Oakland Vs San Diego: Two Teams, Looking For Direction

On Thursday night, these two teams are playing for second place in the AFC West.

Normally, this would be a game with far-reaching implications, because normally the teams in question would be, say, 6-4, or 5-5, jockeying for position in the division.

Oakland, is at 3-9, while San Diego is 4-8, one game ahead.

Both teams couldn't imagine this, at the beginning of the year.

Oakland was looking at advancing a record, that was 4-12 last year but had added Darren McFadden, Javon Walker, DeAngelo Hall, and several others. They would also have the services of JaMarcus Russell for his first full season, after missing most of a rookie year.

San Diego, meanwhile was one game from the Super Bowl, and picked by many to go all the way. They had an emerging star in Philip Rivers, a run threat in LT, and a great tight end in Antonio Gates. And the Defense was solid with Shawne Merriman, Antonio Cromartie, etc.

Instead, Injuries hit both teams hard. Expectations never panned out, and aside from some good games here and there, both teams have combined for seven wins, and come into this game hoping Denver has a season-ending skid.

The points to look at, for the Raiders, is to exploit the Chargers' defense. It hasn't been the same since Merriman opted for surgery, but it really hasn't been the same since Cromartie's play has fallen flat. Oakland's running game, if it can match what the falcons did last week, stands a good chance.

San Diego, meanwhile, will try to see if Rivers can imitate Tyler Thigpen. Last week, the Chiefs QB made quick work of the Raiders' defense, finding Tony Gonzalez multiple times, and even got the ball past Nmandi several times. The result? Kansas City didn't have a problem moving the ball...and when needed, Tyler would go to the run, looking for holes created by players going out of position, etc.

It will be played in San Diego, so home team will help...but at the same time, cheering for these two teams, will come down to a matter of pride. Both teams have a lot of it. Now, if the teams could transfer that into wins, they'd be going somewhere.

I'll stick with Oakland, and a healthy RB, against a demoralized Chargers squad.

20-14, Oakland.