Las Vegas Raiders: 4 bold predictions after the 2021 bye week

The Raiders went into their Week 8 bye with a 5-2 record, the first time since 2016 that the team has been multiple games over .500 at their scheduled week off.

The first half of the season for the Las Vegas Raiders has been no cakewalk. Las Vegas was forced to deal with the resignation of their head coach, and simultaneous face of the franchise, Jon Gruden, amid controversy over emails that surfaced as a result of the WFT workplace investigation.

The franchise’s hardships were not relegated to off the field, however, as the Raiders also faced numerous injuries and a complete overhaul of the offensive line. Despite all of this, though, the Raiders sit atop of the AFC West and hold the No. 2 seed in the AFC as they rest and regroup during their bye week.

Behind the stellar play of Derek Carr and Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas looks poised to be a real threat in the AFC. Carr is third in the league in passing yards, and the Raiders are one of just two teams that have four players with more than 300 receiving yards.

Oh, and he played one of the best games of his career last week, completing an unthinkable 91.4% of his passes, the second-best mark in NFL history while throwing at least 30 passes. Crosby, in his own regard, is leading the NFL in quarterback hits and pressures.

Now, the Raiders will look to the second half of the season and hope to avoid another late-season collapse.

Las Vegas’ schedule is not exactly favorable going forward. The Silver and Black play the Chiefs twice, the Chargers once more, as well as the Browns, Cowboys, and Bengals. Even the Colts are looking like a tough matchup as things sit today. If the Raiders want to make the playoffs, they are going to need to prove that they are a different team this year and defeat some really tough opponents.

Are Carr and company up to the test? Let’s take a look at a few bold predictions for the second half of the Raiders’ season post-bye-week.