For the Las Vegas Raiders, the task is simple this week as they prepare to host the Los Angeles Rams.
Close the game out.
After a 3-0 start that included road wins over the Los Angeles Chargers and New Orleans, the Raiders have been unable to finish the job in narrow home losses to Kansas City and Buffalo.
Add a blowout loss at New England to those defeats, and Las Vegas is a 3-3 team that feels it should be at least 4-2, if not 5-1. And the Raiders know why they aren’t.
“We’re just a really good team who hasn’t closed in close games, and we’ve got to close,” right guard Caleb Rogers said.
One reason is that an offense otherwise carrying the load isn’t converting often enough in the red zone. The Raiders have scored just 12 touchdowns on 23 trips inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.
Their struggles have continued during the three-game losing streak. Las Vegas is just 4-for-10 in the red zone during that span, including 2-for-5 last week in a 33-30 loss to Buffalo.
“That’s unacceptable, and that starts with me,” first-year coach Klint Kubiak said.
Kubiak has made the team more competitive, as the Raiders have already matched their win total from last season. Kirk Cousins is on pace for his best season since 2023, with a 98.0 passer rating and 14 touchdown passes, tied for the league lead.
However, with the defense giving up points nearly as quickly as the offense scores them, the margin for error has shrunk. Las Vegas ranks 26th in the league in scoring defense, allowing 27.0 points per game, and has surrendered 415.3 yards per game over the past four contests.
Los Angeles (2-4) hopes to take advantage of the Raiders’ struggling defense, although the loss of wide receiver Davante Adams to injured reserve with a hamstring injury leaves a significant void. Adams was on pace for his seventh 1,000-yard season, with 480 yards through six games.
Rams coach Sean McVay said Wednesday that the team is not yet inclined to add a receiver, believing its depth is sufficient to cover Adams’ expected six- to 10-week absence. Puka Nacua figures to be the go-to target on most plays, but Konata Mumpfield, who had four catches for 93 yards in a Week 3 loss at Denver, could see more opportunities.
“Maybe we talked about the practice squad, but nothing external,” McVay said.
A four-game deficit behind the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC West suggests a wild-card spot might be the Rams’ only path to the postseason. Three of Los Angeles’ four losses came by a combined nine points, including an 18-16 upset defeat against the visiting Arizona Cardinals last week.
The Rams have lost Adams and other players to injuries, and they are on their third kicker in as many games after Blake Grupe tore his ACL while making a tackle on a kickoff against the Cardinals.
Veteran Brandon McManus, who made at least 75% of his field-goal attempts in each of the past 11 seasons, won a tryout over Matt Prater on Tuesday and is looking forward to kicking for his fourth team in five years.
“An exciting opportunity,” he said.
Rams cornerback Trent McDuffie (groin) and linebacker Nate Landman (concussion) did not practice on Wednesday, while the Raiders held out defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway (concussion).