5 Reasons the Oakland Raiders Can Win the AFC West

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May 13, 2016; Alameda, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders running back DeAndre Washington (33) during rookie minicamp at the Raiders practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

5. The Addition of DeAndre Washington

One of the biggest weaknesses for the Raiders last season was the inability to develop a complimentary back to spell Latavius Murray. It was so bad that Derek Carr sat pretty at 2nd on the team in rushing. Washington, who was a 5th round pick in the draft, will help ease the running burden on Murray, while also adding a dimension to the Raiders offense with his ability to catch passes out of the backfield that Murray doesn’t really bring.

As games wore on last season, the Raiders would abandon the run . Oakland’s play calling became predictable, and that often times set Carr up to fail in crunch time. This is the biggest reason the Raiders had the worst point differential in the 4th quarter in the NFL last season (-60, per ESPN). The addition of a spell back will allow the Raiders to continuously run throughout the four quarters, taking pressure off Carr and the air attack late in games.

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