Another ugly win for the Raiders in Florida, but still another win. It keeps them tied for the best record in the AFC West, the second best record in the conference, and the third best in the NFL. So, will that record be enough to put them among the five best teams in the league as far as the power rankings go? Let’s find out.
SB Nation: 10
Last week: 10
Editor’s note: There was no explanation for the lack of movement by the Raiders after last week’s win. It does seem pretty strange the team wouldn’t somehow move up at least a spot or two, but I suppose SB Nation is just waiting for that signature win over a top team. The Raiders will have their chance this week against the Broncos.
Pro Football Focus: 5
Last week: 7
Offense: 4
Defense: 13
CBS Sports: 6
Last week: 9
Derek Carr was special at Tampa Bay. Now he has to try to replicate that against that Denver defense.
Sports Illustrated: 5
Last week: 7
He tends to get lost a little bit in all the Derek Carr–Amari Cooper hoopla, but Michael Crabtree’s career revival since his 2013 Achilles tear grows more impressive by the week. Has anyone even noticed that he’s tied for the league lead in touchdown receptions? The 29-year-old WR will join the 500-catch club soon, too—he’s 21 receptions short.
Pro Football Talk: 4
Last week: 10
If they want to be taken seriously, they need a signature win. The next chance for one comes on Sunday night.
ESPN: 6
Last week: 11
The Raiders are off to their best eight-game start since 2001, despite allowing the second-most yards per game and committing the most penalties. QB Derek Carr has kept the Raiders afloat, throwing 16 of his 17 touchdowns with the score within eight points (most in the NFL).
NFL.com: 9
Last week: 11
Started to type this Raiders blurb, but got off to a false start. Only Oakland could outgain its opponent 626 to 270 -- SIX HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIX to 270 -- and need 74 minutes to win the game. In case you were at Home Depot (holding some extension cables) or a bar (interfering with your buddy's pass at the cute server), your Oakland Raiders set an NFL record with 23 accepted penalties. Of course, Derek Carr mitigated all that with one of the all-time games by a Raider QB. Just win, baby.
Yahoo!: 8
Last week: 9
The Raiders are in a great spot, but also a strange spot. They’re 6-2 but tied in the loss column with two other AFC West teams. Even at 6-2 it doesn’t seem like they have much room for error. Next Sunday night’s home game against the Broncos is enormous for them.
Average rank: 6.87
Last week 9.57
So, to answer the question of whether the Raiders are a top five team right now; some outlets seem to think so. Pro Football Focus, Sports Illustrated, and Pro Football Talk chief among them. But other rankings pull the Raiders just out of the top five overall as you can see below.
Average top ten:
1 New England Patriots 1
2 Dallas Cowboys 2.14
3 Denver Broncos 2.8
4 Kansas City Chiefs 5.7
5 Atlanta Falcons 5.85
6 Oakland Raiders 6.85
7 Seattle Seahawks 7
8 Minnesota Vikings 7.2
9 Green Bay Packers 8.7
10 Pittsburgh Steelers 9.4
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