5. OT Trent Brown

Offensive tackle Trent Brown figures to have a good day pushing the Bengals’ defense around in the run game, allowing Jacobs to potentially run wild.

The high-priced free-agent helped solidify the front line for the Raiders, powering Gruden’s west coast offense. Jacobs already set the franchise record for rookie runners, and Carr has been sacked just 12 times thus far. He’s been worth every penny of his record contract.

And Brown knows what it takes to win a Super Bowl, having won it all last season with an AFC team on the east coast. He knows the Raiders can’t look past the Bengals. Instead, the club must treat Cincinnati as though they’re the best team in the league, or at least, a team of trained professionals coming to take what’s rightfully theirs.

If the Raiders play the brand of football they’re capable of, they’ll get past this challenge and keep pace with the AFC West-leading Chiefs, who have the same number of losses as Oakland does. But it’s not time to think about that. It’s time to focus on the Bengals — the best team the Raiders play this week.

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