While the Las Vegas Raiders have some question marks on both sides of the ball ahead of the 2024 season, there's no question the roster is solid as a whole and definitely capable of competing for a playoff spot.
Yes, the quarterback situation is up in the air and neither Gardner Minshew nor Aidan O'Connell inspire a ton of confidence. However, both signal-callers nearly led their teams to the playoffs in 2023.
And those quarterbacks have an impressive group of weapons to throw to, led by wide receivers Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers, and the offensive line should be good enough to protect them while also opening up holes in the run game.
Las Vegas' defense, which had a strong 2023 campaign and was especially good down the stretch, added Christian Wilkins to the defensive line and is returning the vast majority of its starters, including Jack Jones, who was a revelation. As a result, it's fair to say the Raiders have the potential to sport an elite defense in 2024.
Now, nobody is saying the Raiders are a Super Bowl contender or anything like that, but their collective group of starters on offense and defense are better than a bottom-10 unit when compared to the rest of the NFL.
But ESPN would disagree with that sentiment, as the outlet ranked Las Vegas' starting lineups at No. 26.
ESPN's lists the defensive line as the biggest strength, the quarterback position as the biggest weakness, and they list Jones, Jakorian Bennett and Nate Hobbs as the team's X-factor, and edge rusher Janarius Robinson as the "nonstarter to know."
Of the three cornerbacks listed, Bennett is the only real concern, assuming he can win the starting job over Brandon Facyson and rookie Decamerion Richardson. However, the Raiders have enough talent on that side of the ball that it's hard to imagine any of those three sinking the entire defense if they struggle.
We already touched on the quarterback situation. In reality, the Raiders don't need elite showings from either one to end their three-year playoff drought. If Minshew or O'Connell can provide even average quarterback play, there's enough talent on the roster for this team to get to the postseason.
