Oakland Raiders: The bye is coming at the right time

The Oakland Raiders will be one of four teams on bye in Week 10. Though a tad late in the year, it does come at the right time for the Silver and Black.

Though the 4-5 record is not ideal, the Oakland Raiders are still in the playoff mix heading into their bye in Week 10. Oakland is one of four teams on bye this upcoming week in the NFL. The other three franchises are the Baltimore Ravens, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles.

While all four of those teams could certainly use a bye this week, having it come in Week 10 perhaps serves the Raiders the best. Baltimore shares the same 4-5 record with the Raiders. However, they are coming off a three-point road loss to the Tennessee Titans in Nashville. While defense hasn’t been the issue in the Charm City, it’s unlikely Baltimore can draw up enough plays to elevate their lackluster offense.

Kansas City is also heading into its bye off a loss. The Chiefs fell on the road to the Dallas Cowboys by 11 points in a semi-nationally televised game. Though Kansas City’s schedule eases up after the bye, the Chiefs have lost three of four games. They are going into their bye feeling so much worse than they were at the first quarter of the season.

Philadelphia is the class of the NFC at 8-1. The Eagles look to be the favorite to come out of the NFC this year. They have so much momentum on their side with second-year quarterback Carson Wentz playing at an elite level. However, Philadelphia could come out flat after their Week 10 bye. That sort of thing does happen to even the best of teams in the NFL.

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Then there’s the Raiders. Oakland just beat the Miami Dolphins on Sunday Night Football in Week 9. Before that, the Raiders had lost five of six games. This win over the Dolphins by three points has to have the Raiders slightly optimistic heading into the bye with the home stretch ahead.

Oakland will have its opportunities to get healthier in the secondary. That is priority No. 1 for this team because the Raiders have to play the New England Patriots in Mexico City in Week 11. We all know how great of a passer the ageless Tom Brady is. If Jay Cutler could dice up the confused Oakland secondary, who knows how bad it could get at Estadio Azteca with Brady in the ‘gun.

Since New England is coming off its bye in Week 9, the Raiders will have two full weeks to study and game plan against the opposition. The Patriots have a big primetime game this week, as they will play their AFC foe in the Denver Broncos on Sunday Night Football at Mile High.

Next: 5 takeaways from Raiders' win over Dolphins

Denver is reeling a bit, but Mile High is the one stadium that has given Brady trouble over the years. Though the Patriots could very well rout the Broncos on Sunday night, New England will have to put in the work this week to handle Denver in Denver. Oakland has two weeks to get healthy and play its best game of the season against New England in Estadio Azteca.

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