It seems likely every day, the expectations for the Raiders continue to fall. Just a year ago, the Raiders were viewed as possible Super Bowl contenders coming off a playoff berth. Now, it appears that everyone is out on the Raiders going into the 2023 season.
In a recent NFL power rankings piece posted by Bleacher Report, the Raiders came in at No. 25 on the list. It’s not a surprise as most of the national media believes the Raiders will finish in last place in the AFC West this season. Here is a snippet of what the site had to say about the Raiders going into the year:
Two years ago, the Las Vegas Raiders were a playoff team that appeared to be headed in the right direction. My, how times change.
Last year’s debacle of a season included an NFL-record four blown second-half leads of 10 points or more. The Raiders released quarterback Derek Carr in the offseason and replaced him with Jimmy Garoppolo. They franchise-tagged running back Josh Jacobs after he led the league in rushing in 2022, and he’s not happy about it.
This is obviously a huge year for Josh McDaniels and company as they need to show improvement. That doesn’t mean that the Raiders need to make a deep run in the playoffs, but failing at the end of games and winning only six games won’t be acceptable.
The hope is that the addition of Garoppolo will provide a high floor of quarterback play for the Raiders and an improved fit over Derek Carr. Garoppolo has been cleared to practice after off-season foot surgery, so that’s the first bit of good news coming out of camp.
Time will tell if the Raiders can move up the power rankings over the next several months. But with all of the talent they assembled on offense, this team should be better than the No. 25 ranked squad in the league.
