📰 NEWS FLASH: The Raiders’ path forward becomes clear as experts spotlight the essential priorities they can’t afford to ignore ⚡. DH

The Las Vegas Raiders’ season may be lost, but there are things they can work on to improve their outlook for the future. What must they prioritize for the rest of the season?

At 2 – 10, the Las Vegas Raiders are officially eliminated from playoff contention. In a season where their expectations were sky high, they’ve failed to deliver on any of the potential they had before the season.

There are many things one can point the blame towards: poor offensive line play, puzzling quarterback decisions, and a defense that can’t stop anything. However, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel for Raider Nation.

Rookie Team of the Week

Jim Wyman writes for Pro Football Focus, and he constructed a rookie team of the week based on which rookies stood out in Week 13. Despite the Raiders’ woeful loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, Dont’e Thornton Jr. and Caleb Rodgers made the list for the flashes of excellence they showed.

“Thornton played a limited role in the Raiders’ loss to the Chargers, as he only saw 14 offensive snaps. He caught one pass for 11 yards on a screen pass that resulted in a first down. On the year, Thornton only has 8 receptions, but six of them have resulted in first downs”, said Wyman.

Thornton Jr. was only able to notch one catch against their divisional rival before being ruled out for the rest of the game with a concussion. He’s questionable for their game against the Denver Broncos in Week 14, but the fact of the matter is that he should’ve been more involved in their offense up to this point.

Thornton Jr. is a field stretcher, with his speed being his best quality. His hands could use some work, but he’s a rookie, so that’s to be expected. He’s only caught eight passes this season, and already has three drops. However, every time he’s gotten an opportunity with the ball in his hands, it usually results in a first down for the Raiders offense.

Give the Rookie More Chances

The Raiders have nothing left to play for this season, other than boosting their chances of landing a high pick in the 2026 NFL draft with more losses. Geno Smith won’t be their starting quarterback next season, and Pete Carroll may be out the door as well. However, Thornton Jr. will be, and they should be giving him more targets to see what they have in him and whether or not they want to consider him a piece on offense to work with for the future.

Despite drafting him after Jack Bech, Thornton Jr. has shown much more potential as an offensive weapon than their second-round pick. He may be too raw a prospect now to be their main receiving option, but he’s shown traits already of being an excellent WR2, with room to grow into that role with little competition in their receiver room.

Promising Offensive Lineman

“The former third-rounder out of Texas Tech made his offensive debut against the Chargers; while he only played 17 snaps, he held his own. 10 pass-blocking snaps, he yielded just one pressure, which occurred in garbage time after a nice spin move by Tuli Tuipulotu”.

The Raiders used two picks in the 2025 NFL draft on offensive linemen, just to not give them any playing time. Rogers finally made his debut, and he showed encouraging signs against a pretty good Chargers defensive line.

The Raiders have notoriously had one of the worst offensive lines this season, and they’re partially to blame for why Ashton Jeanty has had a forgettable rookie season. It also explains why the Raiders can’t get anything going on offense.

There’s no reason why Rogers shouldn’t be getting more playing time, as he can’t possibly be worse than what the Raiders have shown on the field all season long. His footwork was impressive in his debut, and he showed that he can get to that second level in run blocking to help Jeanty get out of his rookie season funk.

While these two rookies may have boasted impressive PFF grades in Week 13, this mindset should be applied to all of the Raiders’ younger players on their roster. Carroll’s reluctance to give them playing time continues to sabotage the Raiders, as this season is a perfect opportunity for them to figure out the speed of the game in a low-stakes environment.