5 takeaways from the NFL during the Oakland Raiders’ bye

While the Oakland Raiders were on bye this past week, we were able to learn some things about the AFC while they rested. Here are five big takeaways.

Overall, it was a most excellent bye week for the Oakland Raiders. The team got to clear its collective head a bit and get healthier heading into a huge neutral-site matchup versus the New England Patriots on Sunday down in Mexico City.

Though 4-5 isn’t ideal, the Raiders are in better shape than they could be in terms of the AFC playoff picture. Oakland does have four tiebreakers over AFC teams in the Tennessee Titans, the New York Jets, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins. New York and Miami are back a ways, but still in the playoff picture with four wins apiece.

It was interesting to watch the AFC from afar with no stake in the games. As of now, there are three teams that will almost certainly be in the AFC playoffs: New England, Kansas City and the Pittsburgh Steelers. New England and Pittsburgh feel like locks to in their respective divisions, probably getting first-round byes as well. Kansas City won’t be worse than the No. 6 seed this year.

What we’re going to do is address five observations from the AFC during the Raiders’ Week 10 bye. Some are good and some are bad. How much do these observations help the Silver and Black? Here are the five biggest takeaways from the week that was.

What was once the most dominant division in the AFC is clearly not right now. The AFC North is in about as bad of shape we’ve seen since realignment in 2002. Yes, the Steelers are a legitimate Super Bowl contender, but the offense is a bit shaky due to quarterback Ben Roethlisberger being past his prime. This team will win 12 games and the division due to a better defense and being in a horrendous division.

The next best team in the AFC North is the Baltimore Ravens. While they did beat the Raiders head-to-head in Oakland back in Week 5, Baltimore is only 4-5 on the season. This team is about as inconsistent as it gets offensively. Not team is better equipped to shut somebody out and be shut out in back-to-back weeks.

Then there is the Cincinnati Bengals. This team needs to blow it up. The Marvin Lewis era in the Queen City needs to end yesterday. Cincinnati feel to 3-6 on the year and will almost certainly miss the AFC playoffs for the second straight year. This team hasn’t won a playoff game since the dawn of the internet. Blow. It. Up.

Lastly, the worst team in football calls the AFC North cellar home. Man, are the Cleveland Browns beyond hopeless. They have become the Kansas Jayhawks of the NFL, where happens almost once annually. The Browns are two guaranteed wins apiece for their division rivals, only adding to the overall mediocrity to what the AFC North has become.