Raiders in a “Must-Win” Position Against the Patriots This Week

[PatsFans.com Article]

Raiders in a “Must-Win” Position Against the Patriots This Week

Steve Balestrieri

That is why this upcoming game for them is a must-win. And they’re going to need their defense to play much better than it has so far.

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[PatsDeb]

Oy. I don't like people playing "must win" games against us! I am looking forward to the game, though. I am excited to see if the Pats can keep building on the great all-3-phases performance they put on last week in Denver. The Denver game felt like a page turner after mucking around in close games for much of the early season.

 

[BobDigital]

I find it is interesting. Most teams that play must win games against the Patriots seem to not do the things they need to do to win.

Take these Raiders. They are a worse team than the Patriots and need to win this one. What should they do then?

Opening kickoff... onside side. Try to catch the Pats by surprise.
Go for 4th down plays even early on.
Settling for FGs means you lose.
Toss a bunch of deep bombs down the field and jump balls. See if you get a catch or a PI.

This is what I would do if I was the Raiders coach. If I play straight up i probably lose anyway so may as well roll the dice. They won't though cause most teams never do.

 

[SammyBlueCat]

Raiders in a “Can't-Win” Position Against the Patriots This Week

 

[IllegalContact]

the pats feast on must win teams

 

[patsfaninpa]

Must win? The second wild-card in AFC will likely be 8-8. 6-1 may not be enough to get them in? AFC stinks.

 

[Bruins29]

I dont know...I am a little scared of this punter.

 

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

“Must-Win” means absolutely nothing at this level of competition. All of these guys are a couple of poor personal performances away from a multi-million dollar loss.

 

[PrairiePat]

... just like Denver was this past week? How'd that turn out?

 

[dannydyn]

Denver was also in a 'must win' situation against us last week..... we ended up wiping the floor with their asses.

 

[TommyD4207]

Jack Del Rio 0-6 all-time (including playoffs) against Bill Belichick and the Patriots.

 

[archstanton543]

Denver was also in a 'must win' situation against us last week..... we ended up wiping the floor with their asses.

True...but the Pats were coming off their bye. This week, the Pats are playing a team coming off of theirs and it's a team the Pats don't play that often.

Now, I'm not saying the Pats are going to lose. They'll win this Sunday but it won't be in the fashion that they did in Denver. Plus, Mexico City is at a higher elevation and has way more air pollution.

 

[luuked]

True...but the Pats were coming off their bye. This week, the Pats are playing a team coming off of theirs and it's a team the Pats don't play that often.

Now, I'm not saying the Pats are going to lose. They'll win this Sunday but it won't be in the fashion that they did in Denver. Plus, Mexico City is at a higher elevation and has way more air pollution.

I dont get why people keep bringing up the air pollution. It is not like you need to run around with a hazmat suit and a gas mask there everyday. People actually live there their entire life while the team will only be there for less than 24h. You can be sure that they will bring their entire operation including a cooking staff so none of the problematic things should really affect the team.

 

[archstanton543]

People actually live there their entire life while the team will only be there for less than 24h.

Right. People still live in China and their air quality sucks. People still live in LA and their air quality sucks. Etc, etc, etc...

 

[qbno12]

It's a must win game for teams in the NFL every time they play Pats. It's not a surprise to me.

Falcons - must win because they needed to get back on track
Jets - must win because they suck at tanking
Broncos - must win because their season is on the line and it pretty much ended last sunday
Oakland - must win because they were "contenders" before the season started

In fact, I would say every game we play is must win for us to secure HFA.

 

[dannydyn]

True...but the Pats were coming off their bye. This week, the Pats are playing a team coming off of theirs and it's a team the Pats don't play that often.

Now, I'm not saying the Pats are going to lose. They'll win this Sunday but it won't be in the fashion that they did in Denver. Plus, Mexico City is at a higher elevation and has way more air pollution.

1. A bye is not always an advantage. It introduces rust... Before the Denver game, I was actually not thrilled about the fact we'll be playing Denver out of all teams, after a bye. I was of course pleasantly surprised by the performance, but speaking based on history, the Pats for example, do not always look good coming out of a bye.

2. As for the higher elevation, if anything, the Pats, having spent and trained almost a week and a half at high elevation, would make them more 'fit' for the game. Oakland will be travelling to Mexico City straight from sea level. Advantage = Patriots.

 

[maineman209]

Right. People still live in China and their air quality sucks. People still live in LA and their air quality sucks. Etc, etc, etc...

Actually, the air-quality in LA is generally fairly decent. However, the attitude is often pretty toxic.

 

[maineman209]

Getting the #6 seed becomes more difficult if OAK loses to the Pats, but not impossible. I don't see any of the other 6-loss teams making a late charge, and I think BUF and MIA both end up 7-9. So, 9-7 or even 8-8 might get the Raiders in.

Their biggest threat is BAL. Since the Ravens won their head-to-head matchup in wk-4, OAK needs to finish one game ahead. But the Ravens could easily lose three of their next four: @GBY, HOU, DET, @PIT. The Raiders' worst stretch after this is @KCY, DAL, @PHL in weeks 14, 15, 16.

 

[Froob]

Well that Bills game they blew was a real must win...