Raiders remain in thick of playoff race in AFC

The Raiders woke up Monday greeting successful a pleasantly astonishing space.

In spite of the off-field play implicit the past month-and-a-half, the three-game losing streak coming disconnected their bye week and a genu wounded to choky extremity Darren Waller that sidelined him for the bulk of Thursday’s triumph implicit the Dallas Cowboys, they stay successful contention for an AFC playoff berth.

“We’re close successful the mediate of it,” said Raiders interim caput manager Rich Bisaccia.

Six games remain, including Sunday against the Washington Football Team astatine Allegiant Stadium, and the 6-5 Raiders are successful a virtual necktie with the 6-5 Los Angeles Chargers for the past wild-card playoff spot.

They are besides wrong 1½ crippled of archetypal spot successful their part and 2 games disconnected the apical spot successful the AFC.

“The information that we are close determination – not wherever we privation to beryllium – but close determination with a accidental and an accidental to get immoderate truly bully shot teams coming up, immoderate precise susceptible shot teams coming up, we cognize what’s astatine stake,” Raiders backmost Derek Carr said. “We cognize what we person to do. Hopefully we tin spell connected a tally and get hot.”

Said Bisaccia: “We’ve talked astir it implicit and over. It’s a week-to-week league. Fortunately for us, we’ve played good capable astatine times to beryllium close successful the heavy of it.”

Getting Waller backmost arsenic rapidly arsenic imaginable is of utmost concern, though it mightiness beryllium a situation to get him connected the tract successful clip for Sunday’s game.

Bisaccia said connected Monday the sprained genu Waller suffered successful the archetypal fractional of the Cowboys crippled near his prima choky extremity “week-to-week,” though helium did permission unfastened the anticipation of him playing against the WFT.

“We’ll spot wherever helium is,” Bisaccia said. “I cognize helium improved the archetypal day, which happens a batch of the time, present we’ll hold and spot however the remainder of the week goes.”

The aforesaid is the lawsuit for reserve antiaircraft extremity Carl Nassib, who is besides week-to-week with a genu wounded helium suffered against the Cowboys.

On the different hand, cornerback Trayvon Mullen appears connected way to instrumentality successful clip to lend a manus implicit the past period of the season. Mullen has been connected the injured reserve database since October 9th with a toed injury. There is simply a anticipation helium could beryllium designated to instrumentality to signifier this week.

If so, the Raiders volition person up to 21 days to activate him.

“He wants to beryllium successful presumption wherever helium feels similar he’s acceptable to go,” Bisaccia said. “We’d similar that from him arsenic well, to travel backmost wherever helium knows he’s acceptable to vie and play against the truly bully players we’re fixing to face.”

The value of the Raiders being arsenic physically acceptable arsenic imaginable to navigate the past six weeks of the play cannot beryllium understated. Aside from their crippled this week against the WFT, each crippled is against teams successful the playoff race.

That includes 3 games wrong their part against the 6-5 Denver Broncos, 7-4 Kansas City Chiefs and Chargers, and games against the 6-6 Cleveland Browns and 6-6 Indianapolis Colts.

In galore ways, the remaining docket is fortuitous for the Raiders, who are seeking their 2nd playoff spot successful 19 years.

“To immoderate degree, we’re successful power of making our decisions successful however we’re going to signifier and however we’re going to play,” said Bisaccia. “We’ll spot however it plays out.”

Contact Vincent Bonsignore astatine vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore connected Twitter.