Kubiak backs Rob Leonard as Raiders reach deadline day at 4-5

The NFL trade deadline passes at 1 p.m. Tuesday and the Raiders reach it at 4-5, carrying a defense that just tied a league record nobody wants. Klint Kubiak spent Monday saying nothing about what his team might do, per the Review-Journal, which is what coaches say when the answer is probably "not much."

The biggest name took himself off the board. Maxx Crosby, asked again about the rumors, said "I don't pay attention to that at all. I play for the Raiders," and added that he plans "on being here for a very long time," as The Big Lead reported. ESPN's Adam Schefter has reported the Raiders have no interest in moving him. Call that line item closed.

The defense is the open one. Sunday's 38-17 loss at San Francisco was the sixth straight game Las Vegas allowed 30 or more points, tying a mark held by four other teams, most recently Detroit and Jacksonville in 2020, as the AP's Mark Anderson noted. Asked about coordinator Rob Leonard, Kubiak did not hedge: "Stand behind Rob. Stand behind our defensive staff. Stand behind our players." He also said "I think the world wants someone's head on the platter every time things don't go right."

The ledger argues the other way. Ryan McFadden's numbers for ESPN show a unit that ranked eighth in points allowed at 18 a game through the 3-0 start, then fell to last in points allowed at 35.7 and last in rushing yards allowed at 168.7 since Week 4. That is not bad luck. That is a defense opponents have solved. Kubiak conceding the Raiders have "had some really bad first halves" and need "a four-quarter game" describes the problem without naming a fix.

Opinion, labelled as such: keeping a first-time coordinator through Sunday is defensible, since no firing fixes what you can install in six days. Keeping him through January is a bet on 2027 that the numbers do not fund.

The schedule offers a discount. Seattle ruled out Sam Darnold with a quad injury for Sunday's 4:05 p.m. Eastern kickoff in Las Vegas, and Drew Lock, dealing with elbow and oblique trouble, is expected to start, per NFL.com. Mike Macdonald said of the oblique, "I think it's something that we can manage." The 5-4 Seahawks are still the better team. They just won't have their best quarterback.

Away from the field, Santa Clara police reported 11 arrests and 45 ejections at Levi's Stadium and said violence at large events there "will not be tolerated." Watch the deadline at 1 p.m., then watch whether Leonard's call sheet looks any different against a backup.