The Raiders can clinch a playoff spot this weekend. That sentence hasn’t been uttered since late 2011, and that season didn’t end so well.
There’s a far greater chance this one will. The Silver and Black sit atop the AFC and their own division, with significant space between them and other contenders for the conference’s final wild card spot. There’s three games space with four to play and, according to the NFL, the Raiders can lock up a playoff spot with a victory over Kansas City on Thursday and a little help.
Here are the scenarios where the Raiders can clinch a playoff spot this weekend:
1. Raiders win + Miami loss
2. Raiders win + Denver loss
There are two other scenarios that involve ties, but we won’t focus on those rare instances.
A victory on Thursday is all that will consume the Raiders focus. A loss would put them back in their own division, behind a Kansas City team that would own a tiebreaker based upon a season sweep.
