Oakland Raiders Vs. Jets Preview: Keys to the Game

Oct 25, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper (89) catches a pass while defended by San Diego Chargers defensive back Jimmy Wilson (27) during the second quarter at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Last week the Raiders got their first divisional win of the season in a 37-29 win over the Chargers that was not anywhere near as close as the final score indicated. The Raiders led 37-6 at the end of the 3rd quarter before going on autopilot and allowing Philip Rivers to pad his stats and close the score in garbage time, with the final touchdown coming with only 6 seconds on the clock.

With the win, the Raiders have now evened their record at 3-3, and have a realistic chance at taking an AFC Wild Card berth if they can have good success over the next six games on the schedule. This week, the Raiders are at home hosting the 4-2 New York Jets, who many believe have outplayed their talent and are not as good as their winning record.

But the Jets are in actuality a tough football team who runs the ball extremely well and plays defense extremely well, a combination that more often than not wins ballgames. The Jets are one of the other strong contenders for an AFC Wild Card spot, so this game is a big opportunity for the Raiders to get ahead in the standings and also gain confidence going forward into a slate of much less challenging matchups.

Here are five keys to this week’s game to help the Raiders keep the momentum going:

Next: Keys to the Game: Open up the Playbook