In Part I of our Las Vegas Raiders fan survey, we covered how nearly 1,000 Raiders fans responded to our survey on topics regarding the team’s latest rebuild, including their confidence in head coach Klint Kubiak and a potential Maxx Crosby trade.

For Part II, we’ll focus on questions regarding the team’s short-term outlook, particularly at quarterback, and for their thoughts on the season ahead.

Many have bought into the hype around the new faces of the franchise. But, for a fanbase that’s been let down time and time again, they’re taking a measured approach.

General manager John Spytek and Kubiak have said they prefer not to play a rookie quarterback right away, with Cousins taking all the first-team reps during offseason team activities. All signs point to the veteran being the Week 1 starter, and this survey shows Raiders fans overwhelmingly support that.

It’s somewhat surprising to see such overwhelming support for Cousins. But for a fanbase that’s seen several quarterback situations bungled by the franchise, it’s understandable why so many want a cautious approach with Mendoza.

While fans’ predominantly have confidence in Cousins as a starter, nearly half responded with a neutral to concerned outlook on him.

Much of that apprehension is likely rooted in his recent output. Cousins led the league in interceptions in 2024 (16), which helped relegate him to backup status for the Atlanta Falcons last season. But the Raiders liked what they saw during the eight games he started for an injured Michael Penix Jr., enough to hand the 37-year-old a guaranteed contract.

Las Vegas believes pairing Cousins with Kubiak, for whom he had his best years in Minnesota, will lead to success. Cousins has also stated that he feels healthier than in the past two years, during which he still was recovering from a torn Achilles. But many respondents still appear unmoved.

The Raiders have taken a deliberate approach with Mendoza’s progression this offseason, working him out with fellow rookies and the third team. Our survey shows that fans are fine with such restraint continuing far into the season — and even beyond 2026.

Over two thirds of respondents don’t want to see Mendoza make his first start until after Week 6 of the regular season. And nearly a quarter don’t want him to start at all as a rookie. Only around 10 percent want Mendoza to lead the team at some point in the first six games, signaling that you feel patience is paramount for his success.

Opinions will likely shift if Cousins struggles to begin the year. But Raiders assistant head coach Mike McCoy said they have a “detailed plan” as to when they’ll insert Mendoza, and the most important thing is sticking to that plan. It’s uncertain when the targeted date for his first start is, but the team is determined to have no external factors influence their process.

The leading answer regarding O’Connell might have been to keep him, but the majority of fans believe in trading the quarterback in the coming months.

There are several teams that could still be looking for quarterback help as training camp opens. And possible injuries around the league could increase that number. Given O’Connell’s experience as a starter and his status as the third quarterback on the roster, he’d be among the most sought after and expendable signal callers on the trade market. That’s why many of you want him shipped off before Week 1.

As we’ve written, there are also positives to keeping O’Connell despite the fact that he’s entering the final year of his contract. If Cousins struggles, he gives Las Vegas another option rather than forcing Mendoza into action early.

As we covered in Part I of this survey, Raiders fans believe the offensive line is in better shape than it was last season, when it was one of the league’s worst units. But results here show the position is still a major concern. The addition of Tyler Linderbaum and experienced offensive line coach Rick Dennison should help the group improve, but you were hoping for more reinforcements up front.

Yet, responses show fans are more worried about weapons than protection. The Raiders are without a No. 1 wide receiver after dealing Jakobi Meyers at last year’s trade deadline, and their biggest addition at the position was Jalen Nailor. The Raiders view the lack of a standout as good for competition, but fans are troubled by the lack of proven pass catchers.

A potential addition to the receiver room was among the closest votes of the survey. Over half of you said keep it as is, but the fanbase is clearly conflicted about whether more help is necessary.

There are several big-name wideouts still available in free agency, and many have experience and success in a Kubiak-style offense: Stefon Diggs, Tyreek Hill and Deebo Samuel among them. Each would instantly become the most established receiver on the Raiders’ roster.

But adding another wideout would take away opportunities from the current core, and Spytek believes that the group’s lack of historical production is due to a lack of chances rather than a lack of talent. While slim, the majority of you want to see them get a fair shot.

Raiders fans are most confident in their tight ends — why wouldn’t they be? All-Pro Brock Bowers was hindered by injuries last season but has focused on improving his durability this summer, setting himself up for a big year ahead. Michael Mayer is also one of the more talented backups in the league and could have his most productive season yet given Kubiak’s fondness for heavy personnel.

The fanbase is also confident in the running backs, and seem to like the quarterback room after years of instability. Offensive line and receiver might cause concern, but at least there’s confidence with the rest of the offense.

Bowers broke the NFL rookie receiving yards record for a tight end in 2024, besting a mark set over a half century prior by Mike Ditka. Five missed games in Year 2 prevented him from improving on that mark, but the vast majority of you believe he will top it in 2026.

Bowers should get every chance to be a featured piece of Kubiak’s offense. The coach has a knack for getting tight ends the ball, and he’s determined to get the most out of his “football robot from heaven.” Bowers also had to compete with Davante Adams and Meyers for balls during parts of his rookie year. But with the aforementioned limitations at wide receiver, he will be the unquestioned focal point of the passing game this season. Bowers’ workload could have him setting more than just personal bests this year, as long as his health persists.

There’s understandable excitement for McCoy, a first-round talent who fell to the fourth round because of concerns over his knee. More than half of respondents want him starting alongside Stokes.

Kubiak said he expects McCoy to compete and get plenty of reps during training camp after the team’s management plan for his left knee limited him in the offseason program. But he also called McCoy “a moving target,” meaning their plan for his usage can and will change. That gives Porter a leg up on the CB2 job, and Spytek expressed satisfaction with his play to end 2025.

If McCoy is healthy enough to participate in an actual position battle, fans have faith he can beat out Porter. But if he isn’t, nearly 40 percent of you believe the second-year man can handle the job as well.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents want the undrafted rookie dubbed “The Tokyo Toe” to beat out the veteran Gay in camp. Gay has the leg up right now, as he took first team reps during OTAs and has had success for special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis before. But it seems like Matsuzawa will get a fair shake for the job, as DeCamillis said “it should be a hell of a competition.”

There were also plenty of write-in responses for Daniel Carlson, the franchise’s kicker of the last eight seasons who was not re-signed this offseason. Carlson remains a free agent, and fans could be clamoring for the one-time All-Pro if neither Gay nor Matsuzawa are up to snuff.

Optimism surrounding the Raiders has grown this offseason, but fans still have realistic goals for 2026.

More than 90 percent of respondents believe the team will have a losing record this season, but the majority of fans just see winning more games than 2025’s total (three) as a success. Only two people surveyed believe that won’t happen.

Tempering expectations is smart given the Raiders’ schedule. While still playing a last place slate, the team plays nine games against 2025 playoff teams. Winning any of those matchups could be a trajectory-altering victory for the franchise.

The team’s over/under is currently at 5.5 wins, only better than the Dolphins and Cardinals (and tied with a few other teams). To me, a successful Raiders campaign would be beating most, if not all of their opponents in that range, as well as managing a win or two within the division.

The majority of Raiders fans surveyed predict another losing season ahead, but they don’t expect mediocrity to continue for long. Almost every respondent believes that Las Vegas will make the playoffs at some point in the next three seasons.

That will be a difficult task in the AFC West, but the fanbase has faith in at least the early stage of this rebuild. That sentiment would only increase with improved results in 2026.

This article has been updated after Arsenal completed the €40m signing of Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge.

Christos Tzolis was one of European football’s best attackers last season — in terms of numbers.

The 24-year-old Club Brugge forward recorded 40 goal contributions — 17 goals, 23 assists — in 36 appearances in the Belgian Pro League. Only Harry Kane (41, including 36 goals) of Bayern Munich managed more than that among the players in Europe’s top five domestic leagues.

Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard (who left this week for Besiktas), who largely played on Tzolis’ preferred left flank for the eventual Premier League winners in 2025-26, managed a combined 19 goals and 17 assists while making 53 and 50 appearances in all competitions.

Output aside, Tzolis has the key ‘macro’ attributes that have been crucial to Mikel Arteta’s side developing into England’s champions. But could he replicate them in the more demanding Premier League?

Tzolis has evolved since a two-season spell at Norwich City, during which he scored three goals in 30 matches (but none in 14 in the Premier League). Over the past three years — one with Fortuna Dusseldorf in Germany’s second tier, then two in Bruges — he has enjoyed the responsibility of being his team’s go-to man in attack.

At Fortuna, many of Tzolis’ 24 goals came from attacking crosses at the far post. That hinted at a player who bided his time and knew exactly when, and which areas, to attack.

By the end of his 37-match stint in Dusseldorf, his overall game had improved too. The sequence below against Kaiserslautern, a few months before his summer 2024 move to Belgium, was a precursor to the initiative and bustling energy he possesses.

Tzolis starts the move in his own half and crowns it after exchanging multiple passes and easing his way past a tackle in a matter of seconds.

The 34-time Greece international (nine goals) has played in a wider position for Brugge.

He still has the pace to accelerate beyond defenders but the bigger improvement has been in his tight-window passing. When that combines with his off-the-ball running, we get moments like the one below, against Gent in May.

Tzolis starts the move from left-back and again, within seconds, forces the goalkeeper into an excellent save.

The unpredictability Tzolis brings with his movement is complemented by his shooting.

He keeps both his backlift before striking and follow-through after at a low height, and still has the strength to generate driven shots that are hard for goalkeepers to judge.

His goal against Atalanta in the Champions League last September is an example. As seen below, Tzolis’ right boot is only inches off the ground before he hits the ball…

… and gets only a foot or so clear of the turf after he lets fly.

Many of Tzolis’ goals end with that satisfying sound pitchside microphones capture when the ball is thumped into the back of the net.

The technique is useful when he wants to fizz in low shots, too. In our next clip, against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League knockout phase in February, he strikes the ball across Jan Oblak to score an 89th-minute first-leg equaliser.

This finish is an example of his two-footedness, enabling him to play across the forward line, and the immaculate timing of his runs.

At Club Brugge, Tzolis has played with athletic left-backs who can overlap and underlap. Maxim De Cuyper, now at Brighton & Hove Albion, had that role in 2024-25, then Joaquin Seys followed suit last season.

This helped Tzolis hurt opposing full-backs in different ways.

Below against Gent, Seys shifts infield and frees up Tzolis to run on the overlap. He takes his man on, beats him on the outside, then cuts back inside and sets up Carlos Forbs.

In this next example, against the same opponents the previous season, De Cuyper stays wide and Tzolis runs in behind on the inside to assist Romeo Vermant.

Tzolis is a threat in transition and to retreating or disorganised defences. While he is at his best when linking up with his full-backs or left-sided midfielders, he can beat players on his own, as in the first of two examples above.

His set-piece delivery is strong too, and he can create chances with inswingers and outswingers. Club Brugge scored from the second phase of his corners in both those February matches against Atletico.

Rounding out Tzolis’ skill set is his defensive awareness.

Club Brugge’s setup without the ball often sees them pressing with two up top. Tzolis routinely joined the press late and hassled the player in possession from his blindside. The requirement has been to stay engaged rather than be particularly aggressive.

Against the higher quality teams domestically and in Europe, Tzolis has dropped into the back line alongside his left-back to help defend wide areas and track opposition runs.

If he gets caught out, Tzolis can rely on his speed to recover ground, as he does below against Mechelen.

That pace is useful in transition defending, too. Against Anderlecht in the example below, Tzolis is some distance behind the ball initially…

…but catches up to slide in and win the ball cleanly.

That pace and awareness, after time on the training ground, could be valuable in a front-footed setup too.

Pace, physicality, versatility and defensive awareness have been the foundations of Arsenal’s recent success under Arteta. Tzolis checks all those boxes.

The big question is how well his qualities will translate to the Premier League after making little impact in his first crack at English football, albeit that was with a relegation-bound Norwich side and mostly when he was still a teenager.

Much of what Tzolis has accomplished has come with space in front of him. Martinelli similarly thrived when he had areas of the pitch he could occupy and scored 15 Premier League goals in the 2022-23 season. He has struggled as spaces have become congested, and the football has become more stop-start.

Tzolis’ qualities, like those of Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres, suggest he will not be out of place back in the Premier League. But as with the Sweden striker, who struggled at times last season but ended with 21 goals across competitions, patience would be key with the Greek if Arsenal complete the deal.