Oakland Raiders: 5 players to watch vs. New York Giants

The Oakland Raiders have another very winnable game this week, as they play host to the New York Giants. Here are five Raiders to watch in this game.

After getting a win over a division rival last week in the Denver Broncos, the Oakland Raiders find themselves within a game of .500 at 5-6. Should the Raiders be able to knock off the New York Giants (2-9) and the Kansas City Chiefs (6-5) lose on the road to the New York Jets (4-7), the Silver and Black will be in first place in the AFC West. How about that?

That being said, New York does have two wins this season over AFC West opponents. The Giants beat the Broncos and the Chiefs to amass their two victories of the season. They did keep it interesting at home versus the Los Angeles Chargers, but didn’t get the w in Week 5. Maybe the Giants will be more than a handful for the Raiders on Sunday?

Then again, New York has been eliminated from playoff contention in the NFC. The Giants will want to be picking in the top-five so that they can draft the heir apparent to Eli Manning at the quarterback position. Manning is a borderline hall of famer, but he’s pretty long in the tooth in the Big Apple.

Simply put, the Raiders will not get an easier opponent in their next five games that this one versus the Giants at home on Sunday. All the more reason to get it done. If the Raiders want to make the playoffs, they have to win this game. Here are the five Raiders you will need to pay close attention to on Sunday afternoon versus New York.

The Raiders were able to keep to the Broncos offense in check for most of the game. Or until Broncos head coach Vance Joseph put Trevor Siemian in at a quarterback after Paxton Lynch hurt his ankle. Siemian then proceeded to carve up the Oakland secondary with a few passes to Cody Latimer to make it a ball game.

Overall, the Raiders secondary looked improve for the first three quarters of the game under newly promoted defensive coordinator John Pagano’s watch. Though the secondary is still pickless, the Raiders defense is not, as inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman was able to haul one in on his back in the Broncos end zone after a tipped pass.

The one guy to watch closely in the Oakland secondary on Sunday is safety Karl Joseph. With the way that Manning under throws receivers, he might be in line for a big interception. Joseph hits insanely hard for a safety. He could jar a ball loose when he’s playing in an eight-man box on an obvious running down for the Giants.

Joseph has been one of three Raiders defenders that has been above average all season. Though he hasn’t jumped off the page in his second year in the league, he could have his signature game of the season against a lackluster and injury-riddled New York offense on Sunday.