How the Raiders transformed themselves into the Chiefs’ biggest early test

Heading into Week 4, the Chiefs are facing off against the Las Vegas Raiders in an exhilarating matchup between two undefeated teams. To get a look at what the Chiefs are up against, it is good to review what the Raiders did in the offseason to get to this point:

New head coach brings new life

The Raiders got a new lease on life with their new head coach, Klint Kubiak. Coming off a Super Bowl as the offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks, he has the Raiders starting the season at 3-0:

When you watch videos of the Raiders, they have a different look and feel. Everyone, from the star players to the coaching staff to the trainers and everyone else in the organization, has bought into Kubiak's mission.

When you have that, you bring out the best talent possible in every player. We have already seen a few Raiders, such as Brock Bowers and Hezekiah Masses, earn AFC Player of the Week honors for their respective sides of the ball. It will be intriguing to see what else this team can do the rest of the season, especially against other top opponents like the Bills, 49ers, Seahawks, and Rams.

New QB duo for the present and future

The Raiders took an interesting approach to their QB situation, signing Kirk Cousins for the current season and drafting QB Fernando Mendoza for the future. The signing of Cousins has proven to be a good one early in the season, as he is tied for first in passing touchdowns after three weeks (9) while throwing for 661 yards.

With this, the Raiders also have Mendoza sitting right behind him, learning from a veteran who has been a starting QB for multiple teams. It paints a similar picture to when Patrick Mahomes sat behind Alex Smith for his rookie season. It will be interesting to watch as the years go by.

Key offensive line signings

If you want to win football games, you need a very good offensive line; without it, everyone else stays stagnant. The Raiders took that to heart this offseason by signing center Tyler Linderbaum from the Baltimore Ravens and guard Spencer Burford from the San Francisco 49ers:

To say it has helped would be an understatement. Along with the Raiders being 3-0, they are now ranked 19th in total yards in 2026, compared to finishing in last place at the end of the 2025 NFL season. While they did add other offensive players this offseason, the offensive line's drastic improvement has aided them in a multitude of ways.

Raiders defense gets a big boost

When free agency came along, the Raiders bolstered their defense with proven NFL talent. They signed linebackers Quay Walker (starter), Nakobe Dean (starter), and Segun Olubi. They additionally signed defensive end Kwity Paye to play alongside Maxx Crosby in a starting edge-rusher role. In the 2026 NFL Draft, they also found intriguing young talent, including safety Treydan Stukes (starter) and Hezekiah Masses (starter, three interceptions this season).

Overall

This Raiders team is vastly different from the teams the Chiefs played in years past; the talent gap has shifted for the Raiders in a positive way, and it has been working so far. However, the Chiefs are the same way, with very significant improvement on offense and a bunch of fresh faces on the defensive side.

Week 4 will be a great challenge for this Chiefs team, and it will give a chance to prove to the league that the Chiefs are indeed back.

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