AFC West standings update, Week 9: Raiders lurking after two wins

–Jacksonville Jaguars and the struggling Kansas City Chiefs – the Oakland Raiders have quietly entered the thick of the AFC West race. Dennis Allen's 3-4 team is right with second-place San Diego, the season-opening loss to the Chargers effectively acting as the tie-breaker.

The Denver Broncos lead the division with a 4-3 record and have gone 2-0 in critical division games against Oakland and San Diego. San Diego has a 2-1 division record, while the Raiders sit at 1-2 in the AFC West.

The Raiders have three division games left on the 2012 schedule, one each against the three AFC West teams.

As the Chargers have wilted in the past three weeks, the Raiders have surged. San Diego has three losses in a row, the last being a disappointing 7-6 defeat at the hands of the Cleveland Browns.

The Chiefs are far from the discussion with a 1-6 record through seven games.