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NFL Analyst Says Las Vegas Raiders are the ‘Wildcard’ in the AFC

Published 04/08/2021, 3:18 PM EDT

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The Las Vegas Raiders will finally welcome fans to their new stadium next season. After a difficult season in a new city, the franchise struggled to find its feet.

While there were solid performances sprinkled across the season, the Raiders did not have a good time playing. However, one analyst warns the rest of the AFC to watch out for them as the dark horses in the conference.

NFL analyst Peter Schrager spoke on Good Morning Football about the AFC. He noted that while the LA Chargers and Denver Broncos are possible options he backs the Las Vegas Raiders to be wildcards in the NFL.

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He tipped them to cause problems for the Kansas City Chiefs, harking back to their game early in the regular season last year.

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“The rookie quarterback was excellent and he showed flashes. A new coach? I don’t know, we’ll see with the Chargers. The Broncos, I don’t know what they’re doing at quarterback.

“The Raiders are the wildcard here. Are they the team that beats the Chiefs in Arrowhead, or are they the team that is fighting tooth and nail to stay competitive with the Jets?”

Las Vegas Raiders- Wild Card Favorites?

Schrager added that since that game, the Raiders have made some significant changes to their team. He pointed out how the Raiders replaced Jon Gruden with Gus Bradley to be the defensive coordinator.

Furthermore, they even made bolstering their defense a priority going into free agency. It seems like the Raiders are looking to make a statement to the NFL.

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“Their defense was so bad, they fired the Defensive Coordinator Jon Gruden. This year, they’re bringing in Gus Bradley which I think is a giant upgrade.

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“Get Gus Bradley, but they signed players on defense. Like their entire free agency plan was defense, defense, defense, defense and they got guys.”

Can the Las Vegas Raiders find success next season? They have made some strong moves during the off-season. However, the rest of the AFC will be a greater challenge, with several teams making big moves to bolster their squad ahead of their season.

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But if the Raiders can bring the same energy as they did against the Chiefs on a weekly basis, they will feel good about their chances.

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Written by:

Aaditya Krishnamurthy

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Aaditya Krishnamurthy is an NBA & NFL journalist for EssentiallySports, before which he worked at BusinessWorld magazine. He has been a fan of Basketball for over 10 years now, since Shaquille O’Neal was a Phoenix Suns player. During his time at Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts, he started a sports magazine for the college called the Overtime Tribune and hosted the Overtime Tribune Podcast until he graduated.
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