Oakland Raiders: Taking A Closer Look At The AFC Playoff Picture
By Kevin Saito
The Oakland Raiders, although a disappointing 4-6, are still in the playoff hunt – here’s a breakdown of the contenders for the two Wild Card spots.
To say these first ten games of Oakland Raiders football have been appalling, frustrating, and altogether disappointing would be an understatement of epic proportions. There really aren’t words that quite accurately convey the depth of the disappointment these first ten games has induced.
After all, this was a team that entered the season with what we all thought were legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. And yet, here we are, ten games in and this Raiders squad is literally scrambling and fighting for their playoff lives.
The margin for error is now zero and if Oakland stumbles and loses even one more game, you may be able to stick a fork in them.
However, if we’re going to look for silver linings in the wreckage and debris of the season thus far, it is this – the Raiders are still very much alive and in the playoff mix. And perhaps, even more incredibly, an AFC West title is still not out of reach for these Raiders.
As of this writing, here’s how the playoff chase in the AFC stands.
AFC North – Pittsburgh Steelers (8-2)
AFC South – Jacksonville Jaguars (7-3)
AFC East – New England Patriots (8-2)
AFC West – Kansas City Chiefs (6-4)
Wild Cards – Tennessee Titans (6-4); Baltimore Ravens (5-5)
Still In The Mix – Buffalo Bills (5-5); Miami Dolphins (4-6); Cincinnati Bengals (4-6); Los Angeles Chargers (5-6); New York Jets (4-6); Oakland Raiders (4-6); Houston Texans (4-6)
As you can see, it’s a bit of a logjam for those two Wild Card slots with nine teams vying for them.
However, the simplest path to the playoffs for the Raiders is to run the table. Win out. Yes, they’ll need to run off six straight wins – with one more Kansas City loss – and the AFC West crown comes back to Oakland.
Beyond that, it gets a little trickier and the Raiders are going to need some help.
Here, we’ll break down the contenders for those two wild card slots and see if we can separate the wheat from the chaff in determining just how realistic Oakland’s chances are.