Struggling Raiders Host Broncos On Thursday Night Football: Game Preview

Sep 30, 2012; Denver, CO, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Carson Palmer (3) is pressured by Denver Broncos defensive end Elvis Dumervil (92) at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos defeated the Raiders 37-6. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

Tonight the Oakland Raiders will host the Denver Broncos and hope for the game to be much closer than the last time they played.

In Week 4, the Raiders were blown out in Denver 37-6. It was an embarrassing loss and one that they tried to move past.

The Raiders are 2-4 at home on this dreadful 2012 season, and it won’t get any easier tonight.

The Denver Broncos are 4-2 on the road and are heavy Super Bowl contenders. It’s all because of that one guy they signed in the offseason…oh yeah, 4-time NFL MVP Peyton Manning.

Manning brings to the Broncos something that they haven’t seen in years, and it’s going to be extremely tough for the Raiders to stop him. He’s got talented players to throw to, including Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker. Heck, he even has his old teammate Jacob Tamme back with him at tight end.

The Raiders allow an NFL-worst 31.3 PPG and also allow 387 yards of offense per game. It’s sad to watch this team play defense, unless you’re a fan of the opposing team.

They can never contain their opponent on that big drive, or that big third-down, and it really kills them.

Some good news for the Raiders though, is that star running back Darren McFadden is expected to be back in the starting line-up tonight.

During these past four games without McFadden, the Raiders are 0-4. He suffered a high ankle sprain in their loss to Tampa Bay. McFadden practiced fully on Wednesday, and all signs indicate that he will give it a go on the national stage.

Carson Palmer will warmly welcome McFadden back, as Palmer has had to take total control of this offense without his productive running back available. Too much pressure has been put on Palmer and it has caused him to try and play hero towards the end of games, which we all know is something that he can’t do on a consistent basis.

In other news, defensive end Richard Seymour will miss his fifth straight game due to a lingering hamstring injury.

Tune in to NFL Network tonight at around 5:20 PT to see the Raiders and Broncos face-off in Oakland. It probably won’t be a close game, but hey, you never know what will happen in the NFL…