Watching the Raiders manhandle the Chiefs Sunday, a thorough 26-16 thrashing, didn’t inspire much confidence.
A good team would have beaten the Chiefs by a much, much bigger margin. And good teams aren’t 3-4 this time of year.
At the same time, the Raiders have won two in a row (though the other one was against the Jaguars), along with beating the Steelers and giving the undefeated Falcons one of the best games anyone has all year.
There are moments when the Raiders look like an utterly capable professional football team.
They’re still very young in the rebuilding process, but there are clearly parts to build with on both sides of the football. I’m not sure Carson Palmer is the guy to quarterback them when they get closer to good, but he’s good enough to beat the chaff of the league.
The Chiefs fell to 1-6 with the loss, and the Saints should be eternally embarrassed for losing to them in overtime. The Chiefs haven’t led for a second of game time yet this year, and may not.
Brady Quinn didn’t return to the game after a first-half head injury, and Matt Cassel was the only other quarterback in uniform, or else inactive Ricky Stanzi might have gotten a turn. Cassel took a hard shot late from Richard Seymour, but can at least be hailed for his toughness, if not his aptitude.