The Las Vegas Raiders (2-0) are marching into New Orleans riding the high of back-to-back victories to open the season.
It has also been a solid start for the Saints (1-1), who should have a raucous crowd for the home opener after two great performances on the road.
Klint Kubiak, a former Saints assistant, will return to Louisiana as an undefeated head coach.
Game information
■ Who: Raiders at Saints
■ When: 1:25 p.m. Sunday
■ Where: Caesars Superdome; New Orleans
■ TV: CBS (Chris Lewis, play-by-play; Luke Kuechly, analyst)
■ Radio: KRLV-AM (920), KOMP-FM (92.3) (Jason Horowitz, play-by-play; Kirk Morrison, analyst)
■ Line: Saints -3, total 43½
Series history
The Raiders have won three of the last four meetings and now have an 8-7-1 lead in 16 meetings in a series that dates back to 1971.
That first meeting was the lone tie between the teams, a 21-21 stalemate in New Orleans. The Raiders won the next three matchups.
Last meeting
Dec. 29, 2024 — The Raiders shut out the Saints in the second half en route to a 25-10 victory in a matchup of two teams playing out the string in disappointing seasons.
Ameer Abdullah ran for 115 yards for the Raiders, eclipsing 100 yards for the only time in his career.
Aidan O’Connell threw for 242 yards and connected on touchdowns with Jakobi Meyers and Tre Tucker.
The defense recorded three sacks and intercepted Spencer Rattler twice in the win.
Bold predictions
1. Fullback Connor Heyward will score his first touchdown since last October.
2. Ashton Jeanty will eclipse his career-high of 138 rushing yards.
3. Saints kicker Daniel Carlson will make two field goals of at least 50 yards, delivering a game-winning kick against his former team.
Storyline
This is a far more appealing game than it looked when the schedule first came out in the spring.
The Raiders have started 2-0, and though both of their wins came against teams who look to be terrible, the more encouraging aspect of the victories is not that they won but how they did it.
They have been tenacious on defense and have found a way on offense.
The Raiders appear to be ahead of schedule on their rebuild, which could potentially push back any plan to move on to rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
New Orleans appears to have found its quarterback of the future in Tyler Shough, who leads the league in passing through two weeks.
The Saints have fallen behind in each of the first two games only to have Shough lead rallies that have created a pair of fantastic finishes, one working out for them and one falling short.
One of these teams could come out of this game looking like a legitimate playoff contender. That would have been a stunning sentence even just two weeks ago.
When the Saints have the ball
New Orleans really has not been able to run the ball yet this season.
That could be a result of falling behind early in both games or perhaps it’s just not going to be a strength of this team even though they have talented backs in Travis Etienne and Alvin Kamara.
But it also hasn’t really mattered. New Orleans is seventh in total offense and ninth in points per game.
Shough is a major reason why.
Despite a dreadful first half in the opener, he is averaging a league-best 331 passing yards per game.
His favorite target has been emerging star Chris Olave, who entered the week nine yards behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba for the league lead in receiving yards.
“They’re explosive,” Raiders defensive coordinator Rob Leonard said. “They have good players and they’re leading the league in passing yards. They’re a really good football team playing with a lot of confidence.”
It will be a matchup of strengths. The Raiders lead the league in pressure rate and Shough has excelled so far this season when under duress.
“Anybody that can stand in there and take pressure and hurt you is painful,” Leonard said. “He’s a good player.”
He’s also got a strong playcaller in head coach Kellen Moore.
One key factor in the game could be the absence of starting left tackle Kevin Banks, who will miss the game with an ankle injury. That isn’t a good development when preparing for a team like the Raiders generating pressure on half of opposing dropbacks.
When the Raiders have the ball
It’s been a pretty similar start on offense for the Raiders, who rank dead last in the league in yards per rushing attempt.
They have been able to get the job done through some creative schematic moves by Kubiak and the veteran savvy of quarterback Kirk Cousins.
The Miami Dolphins backed off their safeties and the Raiders took advantage underneath. Then the Los Angeles Chargers stacked the box and the Raiders went over the top.
It has been an offensive approach that can best be described as competent, which is a huge step up for this organization.
This could be another week to rely on Jeanty as the Raiders did against Miami. The Saints have allowed 136.5 yards per game on the ground, near the bottom of the league.
New Orleans doesn’t look great statistically in any category, but they have made stops late in games when it mattered and forced key turnovers.
“It’s a group that plays really hard, plays really fast, very well-coached, opportunistic,” Raiders offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko said. “They take advantage of mistakes, and they’re playing at a high level right now.”
The job of defending the Raiders would get much more difficult if Brock Bowers is able to play. He is questionable to return from a procedure on his knee less than three weeks ago.
His presence could really unlock the Raiders offense.
Injury report
■ Raiders: Out: S Treydan Stukes (concussion), QB Aidan O’Connell (personal). Questionable: TE Brock Bowers (knee), DE Kwity Paye (illness).
■ Saints: Out: DT Christen Miller (toe), WR Barion Brown (hamstring). Questionable: CB Martin Emerson (shoulder).
The pick
Saints 24, Raiders 23
Adam Hill Las Vegas Review-Journal
