REPORT: Where Do Raiders Rank Entering Week 3?

After an abysmal Week 1 power-ranking (across the board), how do the Las Vegas Raiders look after a huge win over Baltimore?

Sep 15, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce during warms up before a game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images / Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders feel like a completely different team after their Week 2 upset win over the Baltimore Ravens. The Silver and Black exhibited toughness, resilience, and the clutch gene when it mattered most.

The win against the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day last year was Antonio Pierce's signature win as interim head coach. This one might be as important, if not more, in the long run. After the loss to the Los Angeles Chargers last week, the Raiders' stock was way down.

After the win in Week 2, where does the national media rank the Silver and Black?

Sports Illustrated: No. 28

The Raiders jumped three spots in Conor Orr's power-rankings. The SI senior writer was harsh on the Silver and Black last week. This week was a little more positive.

"Antonio Pierce got more aggressive and the Raiders played loose," Orr wrote. Not a coincidence that their strengths matched up well against Baltimore’s weaknesses. Gardner Minshew, not kidding, is a quarterback that teams don’t love to see, especially when he gets hot. Does this change my opinion on Las Vegas long term? Not particularly. But was I blown away when Minshew still hit Brock Bowers on a throwback screen across the field despite a totally muddied backfield simply because of how big and rangy Bowers is? You bet."

The Sporting News: No. 24

The Sporting News' Vinnie Iyer moved the Raiders up an impressive six spots in his rankings.

"The Raiders played a slightly cleaner game in Baltimore to come away with an improbable needed victory," Iyer wrote. "They're now set up to start 2-1 with the lowly Panthers coming to Las Vegas."

CBS Sports: No. 14

Pete Prisco is putting a lot of stock into the Raiders. More so than anyone else. The Raiders climbed 16 spots to No. 14.

"Winning on the road against a good Ravens team is a big deal for this young group," Prisco wrote. "Gardner Minshew owns Baltimore the past two seasons."

NFL.com: No. 26

Eric Edholm was a lot more grounded with his power-ranking. The Raiders climbed four spots.

Through six quarters of the season, the Raiders had fewer than 350 yards of offense and a mere 16 points," Edholm wrote. "Questions started swirling in my head about the decision to start Gardner Minshew over Aidan O'Connell. Then Minshew remembered where he was: Baltimore, where he pulled off a similarly wild upset a year ago with the Colts. With one big throw after another, Minshew found Davante Adams, Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers, offsetting an anemic run game and taking advantage of the Ravens' mistakes. The result was five productive second-half drives, only one of which ended without points, while the Raiders were able to keep Lamar Jackson under wraps and pull off the late stunner. What this ultimately says of Las Vegas' potential, I'm not sure, but Antonio Pierce's team mounted a stirring rally right when it most needed one."

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