The Oakland Raiders enter the bye week with a 2-3 record, and while Head Coach Jack Del Rio said that the record is not where he would like it to be, it is a marked improvement from 2014 where the Silver and Black found themselves sitting at 0-4 heading into the bye.
Excluding the Week 1 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, Head Coach Del Rio's team has been supremely competitive in the early stages of the 2015, so now that the team is entering the bye week, let's take some time to look ahead and see what's coming down the pipeline for the Raiders.
Week 7 – at San Diego Chargers
The Chargers currently own a 2-3 record after losing in the final moments of Monday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on a last-second touchdown run by Le'Veon Bell.
Prior to welcoming the Silver and Black to San Diego, the Chargers will travel to Lambeau Field to take on Aaron Rodgers and the undefeated Green Bay Packers.
Through the first five games of the 2015 campaign, Philip Rivers has been his typical gun-slinging self, as he leads the NFL with 1,613 passing yards, so seeing how he and the San Diego offense operates against a young Raiders secondary will be an interesting battle to watch.
Week 8 – vs. New York Jets
Enter Ryan Fitzpatrick, the man who for some reason has become quite the thorn in the side of the Silver and Black in recent years.
The Harvard alumni has defeated the Raiders in back-to-back seasons as a member of two different teams, the Tennessee Titans in 2013 and then the Houston Texans last seasonHe is now the man under center for the New York Jets and is hoping to knock off the Raiders for a third-consecutive season.
Let's also not forget that Fitzpatrick was the starting quarterback for the Buffalo Bills in 2011 when they beat the Raiders 38-35.
Fitzpatrick's current team, the New York Jets have come quickly out of the gates in 2015, boasting a 3-1 record under first-year head coach Todd Bowles, and true to form boast a stout defense, one that is now ranked No. 1 in the NFL, allowing just 280.3 yards per game.
Week 9 – at Pittsburgh Steelers
Following their tilt with the New York Jets at O.co Coliseum, the Raiders will pack their bags and head east to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field.
A photo recap of the Oakland Raiders' 2015-2016 season thus far.
Wide receiver Seth Roberts jumps into the stands after scoring the game-winning touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens.
The Raiders honored legendary quarterback Ken Stabler at halftime of their Week 1 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Rookie wide receiver Amari Cooper scored his first NFL touchdown Week 2 against the Baltimore Ravens.
Derek Carr and Amari Cooper celebrate after the rookie's first NFL touchdown.
Seth Roberts celebrates after scoring a critical touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens.
After more than 17 seaosns, safety Charles Woodson finally picked off Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning.
He did it, not once, but twice.
Not bad for a guy who just turned 39.
Cornerback Neiko Thorpe celebrates after the Raiders secured their first win of the 2015 season.
Charles Woodson intercepts quarterback Jay Cutler during the team's Week 4 game against the Chicago Bears.
Head Coach Jack Del Rio celebrates after notching his first win as head coach of the Oakland Raiders.
Seth Roberts comes down with another touchdown, this time against the Cleveland Browns.
Amari Cooper hauls in a pass from Derek Carr for his second career touchdown.
Amari Cooper rises up to haul in another pass from Derek Carr.
The Raiders defense swarms to the ball carrier in their matchup with the Cleveland Browns.
Running back Latavius Murray breaks away from a would-be defender.
Kicker Sebastian Janikowski set the record for the most games played by a Raider Week 5 against the Denver Broncos.
Running back Roy Helu, Jr., evades a tackler en route to the end zone.
Linebacker Aldon Smith sacks Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.
The team huddles up pregame.
Derek Carr runs out of the tunnel before the team's Week 1 game with the Cincinnati Bengals.
The team honors America before kickoff.
When the Silver and Black arrive in the Steel City, the question on everyone's mind will be; who will be under center for the Pittsburgh Steelers?
Ben Roethlisberger suffered an MCL sprain in Pittsburgh's Week 3 game against the St. Louis Rams – an injury that was expected to sideline the Steelers starting quarterback for between four and six weeks.
Veteran signal-caller Michael Vick has performed admirably in his absence, leading the team to a 3-2 record, but make no mistake about it, the Steeler offense is vastly different, and better, when Roethlisberger is under center.
Week 10 vs. Minnesota Vikings
A rematch of a 2015 preseason tilt.
The Raiders traveled to Minnesota in Week 2 of the preseason, eventually falling to the Vikings 20-12, but after the game Head Coach Del Rio expressed his lack of concern in the result, noting that by the time the two matched up again they would be two very different teams.
And Head Coach Del Rio is right, as 13 weeks will have passed between the team's meetings.
As it stands right now, the Vikings hold a record of 2-2 and are led by running back Adrian Peterson who is currently ranked 8th in the NFL with 372 rushing yards.
The matchup between the Raiders and Vikings also serves as a rematch of Super Bowl XI which the Silver and Black won 32-14 after the 1976 season.
