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Raiders Bye Week Studs And Duds: Carr On MVP Trajectory, Janikowski Struggling

He won't come out and say it in public of course, but Oakland QB Derek Carr is having an MVP-caliber season to date. As a result, the Raiders are sitting pretty in the driver's seat of the AFC West with a 7-2 mark on the year as they emerge from their bye week.

The Raiders now turn their attention to next Monday evening's game in Mexico City against the Houston Texans. Although it is being billed as a "home game" for the Raiders, traveling south of the border to play an NFL game is anything but a home contest.

Along with the logistics of taking an NFL team to Mexico City, the Raiders (and Texans for that matter) must contend with playing in a stadium unfamiliar to both of them. While the crowd is likely to be into the game, how will the Raiders deal with coming off of a bye week? Is there any danger of rust setting in?

While that question won't be answered until later next Monday night, most Oakland fans (and players/management) will tell you that they are pretty darn happy with where things sit after nine games.

These last seven games of the regular season will go a long way in determining if the Raiders will in fact break a playoff drought going back to their 2002 Super Bowl season, in which they lost to Tampa Bay 48-21.

Highlights After Nine Games

Carr is turning a fair amount of heads around the league after nine games. The Fresno State product has thrown for 2,505 yards, 17 touchdowns and only 3 INTs. Other than the team laying an egg in a 26-10 home loss to Kansas City last month, the Raiders have been in every game, including their other loss to Atlanta.

As for the ground game, running back Latavius Murray has 393 yards rushing and eight touchdowns, this despite missing a couple of games a few weeks back due to injury. Even though he is certainly not a household name -- outside the Bay Area by any means -- Murray gives the Raiders a solid running threat. When you throw in DeAndre Washington (302 yards rushing) and Jalen Richard (279 yards on the ground), Oakland can come at you with a three-headed running attack. That will need to continue for the remainder of the season, taking some of the pressure off of Carr to win games for the Silver and Black.

In looking at Carr's receivers, Amari Cooper (843 yards receiving, 2 TDs) and Michael Crabtree (596 yards receiving, 6 TDs) have both delivered to date. If there has been one small complaint about Cooper, it is that he sometimes drops balls that are right in his wheelhouse. That said, the second-year pro has certainly proven to be worth his high draft status by the Raiders a season ago.

Can Oakland Put Clamps On Opposition Down The Stretch?

On the defensive side of the ball, even though the Raiders have struggled mightily at times, they do have their share of talent.

To date, Khalil Mack (7 sacks, 42 total tackles), Malcolm Smith (49 total stops), Reggie Nelson and Karl Joseph (43 total tackles, respectively) have all provided solid contributions.

With road dates at Kansas City, San Diego and Denver awaiting the Raiders in three of the final four games, the defense will be asked to do even more.

Going into the Houston game next Monday evening, Oakland has the 30th ranked overall defense out of 32 teams. That said the Raiders still sport a 7-2 mark, tied with Kansas City after nine games, though the Chiefs hold the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Is Janikowski Losing His Edge?

When you are sitting at 7-2, it is hard to really criticize one or more players.

However, veteran kicker Sebastian Janikowski does not appear to be the lock he once was from 50-plus yards. With eight such tries to date this season, Janikowski has only hit on three of them. When it comes to less than 50 yards, Janikowski has hit on 13-of-14 kicks.

While most teams would still love to have a kicker of Janikowski's experience on their team, especially if a field goal will determine the outcome of the game, Oakland fans are no doubt hoping he rights the ship in terms of 50-plus kicks sooner rather than later.

Where Are We Heading?

With seven games remaining in the regular season, Oakland is in prime position to end a playoff drought of more than a decade.

If the Raiders are to accomplish that, it will take a team effort, especially with Kansas City and Denver likely right alongside them all the way to Jan. 1 (end of regular season).

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