Week 9 MNF Preview:

At Seattle -7 Oakland 37

Al Davis and the Raiders are synonymous, just like Red and the Celtics. And both teams have seen better days than of late. So many great teams and players have worn the Silver & Black, and whether you like or despise the guy, his career record as coach, GM and owner is Hall of Fame caliber. His business tactics may leave much to be desired in many quarters, but he is the reason why the Raiders remain the NFL’s most polarizing franchise.

His squad, having won two in a row (2-5) takes the I-5 North shuttle to Seattle tonight to meet the 4-3 Seahawks. This appears to be one contest the schedule makers would have preferred to amend once the season started. Seattle’s two top guns on offense (Hasslebeck and Alexander) are out and the crippled offense has struggled, but the defense (that was torched by KC last week) appears healthy. If Seattle has any hopes of repeating as NFC Champions, the defense has to step up and right the ship against a terrible offense. Their pass defense genuinely sucks.

Last week, the Raiders took advantage of a terrible performance by Pittsburgh. They enter the game hungry while the ‘Hawks are simply trying to hold on until the offense gets healthy. This game’s going to be won in the trenches. Even though Seattle's offense in its weakened state is better than the Raiders', the Hawks O-Line situation is in chaos due to injury. Oakland’s horses are stronger up front.

Projected Final Score: Oakland 20, Seattle 17.