Heading in to this week four matchup, the only two losses between the Oakland Raiders and the New England Patriots came at the hands of the streaking Buffalo Bills.
The Raiders will be looking to send the Patriots home with their second loss in as many weeks, but it will be an uphill battle as the last time the Patriots lost consecutive games was weeks 12 and 13 of the 2009 season. Maybe the player who has the most to prove, will be Raiders defensive end Richard Seymour, who will be facing his former team for the first time since being traded back in 2009.
For the Patriots, it will be interesting to watch how their defense performs, after blowing a 21-point lead to the Bills and allowing virtually every team they’ve played to pass on them at will. On the other side of the ball, the Raiders will look to slow Tom Brady and the Patriot`s offense down, as counting on Brady to throw four more interceptions is not likely to be the most effective formula for beating the Patriots this season.
Here are three things to focus on in this game:
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1) Tom Brady and Wes Welker vs. Raiders Secondary
Tom Brady is the highest rated quarterback this season, with a +31.0 PFF grade. Yes, he may have thrown four interceptions last week, but arguably only one was a bad pass and just barely at that. All season long, he has been picking defenses apart, particularly using Wes Welker (+10.4,our highest rated receiver) to torture defenders with something that resembles death by a thousand cuts. Brady has targeted Welker 42 times for 31 receptions, good for a top ten catch percentage at 73.8%. The Raiders’ secondary will be looking for career performances from everyone, but particularly whoever winds up covering Welker. It will be interesting to see if Oakland decides to play Welker differently than other teams have, like assigning their primary cornerback Standford Routt to cover him even if he’s in the slot. Routt leads Oakland’s corners by only allowing eight catches on 18 targets. The Raiders will also be helped out significantly if Michael Huff is able to return from a concussion after getting injured against the Jets.
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2) Raiders D-Line vs. Patriots O-Line
This matchup isn’t only interesting because Richard Seymour is facing off against his old team. No, this is a matchup of solid players on both sides of the line. Led by Seymour (+2.5 run defense) and Tommy Kelly (+4.6 run defense), the Raiders’ big boys have completely controlled the point of attack, creating headaches for opposing team’s running games. Though that should bode well, what the Raiders will really need is for Kamerion Wimbley (12 QB disruptions) and Lamarr Houston (eight QB disruptions) to get after Tom Brady and do their part to disrupt the Patriots’ potent passing attack. It will be one of their toughest matchups of the season, going against an offensive line that is grading positive at every position except center Dan Connelly (-1.0), who after turning in the best game of his career last week at +3.8, looks to be headed to a positive overall grade.
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3) Darren McFadden vs. Patriots Front Seven
The former first-round pick is finally shaping into one of the stronger backs in the league, leading the NFL with 393 yards, and ranking in the top 10 of running backs with seven forced missed tackles. After gashing the Jets for 171 yards averaging 9.0 YPC (thanks in large part to his offensive line’s +6.6 overall run block grade) he faces a defense that was similarly beaten up by Fred Jackson. The Patriots will be looking for better run defense then they got last week from all of their defenders, particularly Vince Wilfork (-1.2) and safety Sergio Brown (-1.8), who missed two tackles on the Bills` running back, one of which he was tossed like a rodeo clown. If Darren McFadden continues to benefit from solid blocking, and the Patriots don’t get their run defense in order, the Raiders might be on their way to sending the Patriots home with second straight loss of the season.
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