Oakland Raiders: The First Real Test of the Season for the Patriots

When is a 2-1 team encountering their first "test" of the regular season? When you're the 2011 New England Patriots, that's when. 

Yes, the Patriots have a loss already this season. So what? Only the most foolishly optimistic of fans actually believe their teams will go 16-0. 

This New England Patriots team can't focus on a loss from last week. The Patriots must focus on the task at hand this week. Losing a game is okay; it happens, but losing back-to-back games would be a bit of a concern.

Back-to-back losses in a 16-game season call into question a team's ability to mentally handle a loss as well as their ability to recognize the flaws that led to the first loss. Those would both be uncharacteristic weaknesses of a Bill Belichick led Patriots' team.

The Patriots are 25-3 following a loss since the beginning of the 2003 regular season, and their last consecutive losses occurred in Weeks 12 and 13 of the 2009 regular season when they dropped games in New Orleans and Miami.

Today's game in Oakland is somewhat similar to last week's matchup in Buffalo. It's a road game against a team that's been perennially bad for a number of years. Oakland, like Buffalo, is playing good football this season.

Last week, Buffalo was coming off a dramatic home win against, of all teams, Oakland. This week, Oakland is coming off a dramatic home win against the Patriots' hated divisional rival, the New York Jets.

There is one key difference, though.  The Bills offense is generated by their quarterback and their passing game. This is exactly the type of attack that can easily exploit the defensive weaknesses of the Patriots.

The Patriots not only have weak safeties and young cornerbacks, they also feature one of the league's most anemic pass rushes. This played right into the hands of the Bills, who also benefited from one of Tom Brady's worst performances in recent memory.

Oakland isn't the pass happy group that the Bills are. They use running back Darren McFadden to power their offense, and he's proven to be up to the task, leading all NFL running backs in yards and tied for second in touchdowns three weeks into the season.

There's one big flaw in mounting that attack against New England, though, and his name is Vince Wilfork. The Patriots rank dead last in pass defense in the NFL, but a much more respectable 10th in rushing defense.

The longest run against the Patriots this season was only for 21 yards. If the passing defense were mimicking the run stopping, then the Patriots would likely be 3-0 and not 2-1.

Wilfork is one of the preeminent run-stopping defenders in the league, a massive physical specimen who will easily draw a double team on any rushing play. Wilfork won't always make the tackle of the running back, but his presence can create openings for numerous other defenders to make plays.

Even with the solid run defense, this game will still be a challenge for the Patriots. It's on the road, against a team playing with confidence.

The Patriots will want to get Brady going early and often. Everyone knows that beating Brady requires bringing pressure, and the Raiders just happen to have a former pass rushing New England defensive lineman named Richard Seymour on their team.

Seymour was shipped out of New England largely in part because the Patriots felt that with his impending free-agency they would not have the money to sign him. He'd like nothing more than to make the Patriots pay for that decision today. He gets his shot this afternoon and the Patriots better be ready.

A road game against an old teammate and a talented young running back. A game following a team's first defeat of the season. A game following a very rough day for Tom Brady.

Playing a team brimming with confidence. Patriot fans will know a lot more about their team when this game is over. Whether they will like what they see is the big question.