Monday, December 5, 2011

Week 13: Bump in the Road


What can you say about the Week 13 loss to the Miami Dolphins other than that it is starting to look like the beginning of the end for the Oakland Raiders and their playoff hopes.

All you can say is that this is by far the most crucial moment for the Oakland Raiders, whom are currently tied for first in the AFC West with Tim Tebow and the surging Denver Broncos. However, the question to ask is will the Raiders actually embrace these upcoming moments for the better or for worse? Nervous Raider fans will have to wait and see when we head to Lambeau Field and play against the 12-0 Green Bay Packers. We can automatically say that this would be a loss, especially with how locked in Aaron Rodgers has been this whole season. But I do feel that there could be a possibility that Oakland can pull out one of the biggest upset wins in NFL history.

Let's list how the Raiders will lose this game and how the Raiders could potentially win (Even if you think that there is no chance).

Reasons Why Raiders Will Lose:
1. Aaron Rodgers: Best QB in the league hands down. Probably has the best receiving core in the NFL.
2. Clay Matthews/Charles Woodson: Two of the best players in their respective roles in the NFL, if you can't outplay them then good luck throwing a pass or running the ball.
3. Lambeau Field: Extremely difficult to play in this stadium, especially in the cold. Has one of the best fan bases in the NFL. Will be hard to focus in this stadium with the noise and cold being the main factors.

Reason Why the Raiders Win:
1. NO PENALTIES: I know it is nearly impossible for the Raiders to not get penalties in a game, but the Green Bay Packers are definitely not the team to commit these on. Not only does it give the Packers D all of the momentum, but it will pump up the fans and ultimately allow Rodgers to get back on the field to slice the Oakland secondary up.
2. Back Against the Wall: If Oakland can realize the situation they have put themselves in and know that they could potentially get ousted out of 1st place. That should be enough for them to play harder than they have ever played before. Their playoff hopes depend on this game more than any other game they have played this season.
3. This is the most important key if the Raiders want to win this game. Create Turnovers!!! Obviously no other team have been able to do this to the Packers offense, but the Raiders do a good job of creating turnovers and the way to do that is if Oakland's front 7 get to Rodgers and make him hurry on his passes. Bottom line is turnovers change the game and momentum.

Overall, this will be the toughest and most important game that the Raiders will play in over a decade since Super Bowl XXXVII which I do not want to talk about. I wish I could say the only thing that could ruin the Oakland's chances for winning this game is themselves, but it is not AT ALL. When you are playing against a man named Aaron Rodgers who is having one of the next years a QB could have...that looks like the main reason why the Raiders will lose this game. We will see.


(Picture from Joe Rimkus Jr. / Staff Photo | Miami Herald)