The Oakland Raiders host the winless Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, and here are three things to watch for in that contest.
Andy Dalton…wait scratch that, Ryan Finley and the winless Cincinnati Bengals will travel to Oakland for a Week 11 contest in the black hole against the Raiders. These teams, trending in the complete opposite directions, will square off with very different opportunities ahead of them. The Bengals, despite clearly looking for their first win of the season, have control of their destiny for the first overall draft pick.
A win could hamper their aspirations of landing the quarterback of the future next April.
On the other hand, the Raiders are playing for a playoff berth after their surprising start to the season. Written off by many before the season even began, the Raiders have a chance to move to 6-4 and could sit atop the division at the end of the week. Moving to two games over .500 with six games left would put the Raiders in a great position to chase a playoff spot.
However, the NFL is a wild league and anything can happen on any given Sunday. Surely Jon Gruden knows not to overlook any opponent, as even the putrid Bengals roster is capable of defeating the Raiders. The Miami Dolphins defeated the Indianapolis Colts and the Tennessee Titans defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, both happened last week. Anything is possible…on any given Sunday.
With that in mind, let’s look at three things fans should keep an eye on as the Raiders take on the Bengals in Week 11.