The Oakland Raiders travel to Minnesota on Sunday to face the Vikings, looking to improve to 6-4 and maintain their current slim lead in the AFC West. The Raiders have dealt with significant injuries over the last month seeing their starting quarterback, starting running back and number one wide receiver all go down with injuries.
Jason Campbell is likely done for the year, at least as a starting QB now that the Raiders have acquired Carson Palmer. After a tough start, Palmer is starting to settle down and do some great things with this Raiders offense. Palmer has struggled with interceptions, but he has also put up prodigious yards and touchdown totals. This week he faces the Minnesota Vikings who are banged up in their secondary. He is not yet an every week start, but he is definitely worth starting this week.
Darren McFadden went down with a sprained foot almost a month ago and Michael Bush has filled in admirably for him. Bush is one of the best backup running backs in the league and is always an excellent start when McFadden is out. There is some hope that McFadden will be back in week 12, but odds are incredibly slim that he plays this Sunday.
WR Jacoby Ford sprained his foot last week against the San Diego Chargers and rookie Denarius Moore filled in admirably with 123 receiving yards and two touchdowns. With Ford expected to sit out this week, Moore could be in line for a huge day against the Vikings.
One guy that I have reduced from must-start is kicker Sebastian Janikowski. Seabass is likely to play this week, but his hamstring injury has the Raiders questioning his leg beyond 50. Even with the limitation he is still a solid start, but if you are concerned about the leg, benching him is not the craziest thing in the world.
Must Starts: Michael Bush
Situational Starts: Carson Palmer, Denarius Moore, Sebastian Janikowski, Raiders D/ST