After Raiders coach Klint Kubiak proclaims his team was going to win, the Chiefs find a way to another clutch victory

Klint Kubiak tried to provide some bravado that the Las Vegas Raiders desperately need.

But, it’s still Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Raiders still have a ways to go, even if they’re closing the gap.

The Raiders’ coach was feeling good at halftime with the Raiders leading 13-10, telling CBS’ Tracy Wolfson, “We’re gonna win the game.”

“Gotta be better, but you know what? We’re winning. We’re gonna win the game.”

– @Raiders coach Klint Kubiak to @tracywolfson at halftime 👀 pic.twitter.com/87ESYVPBiC

— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) October 4, 2026

That didn’t happen. The Raiders gave the Chiefs everything they could handle though, taking a lead deep into the fourth quarter. But the Chiefs came up with a big drive to take the lead, the Raiders fumbled a kickoff return and that was the end of their upset hopes. The Chiefs won 30-27 but it was far from easy.

The Chiefs are 4-0 and clearly back to being the favorite in the AFC West after a down season. Patrick Mahomes is back from a torn ACL and Kansas City still knows what it takes to win close games.

But the Raiders, now 3-1, showed they have made plenty of strides. The outcome against the Chiefs and Mahomes was familiar, but it doesn’t seem like the same old Raiders anymore. Las Vegas just isn’t quite to the Chiefs’ level yet, even if the Raiders’ coach wants that process to be sped up a bit.

Raiders get on board first

The Raiders came into the game undefeated and were obviously confident. On a well designed play, Kirk Cousins started to roll right, stopped and threw back to tight end Ian Thomas for a 27-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead.

Kirk Cousins finds a wide open Thomas for the TD!@KCvsLV on CBS/Paramount+
Stream on @NFLPluspic.twitter.com/6tDZKxqR2D

— NFL (@NFL) October 4, 2026

The Chiefs weren’t bothered by the Raiders hitting the first big play. They responded right after with a long drive and a Patrick Mahomes touchdown pass to Tyquan Thornton.

The Chiefs and Raiders traded field goals in the second half, and then Las Vegas rallied to get downfield and get a 48-yard field goal as the half expired. That gave the Raiders a 13-10 lead at halftime and Kubiak some confidence, as he told Wolfson the Raiders would win.

Maybe that bravado got the best of Kubiak early in the second half. The Raiders hit a field goal but there was an illegal formation penalty on the Chiefs. Instead of taking the field goal, the Raiders took the penalty and went for it on fourth-and-2. The Chiefs got pressure and forced an incompletion, and the score remained 13-10. That field goal that came off the board would matter later.

Eventually the Chiefs would take advantage and take back the lead. They usually do.

Chiefs take lead in fourth quarter

Kenneth Walker III has been a huge addition for the Chiefs and he made a big play to end the third quarter. Walker got free to the right side and broke a 76-yard run. He was brought down at the 8-yard line but Mahomes hit Thornton for a touchdown two plays later. That gave the Chiefs a 17-13 lead.

The Raiders couldn’t land a big blow in the fourth quarter but got a couple field goals to take a 19-17 lead with 4:53 left. To that point the Raiders defense had done a great job getting pressure on Mahomes and limiting him and doing a decent job against Walker, aside from his long run. But the Chiefs thrive in situations like being down two points with less than five minutes to go.

The Chiefs didn’t waste much time. Mahomes floated a pass to Thornton, who brought it in for 55 yards. Thornton suffered a bad leg injury on the play, further thinning out the Chiefs’ receivers. But Thornton had caught two touchdowns and had another huge grab that put the Chiefs in field-goal position. Walker scored to give Kansas City the lead back with 3:21 to go. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful but the Chiefs led 23-19.

Then the Raiders made the one mistake they couldn’t afford. On the next kickoff return, Dareke Young of the Raiders had the ball punched out and the Chiefs recovered. Walker scored right after that and a four-point lead was suddenly 11. The Raiders got a touchdown from Brock Bowers after that but couldn’t recover an onside kick. The Raiders did get a stop but the Chiefs downed a punt at the 1-yard line with 1:16 to go. A pass to Tre Tucker around midfield was dropped, but that wasn’t caught before the Raiders spiked the ball to stop the clock so it stood. The Chiefs got pressure on Cousins on the next play and intercepted him to clinch the win.

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p style=”text-align:left”>The Raiders played well enough that it made sense Kubiak felt they were about to win. He’s a new head coach and new to the AFC West. Sunday was a lesson on not taking anything for granted against the Chiefs and Mahomes.