Keys to Victory: Oakland Raiders vs. Indianapolis Colts

Keys to victory for the Oakland Raiders in their Week 16 matchup with the Indianapolis Colts.

Thank you, Titans! The Oakland Raiders are back on top of the AFC West! After a depressing week after the loss to the Chiefs, Oakland took care of business and now sits back atop of the division. Oh, and they clinched a playoff berth.

Here are some keys to victory for Week 16.

Dec 18, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) looks on against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Colts defeated the Vikings 34-6. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Raiders need Bad Luck

Yes, that was an awful play on words, but this is my brand. The Raiders need a bad Andrew Luck to have any chance at winning this one.

Last week against one of the best defenses in the league, Andrew Luck and the Colts offense was spectacular. Luck put up 250 yards and 2 TDs, and while the stats don’t show how good he and the offense was, the Colts had this game put away by the 3rd quarter.

Oakland’s defense has come on as of late and continues to make plays when needed. They will have to do the same this week.

To turn Luck into Bad Luck, the Raiders need to pressure the A-Gap. This is what the Pats did in the playoffs and many teams followed that pattern last year, which was Luck’s worse year to date. Injuries hampered him as well last season, but teams that can attack with pressure inside have had the most success.

Oakland just so happens to be getting in this area with the return of Mario Edwards Jr. It remains to be seen how much Mario will play, but his presence will certainly help solidify the defense — particularly the front seven.

Ken Norton Jr. has played Mack on the interior of the line occasionally this season, and he has done a few other creative things to help get Khalil going. They will have to pull out all the tricks to get Andrew Luck thinking more about the pass rush than his open receivers.

Oct 16, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders running back Jalen Richard (30) carries the ball against the Kansas City Chiefs on kick off return during the first quarter at Oakland Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Score.

Once again, just like in the Kansas City game, the Raiders offense couldn’t score when they needed to. Even worse, they turned the ball over twice in the red zone.

Even with multiple chances on the goal-line, the Raiders still couldn’t find the end zone. Whether it was bad play calling or not, Carr not being able to go under center or a mixture of both, Oakland needs to capitalize if they want to win games.

If the offense had scored when they had several easy opportunities to do so, the San Diego game wouldn’t have been close. While this is all woulda, coulda, shoulda, the offense has to get back on track in order to help this team secure the AFC West crown and make a playoff run. The Raiders have to stop allowing these games to be close, put together four quarters of quality play, and dominate a game.

The Colts are 7-7 but still have something to play for, so every touchdown will count in what could become a shootout between Luck and Carr. Oakland has to keep the foot on the gas pedal until they lock up home-field advantage.

Nov 24, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton (13) catches the ball in the first half of the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Don’t give the Colts the deep ball

Oakland’s defense has been awful against the deep ball — particularly against smaller, speedy WRs. Indianapolis has two of them in T.Y. Hilton and former first-round pick Phillip Dorsett.

Oakland can’t leave their CBs on an island against them this week, or else it’ll be a long day for the secondary. It was on show again last week, with Travis Benjamin scoring on a deep pass on the first drive, leaving Oakland in a bad spot straight away.

The deep ball was always a favorite of the late great Al Davis and with good reason. It’s the most explosive play in football and it happens in seconds.

Amerson and Smith need help from Reggie Nelson and Nate Allen, with the latter playing very well as a replacement for the injured rookie Karl Joseph.

The secondary will also have to keep an eye on Donte Moncrief, and they will need to be vigilant on Luck’s favorite target, Dwayne Allen. Tight ends kill Oakland each week and if the Raiders can manage to limit the deep threat, it will open the seams and underneath areas for Luck to take advantage of.

This defense will have to make plays all day if the Raiders are to win this game. Deep balls can be demoralizing for a defense, so Oakland can’t give afford to surrender any to the Colts.

October 9, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders guard Gabe Jackson (66) and center Rodney Hudson (61) during the third quarter against the San Diego Chargers at Oakland Coliseum. The Raiders defeated the Chargers 34-31. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Stampede

The Colts gave Andrew Luck and a couple of good starters and that’s about it on this team, leaving them lacking depth and an awful run defense.

So what you do is run at them all day.

Indianapolis doesn’t have the most intimidating defensive line, so Kelechi Osemele, Gabe Jackson and company should be mauling people all day.

Latavius Murray looks to be getting fully healthy from his turf toe earlier in the year. Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington looked good last week as well, giving the Raiders their dynamic running game once again.

Simply put, Oakland has to run the ball down Indianapolis’s throat. With little depth and a weak run defense, running them off the field is a must. Make them tired, make them and make them not want to play. The offensive line can do that by rumbling over them in a stampede.

Establishing the run game gives Carr some relief and gets the OL confident, but also gives the Raiders the time of possession advantage, which leaves Andrew Luck on the sideline.

If Kansas City loses and the Raiders win, we lock up a first-round bye and a playoff game at home. If this happens, I just might have to run down the main street of Auckland, New Zealand naked.

#JustWinBaby