How They Got HereOakland Raiders: The Raiders went on an eight game winning streak throughout the middle of their schedule to boast an 11-2 record before inexplicably dropping 3 straight to close out the season. Despite backing into the playoffs, they still won their division by a three game margin and earned a first round bye. Notable wins throughout the regular season came against the Cardinals, Seahawks, and Bengals. They were able to dispatch of the Bengals in their first game of the playoffs before handedly taking care of the Browns in the AFC Championship game.
Washington Redskins: The Redskins started off the year hot with a 6-2 record, but then dropped three of their next four to drop to 7-5. Two straight wins put them at 9-5 where they were firmly in the mix for both the division race and the wildcard race, and they ended up winning the division despite losing their last two games, and were just an Eagles win away from missing the playoffs altogether. Once they made the playoffs it was an entirely different story. They had no problems brushing off the Panthers and Seahawks by a combined 48 points before turning in an impressive defensive performance and coming from behind to vanquish the equally surgent Minnesota Vikings.
The Match-upThere are far more things similar about these two teams than different. They both pride themselves on their ability to run the ball and play defense. The Raiders ranked 1st in rushing offense during the regular season while the Redskins ranked 3rd, and the Raiders gave up the 5th fewest points per game at 20.3 while the Redskins gave up the 3rd fewest at 18.9. They both put up almost exactly 25.5 points per game on offense this season, while both passing games left a little to be desired (or weren't needed), ranked 25th for the Raiders and 23rd for the Redskins. Both teams held opponents to under 320 yards per game, but they did it in different fashions. The Raiders made their name stopping the run (5th best run defense), while the Redskins strength was defending the pass (2nd best pass defense). Other than that, the only other difference between these two squads is that The Raiders were exceptional in turnover differential (+13), while the Redskins were only average (+1).
The PredictionWhile it might be expected that the team that was better stopping the run would have the upper hand in this game, I actually think both teams will be able to key in on that aspect of their opponent's gameplan. I think the key here is going to be limiting the big plays in the run game while also shutting down the oppositions passing attack, and that's where I think the Redskins have the advantage. They were great against the pass all year, and really know how to clamp down on opposing quarterbacks even when playing with the lead. I expect both Fred Taylor and Chad Pennington to struggle in this game, while Ricky Williams is able to make just enough plays to give the Redskins the edge. The one x-factor here will be the turnover battle. The Redskins just barely squeaked by the Vikings, even on the heels of a 4-1 turnover margin. If the Raiders - who have won this battle all year - can score at least two more turnovers than the Redskins, then I like their chances. Otherwise, I'm predicting the Redskins to win their second Superbowl in SFL history.
Final Score: 23-17
