The Las Vegas Raiders had a chance to prove something against the Houston Texans — and after this performance, there are still some BIG questions heading toward Week 1.
Fernando Mendoza got his opportunity to make a case for the Raiders' starting quarterback job. Despite some impressive throws, a pick-six, miscommunication, dropped passes and shaky offensive line play made it difficult for him to do enough to take the job from Kirk Cousins.
But Mendoza isn't our biggest concern.
The Raiders defense struggled again.
Eric Newton and Raider Greg break down what went wrong, the concerning linebacker depth, missed tackles and coverage issues — plus which young Raiders actually helped themselves.
We also break down:
🏴☠️ Fernando Mendoza's performance
🏴☠️ Why Kirk Cousins remains QB1
🏴☠️ Malik Benson's costly drops
🏴☠️ Mike Washington's continued rise
🏴☠️ Trey Zuhn and the offensive line
🏴☠️ Jermod McCoy's bounce-back performance
🏴☠️ Thomas Harper & rookie defensive backs
🏴☠️ Raiders linebacker concerns
🏴☠️ Patrick Johnson making his case
🏴☠️ Dylan Laube and the RB3 battle
🏴☠️ Special teams mistakes
🏴☠️ What has to change before Week 1
The preseason scoreboard isn't what matters. The question is whether this Raiders team is showing signs that it can win when the regular season begins.
Right now, the offense has pieces to build around.
The defense has something to prove.
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0:00 Raiders vs. Texans — What Just Happened?
0:41 Fernando Mendoza Gets His Shot
2:51 Mendoza Wasn’t the Problem
3:35 What Happened to the Raiders Offense?
6:12 Trey Zuhn & Mike Washington Impress
8:24 Raiders RB3 Battle Heats Up
10:34 The Raiders Defense Has a BIG Problem
11:54 Raiders Linebacker Depth Is Scary
12:54 McCoy & Masses Show Improvement
15:44 Raiders Have a Tackling Problem
17:30 Did the Raiders Do Mendoza Dirty?
19:27 What Happened to Charles Crawford?
21:49 Raiders Defensive Line Risers
23:00 Patrick Johnson Is Making His Case
26:35 Raiders Special Teams Is a Mess
28:37 Two Raiders Who Deserve Credit
31:06 Kirk Cousins Is Still QB1