The Oakland Raiders have had a strong start to 2016. It's a departure of sorts for a franchise that has too long dwelled in the NFL's basement, but it's also a continuation of what has become a promising culture shift under GM Reggie McKenzie and soon-to-be second-year Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio. It all started, of course, with the 2014 NFL Draft, which landed dominant defensive presence Khalil Mack, as well as franchise quarterback Derek Carr, in Oakland. It continued this past season with smart free agent signings like wide receiver Michael Crabtree and another round of draft hits like Amari Cooper, Clive Walford and, if everything checks out medically, Mario Edwards Jr.
That Raider revamping again took steps forward over the last few weeks with the signing of the best offensive lineman, perhaps the best overall player, available on the NFL's free agent market in Kelechi Osemele, continued with deals for uber-talented linebacker/pass-rusher Bruce Irvin and physical press corner Sean Smith, and culminated (at least for now) in the re-signing of offensive tackle Donald Penn.
Put it all together and there is, finally, after 13 playoff-less seasons, six last place finishes in the AFC West and innumerable draft misses and forgettable free agent pickups, real, solid, tangible reason for optimism for Raider Nation.
The question then becomes - are the Raiders still in rebuild mode? Or is it high time we started taking them more seriously?
Like, playoffs seriously?
Really, even with all the positive momentum it's still too early to say anything definitive about the overall state of the team, let alone the individual ceilings for a number of the Raiders' young talents. But looking around the AFC West, it's not hard to see that the Raiders have made up serious ground on teams like the Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs didn't get worse this offseason, but neither have they gotten appreciably better. Keeping long-tenured pass-rusher Tamba Hali may have been a smart move, but there's no telling how effective Hali will be in his age 32 season after suffering through an injury-shortened 2015 campaign. Mitchell Schwartz was a good add, but he's just "a guy," not a difference-maker at tackle. Kansas City remains a team dependent on quarterback Alex Smith. That's an iffy proposition.
The Broncos, of course, are still without an answer at quarterback, unless John Elway thinks Mark Sanchez can be "the guy." Adding offensive linemen like Russell Okung and Donald Stephenson was smart, but it matters little if they don't have anyone to block for. And that vaunted Bronco defense, though it will remain one of the best, if not the outright best in the league, will be without Malik Jackson and safety David Bruton.
As for the San Diego Chargers, Philip Rivers continues to age and Mike McCoy - should he last beyond next season - has yet to find a ready replacement. The offense was extremely lopsided last year and running back Melvin Gordon would need to improve greatly on his poor rookie year to make an impact in 2016.
The AFC in general again looks strong with the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers likely to represent the class of the conference, but there's no knowing how a team like Baltimore will recover from a down year or how Cincinnati will deal with its personnel losses, on the field and along the sidelines, and how Indy and Houston will perform with new and returning pieces.
In short, all of that Raider optimism isn't without merit. But just counting on the downfall of rivals isn't a surefire means to success.
Continuing the climb up the NFL ladder will require, first and foremost, further maturation for several young players in Oakland, most notably Carr.
At the heart of the Raiders' resurrection is their young franchise signal-caller. Carr, McKenzie's second-round pick in 2014, took the league by storm that season, posting a stat-line of 348 completions, 3,270 yards, 21 touchdowns and 12 interceptions and, more importantly, playing like a guy well beyond his age and experience.
With Del Rio and offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave aboard and Cooper and Crabtree added in the offseason, Carr's numbers took a step forward in 2015. He finished the season with more completions (35), yards (3,987), touchdowns (32) and a higher completion percentage (61.1) and a better quarterback rating (91.1).
The increased focus on adding weapons to Carr and Musgrave's arsenal paid immediate dividends. It's almost a foregone conclusion that upgrading the blocking in front of him with Osemele and Penn and maybe even a draft pick or two will only serve to expedite his maturation process, as well as that of Cooper and running back Latavius Murray.
Should things go as planned in terms of player development and McKenzie add another impact piece or two come the 2016 NFL Draft, there's really no reason to think the Raiders can't make a run at a playoff spot in the AFC. Is it assured? Not at all. That's why they play the games.
But with Carr looking more and more like the real deal and Mack, Irvin, Edwards and Smith comprising a strong core of defensive talent, the future is certainly bright in Oakland.
A playoff spot may well come next season, but even if it doesn't, Raider Nation can rest easy knowing that it's only a matter of time before postseason football makes its way to Oaktown.
