The Las Vegas Raiders came into their Week 4 matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs as one of the three undefeated teams in the AFC. In the end, Klint Kubiak and company lost, 30-27, but the takeaway was that the Raiders are—for the first time in a very long time—AFC playoff contenders.

Being 4-0 would have been nice. The last time the Raiders did that was in 2002, when they finished 11-5 and made the Super Bowl. Starting 3-0 and playing the best team in the NFL over the last decade to a field goal game is a pretty good consolation prize. With Kubiak at the helm and some solid pieces in place, this Raiders team should have postseason expectations, and here is why.

Klint Kubiak is a real deal offensive guru

Sons of NFL head coaches becoming head coaches have been a mixed bag in league history. You have some rough examples (Mike Shula, Mike Nolan), a lot of pretty average coaches (Wade Phillips, Jim Mora Jr., Brian Schottenheimer, Rex Ryan), and at least one pretty excellent leader in Kyle Shanahan.

Klint, whose dad, Gary Kubiak, worked under Kyle Shanahan's dad for a long time, seems to be trending toward the top of that list, albeit in a small sample size.

Kubiak had a solid resume before coming to Las Vegas, though, including calling the plays for the Seattle Seahawks last season on their way to winning the Super Bowl. He earned his spot as a head coach, and he is showing that he can get the best out of veteran quarterbacks, like Kirk Cousins, just like he did with Sam Darold.

The Raiders offense has plenty of hiles, especially at wide receiver. However, Kubiak is making the best out of what he does have, which is a solid running back group of Ashotn Jeanty and Mike Washington Jr., and an elite tight end duo in Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer.

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Most importantly, he has set up an offense that utilizes Cousins' veteran strengths of reading defenses and getting the ball out quickly, and limiting his athletic deficiencies. This has created the No. 8 scoring offense in the NFL this season. And that Raiders offense would have had a chance to go win the game in Week 4 against the Chiefs if not for a late special teams turnover.

The Raiders have a playoff defense

The other side of the ball might be where the Raiders are most improved this season. Las Vegas got a little bit of luck this offseason when the Baltimore Ravens reneged on a trade for Maxx Crosby, bringing the Pro Bowl pass rusher back to the team.

With its star still in place, the franchise made some shrewd moves in free agency to surround Crosby with talented veterans who know how to play the game and how to win.

That started with a pair of former Georgia teammates at linebacker, Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker. These two LBs lead the Raiders in tackles this season and are making big plays on a weekly basis to keep the team in games. Veteran cornerback Taron Johnson has also made big plays, including a touchdown-saving chase-down of Kenneth Walker III in Week 4. And defensive end Kwity Paye already has 2.0 sacks this season, becoming a nice partner for Crosby on the edge.

General manager John Spytek also drafted well back in April, bringing in safety Treydan Stukes and CB Hesekiah Masses, who have quickly become starters in the defensive backfield. And as fourth-round corner Jermod McCoy continues to work his way back from injury, that DB depth should become even deeper.