The Raiders put themselves on the brink of playoff irrelevancy when they lost to the Chiefs 48-9 in Week 14, but the last three weeks have seen things take a major turn in the right direction.
Sunday’s 23-20 win over the Colts was their third straight and it leaves them with a 9-7 record heading into a Week 18 matchup with the Chargers. Their AFC West rivals have the same record and the winner of next weekend’s game will be going to the playoffs.
While there’s a chance to advance with a loss, wide receiver Hunter Renfrow’s message after Sunday’s win was that the team just has to keep finding a way to pull out victories.
“All it means that that we got to win next week,” Renfrow said, via Levi Damien of USAToday.com. “We put ourselves in a good chance to win next week and we’re in the playoffs. That’s what we’ve all talked about since the beginning. Just give us a chance at the dance.”
That loss to the Chiefs was the fifth in six games for the Raiders and it seemed like the off-field tumult created by Jon Gruden and Henry Ruggs would help send them to another losing record. They guaranteed a winning record on Sunday and one more win will make this season a success story in Las Vegas.