FOXBOROUGH, Mass.—The Pete Carroll era has gotten off to an excellent start.
On Sunday, the Raiders started the 2025 season in the win column, besting the New England Patriots 20-13 at Gillette Stadium.
The Raiders get themselves off to a 1-0 start, an excellent start for a team that only won four games last season. Meanwhile, the Patriots fall to 0-1 and have some questions to answer.
Here are some of the major takeaways from this clash between AFC sleepers.
Turning point
After a promising initial sequence on both sides of the ball by the Raiders, a Geno Smith interception lead to the Patriots seizing momentum early.
Starting the second half with the ball, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye heaved a pass while being pressured by Maxx Crosby. The pass wound up floating and landing in the arms of Raiders safety Isaiah Pola-Mao for the team’s first takeaway of the season. The ensuing drive ended in Ashton Jeanty recording his first career touchdown to put the Raiders in front, giving them a lead they would never relinquish.
Making his money
Jakobi Meyers is banking on himself heading into his contract year, and Week One was an excellent start.
Facing his former team in the Patriots, Meyers emerged as Smith’s top target throughout the afternoon. Meyers ended up recording a team-high eight receptions for 95 yards for the Raiders (Brock Bowers lead the team with 103 passing yards before leaving the game with a knee injury). Despite his trade request, the Raiders deemed Meyers too important to their overall offense, and a start like this to the season could lead the team to decide he is too important to allow to walk.
Woes in pass pro
While the game was overall positive for the Raiders, pass protection emerged as one of the key aspects the team must work on.
The Raiders struggled to keep Geno Smith upright, with the Patriots recording four sacks on the quarterback. Edge rusher Harold Landry III, in particular, put together an excellent day with two and a half sacks. It is concerning, but the Raiders do get a long week of practice to correct the issue.
Week Two sees the Raiders come back to Las Vegas for their home opener against the Los Angeles Chargers at Allegiant Stadium.
