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The Oakland Raiders have struggled to conquer the beast known as the Miami Dolphins. Despite the fact that the Dolphins have been a team in rebuilding mode for years on end, the Raiders seem to always make the Dolphins look like a power house. The past two seasons, the Dolphins have destroyed the Raiders, 34-14 in 2011 and 33-17 in 2010. The two teams did not play in 2009, but the Raiders lost to the Dolphins in 2008 and you have to go back to 2007 to find the last win for the Raiders against the fins.
After Miami themselves got destroyed in week one, losing 30-10 to the Houston Texans, the Raiders are hoping that their week two opponent is one they can put in the win column. But that was something the Raiders wanted to think the past two seasons as well. For whatever the reason, the Dolphins seem to have the Raiders' number. And what is worse, the Raiders do not have the luxury of playing at home. Instead, they will have to travel to the other side of the country for the game, something that the Raiders have not faired well doing.
After the Raiders struggled in their week one game against the San Diego Chargers, getting a win against the lackluster Dolphins has become all that much more important. If the Raiders want to have any chance of making the post season, they cannot lose to teams like the Dolphins anymore. The Dolphins had a horrific week one and are a long way away from being a competitive team. The Raiders have an opportunity to bounce back from a bad loss against a struggling team. If they do not take advantage of that, it could be a bad sign for the rest of the season.