Week 4: Time is Now For Oakland

Here comes week 4 of the season. Teams now have a good idea of the identity of their teams and the things that need to change for the rest of the season. Currently in the AFC West the Chiefs are in first at an impressive 3-0 followed by the Broncos, Chargers, and Raiders at 1-2.

In my opinion, this is the part of the schedule for Oakland that will define their season. It will not be an easy task for the Raiders. The next three games will make or break the Raiders, and Tom Cable's job likely hangs in the balance. The Raiders have home games against the Texans and Chargers, followed by a "road" game against the 49ers, so at least travel will not be a factor.

Houston is first up this weekend and it will be a challenging game for the Raiders. The bad news is that the Texans are looking really strong so far and many are picking them to reach the playoffs. After a great start to the season, Houston fell off a bit last week and were pretty thoroughly dominated by the disappointing Cowboys. However, they have the best run game and an explosive offense. The Raiders have had to go up against elite backs in every game this season, and it won't be any easier against the Texans. The run d needs to come up big again. Some good news is that Andre Johnson is nursing a hurt ankle and should be no problem for Asomugha to blanket all game. What worries me is Matt Schaub picking on Stanford Routte. He will be a key player if Oakland is to win this game. As far as the offense, they have looked a lot better with Gradkowski under center but they MUST put the ball in the endzone. The Raiders are tied for most red zone appearances in the league (with the Broncos and Chargers oddly enough) but are 30th in efficiency. They need to look for Zach Miller in the red zone this week. Also, they need to try and stick with the run as long as possible. They were running the ball great in the 1st half of the game last week but then went away from it for some reason. Run DMC has been a huge bright spot so far and as long as he has the hot hand, keep giving him the ball. Texans should be favored in this game, but Oakland has a good shot at an upset. They definitely benefit getting to play at home for this matchup.

Next up will be the Chargers at home. The Chargers have started off slow again but it will not matter when they come to Oakland. The Raiders are looking to finally snap the 6 year long losing streak to San Diego, and rivalry games are usually close no matter who the superior team may be. This one should be no different.

Finally, the Raiders must travel across the Bay to play San Francisco. Though the 49ers have started 0-3, I'm not sure many expect that to last. They have a nasty defense and some explosive weapons on offense. Tis one will be for bragging rights for the Bay Area and both teams will come to play.

I believe the Raiders must go 2-1 over these 3 games to have a shot at the playoffs. With all the offseason hype, Al Davis wont be patient with losing and if after these 3 games the Raiders record is 2-4 or 1-5, Tom Cable will assuredly be fired and Oakland will likely have another poor season. However, 2 wins, or dare I say 3, over this stretch will give the Raiders a ton of momentum and I will be bold enough to say they will finish the year above .500. So eliminate the penalties and get the ball in the end zone. Here we go Oakland, the time is NOW!