As it stands, the playoffs are very much a possibility for the Las Vegas Raiders and interim coach Antonio Pierce. However, Week 17 is just another game as far as his squad is concerned.
Sitting at 7-8 ahead of their clash with the Indianapolis Colts this Sunday, the Raiders sit one game behind the Kansas City Chiefs (9-6), whom they just walloped. Though the Denver Broncos currently hold an identical record as the Raiders, both teams will meet in a pivotal Week 18 matchup that might decide the faith of Pierce’s team.
It’s been quite a few weeks for the Raiders, and that’s putting it lightly. If you recall, after owner Mark Davis fired Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler on Halloween, writers and media outlets had written off Las Vegas. Fortunately, the team rallied behind a man who appears to have been born to be the Raiders’ coach in Pierce.
Much like the group that rallied behind Rich Bisaccia in 2021, the parallels are beginning to show. Still, Pierce isn’t having anything to do with it. In fact, he’s making sure the Raiders handle what’s in front of them, one week at a time. As far as Pierce goes, he made it clear that the playoffs are not something he’s propping up as some sort of motivation.
“Nope, Colts. That’s how we’ve been focusing—what’s in front of us.”
The Raiders are facing a hungry Colts team in Week 17
Despite the momentum that the Raiders have coming off two monster wins against their AFC West rivals, the Colts aren’t going to just lie down. Indianapolis, who is drawing comparisons to their own 201 squad, is zeroed in on this game.
The Colts’ linebacker, Zaire Franklin, is keenly aware of its importance with regard to Sunday. Coming off a loss, the Colts’ playoff hopes could be on the line; they currently share an identical record with two other teams in the AFC South. Regarding their recent struggles, Franklin echoed a sense similar to what Raiders fans have been hearing from Pierce this season.
“When you go through adversity, when you kind of hit a wall, you feel like you’re a little stuck; that’s the time to get back to the basics, get back to what you believe in, get back to what makes you, you.”
The Raiders have stuck to their guns, sticking to their own basics as of late. They’re playing aggressive ballhawking defense, bringing a sense of the “old ways,” so to speak. On offense, Zamir White has been shouldering the load in Josh Jacobs’ absence.
The larger concern is surrounding rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell. With quite literally the season on the line for the Raiders, which AOC will the team get? The signal-caller that decimated the Chargers or the one that didn’t complete a pass after the first quarter versus the Chiefs.
The Colts (who were 4-12-1 in 2022) will be making sure it’s the latter.
*Top Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images