The Raiders are flying high, enjoying a bye week after beating the rival Kansas City Chiefs on the road for the first time since 2012.
They could fly even higher after it.
The Raiders have the easiest remaining schedule in the NFL, as SportsCenter segment producer Jason McCallum noted Monday night. Las Vegas' remaining 11 opponents have a combined winning percentage of .377.
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Their hardest remaining opponents, in Tankathon's estimation, are the Chiefs (4-1), Cleveland Browns (4-1), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-2) and Indianapolis Colts (3-2). But the Raiders also have two games against each of the Denver Broncos (1-3) and Los Angeles Chargers (1-4) on the docket, as well as matchups with the winless New York Jets (0-5) and Atlanta Falcons (0-5). That means six of their remaining 11 games are against teams that, as of this writing, have two wins.
If the Raiders (3-2) take care of business in those games, they're already at nine wins. That might not be enough to make the playoffs alone, considering the six teams currently ahead of the Raiders in the playoff standings have lost no more than a game apiece, but it gives Las Vegas a solid foundation for a postseason push.
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The Raiders started 6-4 last year, but a 1-5 finish ensured the Silver and Black's playoff drought would last (at least) another season. Las Vegas' schedule is set up for redemption this time around, but it's on Jon Gruden's squad to finish the job.
If the Raiders truly are for real in Gruden's third season back with the franchise, they have a great opportunity to prove it after the bye week.