5 reasons Oakland Raiders beat Baltimore Ravens
By John Buhler
The Oakland Raiders will host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday afternoon in Week 5. Here are five reasons it will be Oakland that moves 3-2 with a Week 5 win.
In what should be one of the tighter games of the Week 5 slate, the Oakland Raiders (2-2) will host the Baltimore Ravens (2-2) on Sunday afternoon at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. After starting the year out at 2-0, both teams have crashed back to .500 in the last two weeks.
Both teams have struggled with consistency on offense. Not wanting to drop three games in a row, this one feels like a must-win for both teams. Beginning the year at 2-3 shouldn’t have either team feeling confident about their playoff chances in the AFC.
Since Oakland is the home team in this game, they are the favorite over the Ravens. This game would essentially be a pick ’em if it were being played on a neutral site. It may not be the prettiest game to watch, as it will be Joe Flacco versus EJ Manuel at quarterback in this one.
That being said, one of these teams will get back to their winning ways and be 3-2 heading into the middle of October. Here are five reasons that team will end up being the Raiders, edging out the visiting Ravens in a tight ball game in Oakland.
The Raiders have the better offensive weapons
Though neither offense has really gone off in recent weeks, Oakland does have the better skill position players in this game. Of course, that could be limited by inconsistent quarterback play from Manuel, but you have to like what he is working with more than what Flacco has at his disposal.
Manuel has four, maybe even five wide receivers he can sling the pigskin to. Amari Cooper has had his issues with drops, but we have to believe that he’ll eventually snap out of it, possibly on Sunday. Michael Crabtree was playing very well before getting hurt in Week 3 versus the Washington Redskins. Cordarrelle Patterson, Seth Roberts and Johnny Holton all have touchdowns this season.
Though the running game has to improve, Oakland has the biggest threat to break out a big, punishing run in Marshawn Lynch. His production has diminished in the last two weeks, but playing in front of the hometown Oakland crowd could change things. Maybe Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington can find pay dirt as well in this game.
Lastly, the Raiders now have a tight end they can trust in newcomer Jared Cook. He could potentially go off in this game. If he doesn’t, maybe we see either Lee Smith or Clive Walford get more looks in the Raiders passing game?