The clash of AFC West unbeatens is set to dominate the afternoon NFL-viewing world this coming Sunday — and for good reason.
The 3-0 Las Vegas Raiders play host to the 3-0 Kansas City Chiefs in an intriguing Week 4 showdown in the desert. The surging Silver & Black led by rookie head coach Klint Kubiak welcome the capable Chiefs captained by veteran Andy Reid in a contest that’ll shape up the division just four games into the 2026 campaign.
And, according to 506 Sports, the 1:25 p.m. matchup covers
much of the national broadcast map for CBS.
A good old-fashion slugfest is likely on the horizon when the Raiders go toe-to-toe with the incoming Chiefs. Heading into this division tilt, Las Vegas and Kansas City rank fifth and sixth in rushing attempts amongst the 32 teams with only one carry separating the two teams.
It’s no secret that Kubiak — the Raiders offensive play caller — alongside his trusted offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko and offensive line coach Rick Dennison love running the football. The 93 rushing attempts is a testament to that. Flip it to Reid alongside his offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy and offensive line boss Andy Heck, and the love for the ground game is equally as feverish. The 92 rushing attempts signifies that.
Balanced & Brutal
We established the affinity both the Raiders and Chiefs have for running the ball, but the two squads showcase a balanced offensive attack which makes both difficult to defend.
While they may be in the middle of the NFL pack in passing attempts, Kansas City has thrown the ball 98 times in the trio of games heading into Week 4. Las Vegas, on the other hand, three notches below at 92 total pass attempts on the young season. Comparatively, the Chiefs completed 68.4 percent of the attempts while the Raiders are at 67.4 percent.
So not only will Rob Leonard’s Las Vegas defense have to contend with the aerial attack paced by the accomplished Patrick Mahomes, they’ll have to deal with his backfield mate, running back Kenneth Walker III — a powerful and elusive ball carrier that Kubiak is all too familiar with as he dialed up plays for Walker when both were Seattle Seahawks last season.
This is the inherent difference between Reid’s and Kubiak’s ground game: Kansas City has more yards (460) and a larger yards per carry average (5.0), than Las Vegas (300 yards, a paltry 3.2 yards per carry average), in comparison.
Well built at 5-foot-9 and 211 pounds, the 25-year-old Walker has 360 yards on 65 totes and three touchdowns rushing while adding 82 more yards on 11 receptions with a pair of touchdowns. The Michigan State product boasts elite balance, low center of gravity, and explosiveness to evade, elude, and break through would-be tackles. Raiders defenders must be able to wrap up and tackle and when the whiffs come, bank on the team’s ability to rally and swarm to the ball.
Walker presents a supreme challenge for the Raiders defense at all three levels and the meeting between the Chiefs tailback and Raiders middle linebacker Nakobe Dean is going to be a powerful one this Sunday.
Rookie safety Treydan Stukes expected return to the starting lineup will help both the run defense and coverage which Mahomes is keen to exploit.
Dominate The LOS
While the Chiefs may be light in the sacks department — just three so far — Las Vegas must win the battle at the line of scrimmage. If not, Steve Spagnuolo has the horses on his defense to run circles and lap Kubiak’s offense.
Defensive tackle Chris Jones is still a problem — even at age 32. Standing 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds, the Mississippi State product remains a game-wrecker in the middle by collapsing the pocket and neutralizing the pass and run with his veteran savvy and physicality. He’s flanked by George Karlaftis and rookie R. Mason Thomas on the edges and both have the strengths and movement skills to mirror against Kubiak’s outside/wide zone running scheme.
Behind them are are disruptive linebackers Nick Bolton and Drue Tranquill. How that duo reacts and responds to the Raiders’ pre-snap motions alongside covering the middle of the field is something to watch. And then there’s the secondary featuring cornerbacks L’Jarius Sneed and rookie Mansoor Delane. Both are sticky in coverage adn don’t be surprised if Spagnuolo tasks one or both with covering Raiders elite tight end Brock Bowers.
The backend coverage from the secondary and at the second level with the linebackers gives the Chiefs the ability to be sticky and force quarterbacks to hold on to the ball which allows the defensive line to hunt.
Las Vegas offensive line spearheaded by center Tyler Linderbaum and left tackle Kolton Miller will need to be on point to not only open lanes for running backs Ashton Jeanty and speedy rookie Mike Washington Jr. but also keep veteran and statue-esque quarterback Kirk Cousins with a clean pocket and upright.
Head-to-Head
Sunday’s clash will be the 135th meeting between the longtime AFC West foes. The Chiefs lead the all-time series 76-52-2 (74-55-2 in regular season action, 2-1 in postseason meetings) but it’s the Raiders who have the most recent victory — 14-12 this past January. Before that, Kansas City won the last three matchups with a 31-0 win last season being the most lopsided. Dating back to 2016, Las Vegas has won just four times in the 21 meetings.
Quotes of Note
“I think every week, you’re working on your identity, and then someone takes away your identity, takes away something you’re good at. So, you got to find multiple ways to win, and that’s what good teams do. You got to win on all three phases in order to in order to win, especially against a great team like this.”
—Las Vegas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak when asked about the identity of his football team
“Well, I think he’s certainly fun to watch and sets a great standard for quarterback play across our league. And if they were to put up a lot of points, then you got to keep up. You also know that if if you were to get ahead, that no lead is safe. You’re just aware of how capable they are any moment of scoring points and making it hard on you as a team. So, there’s a lot of respect there, and they’ve proven it and earned that over many years. And it’ll be a great challenge for all of us on Sunday.”
—Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins on the challenge Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes presents
