5 Reasons the Oakland Raiders Will Win the AFC West in 2011-12

Last season marked the end of the Oakland Raiders' eight year Super Bowl hangover. Back in the 2002-03 season, the Oakland Raiders, the NFL's top offense, faced off against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the NFL's top defense, in Super Bowl XXXVII. In this game, the overused cliché "defense wins championships" proved to be true. The Bucs routed the Raiders 48-21. Many could in fact argue that the scoreboard down-played the dominance of the Bucs. Tampa's talented secondary intercepted Rich Gannon a Super Bowl record five times, three of which were returned for touchdowns.

After eight disappointing years, the Raiders are poised to reclaim past glory. The following reasons show that the Silver and Black will be a force to be reckoned with in the battle for supremacy in the AFC West.

Darren McFadden

The former Arkansas Razorback great is coming off his most productive season in the NFL. McFadden managed to put up some gaudy numbers despite being sidelined for three games. "Run DMC" racked up 1664 yards from scrimmage, 1,157 of them rushing, and averaged an eye-opening 5.2 yards per carry. He also found the endzone a career high 10 times. If McFadden can keep up this level of production next season, the Raiders seem destined for a playoff berth.

Head Coach Hue Jackson

As a first year offensive coordinator, Jackson led the Raiders to their best offensive season in years. The appointment of Jackson as head coach may be Al Davis' best move of the offseason. Behind Darren McFadden and Michael Bush, the Raiders rushing attack was second in the NFL, averaging over 155 yards per game. Nobody could possibly foresee the offense averaging over 354 yards per game, which was good enough for 10th in the NFL.

But Jackson's most important contribution to the Silver and Black was being able to puts points on the scoreboard. It may seem easy, but prior to Jackson, the Raiders struggled mightily to score. Last season saw the Raiders take advantage of their yards gained and turnovers forced, leading to them averaging over 25 points per game (sixth in the NFL). Next season calls for more of the same from Jackson as far as calling plays. With the franchise keen on reaching the postseason, the offense will have to continue to keep the defense off the field.

Richard Seymour

Since arriving in Oakland from New England, Seymour has been a true professional. Last season, he mentored the Raiders young defensive linemen, including the likes of Matt Shaughnessy and Lamarr Houston. His 48 tackles and 5.5 sacks do not represent the impact he had on the field.

Renown as one of the premier defensive players in the NFL, Seymour was selected to his sixth Pro Bowl last season. No defensive player is more qualified to lead the Raiders to playoff glory than three-time Super Bowl champion Richard Seymour.

Jason Campbell

Campbell enjoyed a decent debut season with the Raiders in 2010-11. He completed 59 percent of his passes for 2,387 yards in 13 games last season. As the season went on, Hue Jackson opened up the playbook more and more every week, allowing Campbell the freedom to throw the ball down the field. He ended the season with 13 touchdown passes and only eight interceptions.

Campbell is set to be the Raiders' starting quarterback next season and will be expected to improve from his satisfactory first season. If he's able to put up some good numbers without turning the ball over too often, look for the Raiders to be a nine or 10 win team next year.

6-0 Record Versus AFC West in 2010-11

In 2010-11, the Raiders became the first team since the merger in 1970 to go undefeated in their division and not make the playoffs. Although this is a record that many teams would not want to hold, it will surely increase the confidence of the players. After losing 13 consecutive games to the San Diego Chargers, the Raiders were finally able to pull out two consecutive wins versus their California rivals. The San Diego curse goes back to the 2002-03 Super Bowl, which was held at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego. 

The Raiders' resurgence will undoubtedly increase the intensity of their rivalries with the Chiefs, Broncos and Chargers. However, the key to the Raiders season in 2011-12 will be to increase their level of play versus teams outside of the AFC West.