5 reasons Oakland Raiders will beat Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6
By John Buhler
The Oakland Raiders will play the division rival Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday afternoon in Week 6. Here are five reasons the Raiders will be victorious.
Week 6 has arrived and the Oakland Raiders have a huge game in the division on Sunday afternoon. They will be hosting their rival in the Los Angeles Chargers. Both teams find themselves below .500 through the first five weeks and are in need of a win to stay alive in the AFC West race.
Oakland has dropped three games in a row after a 2-0 start to the year. Offensive inconsistencies and defensive ineptitude has largely sank the Raiders’ ship in the early part of the season. Call it growing pains, call it what you want, the Raiders need to play better to have any shot of making the AFC playoffs.
2017 has not been a kind first year in Los Angeles for the Chargers. They are playing in a soccer stadium that is almost all fans of the other team. Again, the Chargers are playing essentially 16 road games. This team struggles to close out games and continues to be one of the most dysfunctional franchises in the NFL.
That being said, this should be one of the better games of the weekend, as both teams are evenly matched. There is a ton on the line in this game, so we should expect a highly competitive ball game for 60 minutes. Here are five reasons it will be the Raiders that end up with the Week 6 victory.
Raiders have a huge advantage along the offensive line
It is perhaps the greatest discrepancy between these two AFC West rivals. The Raiders have one of the best offensive lines in all of football and the Chargers do not, plain and simple. Center Rodney Hudson has had the best season so far of the Oakland front-five, but left tackle Donald Penn and left guard Kelechi Osemele have been good as well.
Newcomer right tackle Marshall Newhouse has been an excellent fit for the Raiders out on the edge. Only starting right guard Gabe Jackson has struggled for the Raiders. That might be due to injury. He didn’t play on Sunday in Week 5 versus the Baltimore Ravens, but his backup in Jon Feliciano looked great in relief of Jackson.
The Chargers just don’t have anything close to the continuity the Raiders have on the offensive line. An immobile Philip Rivers is usually running for his life behind this porous offensive line of Los Angeles. Its best player might be newcomer Russell Okung, who hasn’t been an elite left tackle since 2012.
Having a better offensive line gives the Raiders the distinct advantage in the trenches. Both teams can rush the passer, but Oakland is better equipped to contain Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram than Los Angeles is to contain Bruce Irvin and Khalil Mack on Sunday afternoon.