some flashes and should get another opportunity to lay his credentials on the table as a potential option in 2025.”
