Raiders Primed to Make Second-Half Run

Jon Gruden's Las Vegas Raiders have largely flown under the radar this season. They're currently sitting at 4-3 and are the No. 8 seed in the AFC, putting them just one slot behind the Cleveland Browns for the conference's final postseason spot.

But there's actually reason to believe this team could be poised for a monster second-half run.

The Raiders have fought hard to earn that 4-3 record, as they've actually played the hardest schedule in the league, per FPI. Things get a whole lot easier in that regard down the stretch, however, as Las Vegas' remaining schedule is ranked just No. 25 in the NFL.

Only one of the team's next five opponents are currently above .500 (the Kansas Chiefs). And the team has already proven it can hang with some of the NFL's best, boasting wins over the Chiefs, Saints and Browns.

Plus, Derek Carr is quietly playing some of the best football of his career, ranking top six in adjusted yards per attempt (8.6; No. 6), passer rating (110.2; No. 4), completion percentage (71.1; No. 4) and interception percentage (0.9; No. 3).

With an easy upcoming schedule and a legitimately dangerous offense, don't be surprised if this team makes a huge run in the second half.

Las Vegas is currently a 1.5-point road favorite over the Los Angeles Chargers in FanDuel Sportsbook's Week 9 NFL odds.

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Max Staley is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Max Staley also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username mstaley1212. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.