The Oakland Raiders 2011 NFL season has been a bit of a roller-coaster ride and it is far from settling down as they head into Week 14 of the 2011 NFL season. The Raiders have to travel to Green Bay to face the undefeated Packers after dropping into a first place tie with the Denver Broncos. While teams do not generally do a lot of scoreboard watching, the Raiders are likely to find themselves in a position where they will be hoping and praying for some other teams losing this weekend.
The AFC West has a chance of turning into an ugly scrum as the Chiefs and Chargers both climbed back to within two games of the Raiders and Broncos. The Raiders get Green Bay this week, Detroit at home next week and then wrap up the season at Kansas City and home against San Diego. The Raiders and Chiefs are the only AFC West teams with two divisional games remaining, so this thing could still get crazier.
Oakland Raiders @ Green Bay Packers: I'd love to pick the Raiders, but it is too hard to see the upset. Anything is possible, particularly if they can control the clock with Michael Bush, but it will take a minor miracle to win this one. PICK: Packers
Chicago Bears @ Denver Broncos: On the other side of things, the Broncos get the Bears in the midst of significant struggles having lost Jay Cutler and now without Matt Forte for a couple weeks. Denver is the pick, but given how backwards things have been with them, I honestly would not be surprised to see them lose this one. Nonetheless, there is no picking against Tim Tebow quite yet. PICK: Broncos
Houston Texans @ Cincinnati Bengals: The Raiders are currently in a four-way tie with the Bengals, Titans and Jets for the second wildcard spot. Right now the Bengals hold the tiebreaker due to better conference record. This is an intriguing game for the Bengals, who will host a Texans team dealing with QB issues. The Bengals run defense is strong enough that they could put T.J. Yates into a position where he has to win this game for Houston. I'm not feeling that. PICK: Bengals
New Orleans Saints @ Tennessee Titans: The Titans are also tied with the Raiders, Bengals and Jets. The Titans are playing some really solid football lately when facing some quality opponents. The Saints are playing some explosive football, but they sometimes struggle on the road. I think the Titans could score the big upset. PICK: Titans
Kansas City Chiefs @ NY Jets: The Chiefs did score a big win over Chicago after narrowly losing to the Steelers, but they are a struggling team, particularly with Kyle Orton dealing with a banged up finger. This team can barely get out of its own way this season. PICK: Jets
Buffalo Bills @ San Diego Chargers: Are the Chargers starting their patented December run? Sure, why not. PICK: Chargers