The Raiders punished the Broncos 59-14 on the road last weekend.  I don’t think they will have a let down though as the Raiders are playing well in the Black Hole this year.  They are 2-1 at home this season but they have only outscored the opposition 75-72.  The Seahawks have won 2 games in a row but they have been poor on the road this year.  The Seahawks are 1-2 on the road this year and they have been outscored 71-40.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Raiders have the ball:  The Raiders are a running team and that’s what they are going to come out trying to do.  Darren McFadden & Michael Bush will likely get a lot of carries against a Seahawks’ D that is only allowing 77.5 yards rushing per game and 3.3 yards per carry.  The Seahawks are giving up 261.3 yards passing per game but it will be hard for Jason Campbell to get much going in the air with Louis Murphy out of action.  Rookie Jacoby Ford is going to start in Murphy’s place giving the Raiders probably the fastest duo of starting WRs in the NFL (Darrius Heyward-Bey being the other).  It doesn’t matter how fast you are though if you can’t catch the ball.  Look for TE Zach Miller to have a big game for the Raiders tomorrow.

When the Seahawks have the ball:  The Seahawks are going to also come out running the ball with Marshawn Lynch & Justin Forsett against a Raiders’ D that is allowing 138.9 yards rushing and 5.0 yards per carry.  The Raiders’ pass defense isn’t that good either as opposing QBs have a 95.0 Rating against them.  Matt Hasselbeck will be aiming for WRs Mike Williams, Deon Butler and TE John Carlson a lot in the passing game tomorrow.

PREDICTION:  RAIDERS 20, SEAHAWKS 17

The Raiders will be without starting WR Louis Murphy for the next couple of weeks as he has a chest contusion near one of his lungs.  Murphy is the Raiders’ best WR, period.  He has played in all 7 games for the Raiders this year and he has caught 21 passes for 337 yards (16.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Murphy has also carried the ball 1 time for 43 yards this year.  The Raiders are hoping that rookie WR Jacoby Ford will be able to step up in Murphy’s place.  Ford has played in all 7 games for the Raiders so far this year and he has 2 catches for 15 yards (7.5 avg) and 3 carrries for 37 yards (12.3 avg).

The Raiders took the Broncos behind the woodshed, destroying them on their own field!  Jason Campbell was a game manager today as he completed 12 of 20 passes for 204 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also had 1 carry for 15 yards as he played very well in this game.  Darren McFadden was a unstoppable force for the Raiders in this game as he carried the ball 16 times for 165 yards (10.3 ypc) with 3 TD runs and he also caught 2 passes for 31 yards with a TD.  Michael Bush (15 carries, 52 yards, TD) and Marcel Reese (7 carries, 39 yards, TD) also pitched in on the ground for the Raiders in this game.  TE Zach Miller led the way through the air as usual with 3 grabs for 65 yards with a TD.  The Raiders finished up with 328 yards rushing on 52 carries (6.3 ypc) and they also completed 12 of 20 passes for 180 yards as they hogged the ball for 38:39!

Safety Mike Mitchell led a great Raiders’ effort on D with 5 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  CB Chris Johnson also made a huge impact on this game for the Raiders as he had 2 tackles, 2 passes defensed and a interception that he returned 30 yards for a TD.  DT LaMarr Houston & safety Tyvon Branch each had 1 fumble recovery apiece in this game.  The Broncos finished up with 75 yards rushing on 17 carries (4.4 ypc) and they also completed 12 of 29 passes for 165 yards.  The Raiders are now 3-4 on the season.

The Raiders & Broncos both need this game big time.  The AFC West is really week this year as the Chiefs are leading the division with a 3-2 record.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Raiders have the ball:  With the way Jason Campbell played last weekend it would be very smart of the Raiders to come out running the ball tomorrow.  Darren McFadden (likely back from injury) and Michael Bush will take aim at a Broncos’ D that is allowing 127.7 yards rushing and 4.4 yards per carry.  The Broncos only have 7 sacks so far this year so Jason Campbell might actually have time to throw the ball in this game.  The Broncos have a soft pass defense so I look for Campbell to take a couple deep shots to Louis Murphy and Darrius Heyward-Bey and pounding the ball short ot TE Zach Miller.

When the Broncos have the ball:  The Broncos would love to be able to move the ball on the ground some with Knowshon Moreno against a Raiders’ D that is allowing 149.5 yards rushing and 5.0 yards per carry so far this year.  The Broncos might also run their version of the Wildcat Formation with Tim Tebow under center as it was effective last weekend.  The Raiders have given up 12 TD passes and have only 2 INTs this year so look for Kyle Orton to throw the ball down the field quite a few times in this game as long as he has time to throw.

PREDICTION:  BRONCOS 27, RAIDERS 16

24-year old TE Zach Miller is still the best receiver on the Raiders.  He has played in all six games for the Raiders so far this year and he has 30 grabs for 388 yards (12.9 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Miller has now played in 53 games in his four years with the Raiders and he has caught 196 passes for 2,415 yards (12.3 avg) with 10 TD grabs.  Miller would be even more effective for the Raiders if they had a legit QB and some WRs who could stretch the field.

The Raiders really laid an egg today in San Francisco.  Jason Campbell was simply awful as he completed 8 of 21 passes for 83 yards with 0 TD passes and 2 INTs.  He also carried the ball 7 times for 21 yards (3.0 ypc) today.  Michael Bush couldn’t get a whole lot going on the ground for the Raiders in this game.  He carried the ball 20 times for 47 yards (2.4 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 12 yards (6.0 avg).  Zach Miller (2 rec, 48 yards) and Darrius Heyward-Bey (3 rec, 19 yards) led the way for the Raiders in the passing game today.  Louis Murphy had 1 catch for 4 yards and he also had 1 carry for 43 yards in this game.  The Raiders finished up with 110 yards rushing on 30 carries (3.7 ypc) and they also completed 8 of 21 passes for 69 yards as they only had possession of the ball for 26:39.

Safeties Tyvon Branch (9 tackles) and Michael Huff (7 tackles) led a very dull effort by the Raiders’ D today.  DT Tommy Kelly really came to play for the Raiders though as he had 6 tackles. 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit.  The Niners finished up with 158 yards rushing on 31 carries (5.1 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 33 passes for 191 yards.  The Raiders are now 2-4 on the year.

The Oakland Raiders played a good game last week capitalizing on mistakes that the Chargers made to win the game.  The 49ers are a team that makes a lot of mistakes.  That is the backdrop of the “Battle of the Bay” this Sunday in San Francisco.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Raiders have the ball:  With Darren McFadden (hamstring) likely to miss another game for the Raiders look for Michael Bush to carry the load in the running game.  Bush is a bruising type back and he will likely meet up with LB Patrick Willis in some high impact collisions.  The Niners are giving up 111.4 yards rushing per game and 3.9 yards per carry so Bush should get his fair share of yards but they won’t be easy ones.  Jason Campbell will have to start getting rid of the ball a lot quicker as he has been sacked 9 times already this year despite only attempting 70 passes.  Look for Campbell to throw a lot of short shots to TE Zach Miller before going over the top to WR Louis Murphy.

When the 49ers have the ball:  The Raiders are allowing 147.8 yards rushing and 5.0 yards per carry so look for Frank Gore to get all of the carries that his body can handle.  Opposing QBs have a 101.2 Rating against the Raiders this year so maybe this is the week that Alex Smith and his WRs break out.  Smith has already thrown 9 pickoffs this year and he has been sacked 10 times.  If he has time to throw the ball he should look down the field to WRs Michael Crabtree, Josh Morgan and Ted Ginn.  If the Niners don’t stretch the field the Raiders will creep up and try to shut down TE Vernon Davis and Frank Gore.

PREDICTION:  RAIDERS 23, 49ERS 20

Jason Campbell will be back under center for the Raiders this weekend against the 49ers.  He has played in 4 games for the Raiders this year and he is 43 of 70 (61.4%) for 426 yards with 2 TD passes and 2 INTs (76.3 QB Rating).  Campbell also has carried the ball 14 times for 61 yards (4.4 ypc) this year.  Let’s face it, while Gradkowski plays with grit….Campbell is the better all around QB.  Gradkowski injured his shoulder early in the game last Sunday against the Chargers and he did not return.  Gradkowski has played in 4 games for the Raiders so far this year and he has completed 53 of 102 passes (52%) for 709 yards with 4 TD passes and 4 INTs (71.1 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 11 times for 29 yards (2.6 ypc) so far this year.  The Raiders traded for Jason Campbell with the idea of him supplanting Gradkowski as the starting QB so they need to give him a legit chance to show what he can do this time around.

The Raiders won this game because they forced turnovers on special teams and defense.  The Raiders blocked punts (Rock Cartwright and Brandon Myers) on the first two possessions by the Chargers resulting in a safety and a TD (Hiram Eugene).  The defense also had their fair share of fun on the day.  Safety Michael Huff (11 tackles, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) and LB Kamerion Wimbley (8 tackles) led the way for the Raiders’ on D in this game.  But safety Tyvon Branch made the biggest play of the game for the Raiders when he recovered a Philip Rivers fumble late in the 4th quarter and he returned it 64 yards for a TD.  DT Lamarr Houston and safety Mike Mitchell also had fumble recoveries for the Raiders in this game.  The Chargers finished up with 91 yards rushing on 26 carries (3.5 ypc) and they also completed 27 of 42 passes for 415 yards.

Bruce Gradkowski started this game but he didn’t finish it as he got banged up.  He only completed 1 of 7 passes for 14 yards when he was in the game.  Jason Campbell replaced him as he was solid in completing 13 of 18 passes for 159 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  Michael Bush made the most of his first start of the year as he carried the ball 26 times for 104 yards (4.0 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 3 passes for 31 yards (10.3 avg) in this game.  TE Zach Miller (6 rec, 62 yards, TD) and WR Louis Murphy (2 rec, 61 yards) led the way in the air for the Raiders.  The Raiders finished up with 111 yards rushing on 30 carries (3.7 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 25 passes for 168 yards.  The Raiders are now 2-3 on the year.

The Chargers swept the Raiders by a combined score of 48-36 last season so the Raiders were right in both games.  The Raiders could easily be 2-2 or 3-1 on the year so this game is not a mis-match by any stretch of the imagination.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Raiders have the ball:  Michael Bush will take over for the injured Darren McFadden.  The Raiders would be smart to give Bush at least 20 carries tomorrow to attempt to keep the Chargers offense off the field.  Bruce Gradkowski will have to be careful throwing the ball against a Chargers’ D that has 15 sacks and 7 interceptions.  Gradkowski will likely have to keep the passing game short so Zach Miller could have a huge game for them.  Louis Murphy and Darrius Heyward-Bey will have to make tough catches over the middle if the Raiders are going to pull an upset tomorrow.

When the Chargers have the ball:  The Chargers are capable of pounding away against a Raiders’ run defense which is allowing 162.0 yards rushing and 5.3 yards per carry so far this year.  Ryan Mathews and Mike Tolbert will carry the load on the ground for the Chargers in this game.  Make no mistake though, Philip Rivers and his boys will be throwing the ball a lot in this game.  Malcolm Floyd, Legedu Naanee, Buster Davis and Antonio Gates give him a lot of quality targets to take aim at.

PREDICTION:  CHARGERS 24, RAIDERS 13