Raiders vs. Jets Preview

The New York Jets simply have to beat the lowly Oakland Raiders on Sunday to earn a playoff berth and complete an impressive turnaround from a year ago.

The Jets (9-6), who finished 4-12 last season under Herm Edwards, fell to 2-3 after a 41-0 loss to Jacksonville on Oct. 8.

But first-year coach Eric Mangini has gotten his team on track, and after its 13-10 win over Miami on Christmas Day, New York is one win away from its fourth postseason berth in the last six years.

"We've talked for months and months about controlling things," Mangini said. "And we're firm believers that we control the things that happen to us based on the way that we have prepared, based on the way that we work and based on us carrying that over into Sunday."

The Jets are 5-2 since their bye week, allowing an average of 14.1 points in those games, the third-fewest points in the league in that span.

While New York is just one win away from the playoffs, Mangini does not want his team overlooking the hapless Raiders (2-13), who have lost eight straight games and are averaging a league-low 11.0 points.

"This is definitely an exciting time of year for us, but our approach will be consistent just like it was with Miami," Mangini said. "We need to take care of what's in front of us, and what's in front of us is the Oakland Raiders and that's all our focus has to be on. Anything else after that point we'll address when, and if, it happens."

Although Mangini would rather see his team advance to the playoffs with a win, the Jets can still make the postseason if they lose to the Raiders, but would need some help. They would get in if Cincinnati and Jacksonville both lose or tie; if Cincinnati loses or ties and Tennessee wins; or if Denver and Jacksonville both lose.

With Monday's win over the Dolphins, New York won its second straight game, but has not won three in a row since Nov. 21-Dec. 5, 2004.

New York limited the Dolphins to a season-low 253 yards on Monday, while holding its fourth opponent in its last six games to a single touchdown.

The Jets offense struggled to get in sync during a heavy rain during the game, and won on a 30-yard field goal by Mike Nugent with 10 seconds left.

Nugent had four field goals in last season's 26-10 win over Oakland, and has connected on his last 15 attempts.

Chad Pennington was 14-of-29 for 237 yards and a touchdown against Miami, and has thrown for 601 yards, five TDs and one interception in three career games against the Raiders.

New York has won four of its last five games, and Pennington has thrown for 1,307 yards while completing 67.5 percent of his passes in those games. Oakland has the No. 1 passing defense in the league, though, allowing an average of only 150.9 yards.

The Raiders are tied for the seventh-most interceptions with 18, and Pennington is tied for the sixth-most picks with 16.

The Jets have won their last two over Oakland, but the Raiders lead the all-time series 19-13-2.

Oakland lost to Kansas City 20-9 on Saturday night to match the franchise record for losses in a season, set when it went 1-13 in 1962 - the season before Al Davis arrived to coach and eventually own the team.

The Raiders were held without an offensive touchdown for the seventh time, and are on pace to finish with the fifth-lowest point total in NFL history since the league extended the schedule to 16 games in 1978.

"I've never been involved in a season like this," Raiders safety Stuart Schweigert said. "The way we're playing and the record we have, it's unbelievable."

The Raiders turned the ball over five times against the Chiefs, and have committed at least five turnovers in three of their last four games.

"There's frustration, but we know those guys want to win as much as we do. They're working hard. They're having meetings. They're not going out there to fumble the ball," Schweigert said of the struggling offense.

The Raiders gained a season-low 179 yards and had a season-high four turnovers in their loss to the Jets last year.

Quarterback Andrew Walter had two fumbles and threw two interceptions on Saturday, and has 19 turnovers in 12 games this season.

Oakland is winless on the road, and needs to win Sunday to avoid going 0-8 on the road for the first time since 2003.

Raiders Previews

• Preview: Jaguars vs. Raiders
• Preview: Raiders vs. Packers
• Raiders vs Chiefs 11/25/07
• Raiders vs Titans 10/28/07
• Kansas City Chiefs Vs Oakland Raiders Preview 10/21/07
• San Diego Chargers vs Oakland Raiders Preview
• Cleveland Browns vs Oakland Raiders Preview
• Super Bowl XLI Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs New York Jets Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. Kansas City Chiefs Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. St. Louis Rams Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. Cincinnati Bengals Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. Houston Texans Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. San Diego Chargers Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. Kansas City Chiefs Preview
• Oakland Raiders at Denver Broncos Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. Seattle Seahawks Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Preview
• Oakland Raiders vs. Arizona Cardinals
• Oakland Raiders vs. Denver Broncos
• Oakland Raiders vs. San Francisco Preview
• Cleveland Browns vs. Oakland Raiders Preview