AFC WEST STANDINGS

Currently the AFC WEST is in quite a predicament, having 3 teams tied at 4-4 (Oakland, Kansas City, San Diego) But also having the 4th team in the league (Denver) only 1 game behind at 3-5. Here are my thoughts on the remaining schedule of the AFC WEST teams and how i think they will do.

 Oakland Raiders- Of course i start with the Oakland Raiders... the raiders have had a rough time the last couple of weeks after QB Jason Campbell went down with injury, and also RB Darren McFadden going down with a foot injury against Kansas City. The offense looked better after the bye week with QB Carson Palmer at the helm, but his 3 INTs sure didn't help anything, and the defense looked horrible against the run. Which is odd cause they have usually been pretty decent against the run. Here is Oakland's remaining schedule and how i see them faring.
          Nov. 10th @San Diego... i don't see this being too pretty of a picture for Oakland. Ryan Mathews should be back and Philip Rivers has torched Oakland with his arms before and knows how to beat them. With Darren McFadden probably out for this game i see a loss coming unless Rivers spends all night on his back. (unlikely)  LOSS 35-17
          Nov. 20th @Minnesota ... This game i see being very winnable even on the road. Minnesota has given up a lot of plays on defense and has choked in the 2nd half of games. Unfortunately for Oakland Adrian Peterson is on this team and having a good year again. He is going to be more of a threat to torch the Raiders than QB Christian Ponder. (even though Ponder has done fairly well for himself since he took over the starting job) I do see McFadden back this game and Oakland winning this one by a close score. WIN 24-21
          Nov. 27th Chicago... Oh boy... Even though this game is at home the odds are that the Bears defense is going to shut down anything Oakland can throw at them. And Matt Forte has been a beast all year. Look for Chicago to come to town and put the beat down. LOSS 31-10
          Dec. 4th @Miami... The Miami Dolphins have struggled badly this year to find an identity. Losing QB Chad Henne hurt them and RB Reggie Bush has had flashes of greatness but is badly inconsistent. A December game is Miami is going to be a nice treat for the Raiders. Winning this one. WIN 28-14
          Dec. 11th @Green Bay... Wow this has to be one of the worst time to play the Green Bay Packers, in Green Bay in December... Aaron Rodgers is lights out and their defense is stout. Not good for Oakland. LOSS 35-3
          Dec. 18th Detroit... The Detroit Lions have been a very good team this year on both sides of the ball. I don't see anybody being able to cover Megatron or seeing anybody being able to beat their defense. I do think Oakland will be able to run the ball with McFadden (check out SF's Gore) but it won't be enough. LOSS 24-14
          Dec. 24th @Kansas City.. The last time these two teams played Kansas City put the beat down on a badly wounded Raiders team, and i mean it was ugly. This time around i see the odds being more in Oakland's favor. (pending team health of course) With a healthy team and a starting QB that will have more of his game legs under him i see Oakland winning this one in KC but only by 7. WIN 21-14
          Jan 1st San Diego... This game could have very heavy playoff implications for both teams. The only reason i even see Oakland winning this game is if the home crowd comes loud and proud and the team is healthy. And i do see a win here. WIN 27-24

Summary.... The way i see it Oakland is currently 4-4 with some rough games ahead and some very winnable games ahead. Team Health is critical in the next few weeks/months. I predict an 8-8 finish this season. If i'm wrong then so be it. As far as playoffs go, i'm going to break down the remaining 3 teams in the division and we will see from there how it will all come together. Here's hoping for better than 8-8!