4 reasons the Raiders will beat the Indianapolis Colts in Week 17
Welcome back Josh Jacobs
He was always involved in the Raider offense this season, no matter how much-opposing defenses sniffed out the run and pummeled Jacobs at nearly every turn, the play-calling still called repeatedly on Jacobs to receive the ball.
Fast forward to Week 16, after a horrendous year so far for the third-year back, and the heavy usage finally paid off. Jacobs recorded his first 100-yard rushing game in an otherwise disappointing season.
The passing attack of Derek Carr and this Raider team was a highlight earlier in the season. No matter what defense or talented pass rusher or secondary Carr faced, he excelled. The second half — not so much. Although the Raiders still have one of the top passing offenses in the league, this is merely from a statistical standpoint and signifies just how dominant it truly was within the first seven weeks of the season.
Now, this offense is dormant, and the only way they have a chance to pull out victory is to once again lean on the able shoulders of Jacobs. The offense is hardly putting up points, and in a game against a team that will also rely heavily on running, the Raiders must counter with a potent rushing attack of their own to contend.
Jacobs has always been talented, and a lot of his failure this year has been because of an inexperienced offensive line, which is starting to find its way a bit at the right time. Look for this offensive line to try and push a gifted defensive line, to give Jacobs some holes.
The running attack must be in effect for the Raiders to pull out a victory here, and to be honest, I think it can once again succeed, as long as it follows the game-plan from a week prior.