New England Patriots @ New York Jets Sun. Nov. 13, 2011 8:20 p.m. EST

This season one of the most competitive divisions in the NFL has been the AFC East. Usually, this division is dominated by the perennial Super Bowl title contending New England Patriots with Bill Belichick’s squad winning the division title on an annual basis, but this season has been just bit different with the Buffalo Bills emerging as a promising young football team and the New York Jets getting back to form as one of the league’s elite defenses.

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Despite the Patriots being a solid football team once again this season, Tom Brady and his seemingly unstoppable offense has started to struggle as of late with two straight losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers (25-17) and the New York Giants (24-10). The loss to the Steelers is understandable with Pittsburgh having one of the best defenses in the NFL every single year, but the loss to the Giants still has many Patriots fans scratching their heads as New York is by no means an elite team in the NFC Conference this season.

Bill Belichick

These two losses have shed some light on the obvious flaws of the New England Patriots with this storied franchise continuing to have struggles on the defensive side of the football. The Patriots’ offense might be second to none when Tom Brady and company are firing on all cylinders, but the last two weeks have been hard on New England with this team looking like they might be losing their grip on the AFC East division.

In Week 10, the New England Patriots will go on the road to face off against the arch division rival New York Jets in what will almost certainly be the most important game of the season for Bill Belichick’s squad. Not only are the Patriots in desperate need of a win in order to bounce back from the two disappointing losses over the last two weeks, but if they intend of contending for the AFC East division title they will need to beat the Jets for the second time this season.

With the New York Jets getting the best of the Buffalo Bills last week (27-11), Mark Sanchez and company have moved up to second place in the AFC East division and will be on the verge of claiming the top spot with a win over the New England Patriots. Unlike the Patriots, the Jets have been red-hot as of late with three straight wins over the Miami Dolphins (24-6), San Diego Chargers (27-21) and the Buffalo Bills.

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Not only has the Jets’ defense really stepped up over the last three weeks, but the offense has been much better than expected with 24 or more points in all three wins. Even though the Patriots beat the Jets in Week 5 (30-21), New York has been favored to avenge that loss in Week 10 with a -2 point spread.

Take the Jets at -2.

Over the past decade or so, the Oakland Raiders have basically been nothing more than a joke in the AFC Conference as increasing senile owner Al Davis has made bad move after bad move and run the storied NFL franchise into the ground. Last season, the Raiders did see some signs of a bright future as they became one of the best running teams in the league led by Pro Bowler Darren McFadden and were able to go undefeated in AFC West divisional play (6-0).

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Oakland Raiders

Despite going undefeated in the AFC West, the Raiders missed the playoffs and made NFL history in the process by being the only team in NFL history to go undefeated in divisional play and failed to win the division title or go to the playoffs. This was obviously nothing to be proud of, but it was a step in the right direction for the struggling franchise and so far this season it appears that this team continues to be a squad on the rise in the NFL.

In Week 1, the Oakland Raiders were able to hold off the arch rival Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football to get the season started off on the right foot. The following week looked like more of the season for the silver and black as they led the Buffalo Bills by 18 points and were headed to a 2-0 start to the year.

Unfortunately, Ryan Fitzpatrick and company showed their resilience as they pulled off the amazing comeback and handed the Oakland Raiders their first loss of the season. This was a disappointing loss, but the team played great all-around and looked like they were on the ball.

Hue Jackson

In Week 3, Hue Jackson and his boys were set to face their toughest test thus far this season by going head-to-head against Rex Ryan and the New York Jets. With the Jets winning their first two games of the season against the Dallas Cowboys and the Jacksonville Jaguars, the consensus was that Mark Sanchez and company would most likely cruise to victory against the Oakland Raiders, but that didn’t turn out to be the case as the Raiders showed their true colors and their true potential to be a playoff team this season.

The New York Jets have been known for their lockdown defense over the past two years in the Rex Ryan era, but their defense seriously struggled against the potent ground game of the Oakland Raiders. Pro Bowl running back Darren McFadden had another impressive performance in Week 3 by lighting up the Jets secondary for 171 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.

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Even though Jets’ quarterback Mark Sanchez had a solid game with 369 passing yards and two passing touchdowns, the former USC gunslinger just couldn’t lead his team to victory on Sunday in the Bay Area as the resurgent Oakland Raiders came out with the 34-24 win over the New York Jets.

Things will only get tougher for the Oakland Raiders next week as they will host the New England Patriots in a game that could be one of the week’s best with the Patriots looking to avenge the loss to the Buffalo Bills and the Raiders trying to improve their record to 3-1.

New York Jets @ Oakland Raiders Sun. Sept. 25, 2011 4:05 p.m. EST

The New York Jets and the Oakland Raiders are two teams in the NFL considered to be the rebels or the outcasts of the league. Along with having the rebel mentality with infamous owner Al Davis and flamboyant head coach Rex Ryan calling the shots, the Jets and the Raiders are pretty good football teams that have seen somewhat of a resurgence of sorts in the last couple of years.

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There is no question that the New York Jets have been able to turn around their struggling NFL franchise over the past few years under Rex Ryan after making it to two straight AFC Conference championships, but the Oakland Raiders have had a bit more trouble trying to get back to prominence in the AFC with failed draft picks and questionable moves by Al Davis.

Oakland Raiders

Last season the Oakland Raiders had their most successful season since making it to the Super Bowl back in 2002 as they were able to go undefeated in the AFC West division (6-0) and finished the year with an overall record of 8-8. Unfortunately, the Raiders missed the playoffs and were unable to win the AFC West division title which went to the Kansas City Chiefs.

This year the Raiders will be looking to get back on track once again and finally get back into the playoffs, but they have already suffered one loss this season after the Buffalo Bills made a brilliant comeback against the boys in silver and black last week. Despite the disappointing loss to the Bills, the Raiders looked solid on offense with a good mix of run and pass.

With that being said, the Oakland Raiders might be coming into their own and could be a handful for the New York Jets in Week 3. The Jets are coming off two impressive wins in consecutive weeks over the Dallas Cowboys and the Jacksonville Jaguars, but this week they will be on the road against an improved Oakland Raiders squad that will be looking to give Mark Sanchez and company a run for their money.

New York Jets

Even though both of these teams have vastly improved on the offensive side of the football over the past two years, this game could be ruled by defense. The New York Jets are considered to be one of the best defenses in the NFL led by perennial Pro Bowlers Antonio Cromartie and Darrelle Revis, but the Oakland Raiders have emerged as one of the better defenses in the NFL as well with young players leading the way and suffocating potent offenses.

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Last week the Raiders defense did find it a challenge to limit the Bills offense, but this defense is still better than most and will try to put Mark Sanchez on his back in Week 3. As of right now, the New York Jets are favored to come out on top in this gritty showdown between tough defenses with a -4 point spread.

Take the Jets at -4.

#1 Green Bay Packers

The defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers will start the NFL regular season as the league’s top dogs and the favorite to win it all at season’s end. Whether or not Aaron Rodgers and company can live up to the hype and dominate the NFL remains to be seen, but this season they will get off to quick start against one of the league’s elite in the New Orleans Saints.

With a potent and a lockdown like the Packers have, this team has the potential to be a great team for a longtime, but this season they will have to deal with the pressure of a being a defending champ and if they can continue to play well they might be Super Bowl bound once again.

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#2 New England Patriots

The New England Patriots were arguably the best team in the NFL during the regular season last year, but dropped the ball against the division rival New York Jets in the playoffs. This season Tom Brady and company will be back with a vengeance and some upgrades on both sides of the football with the additions of Pro Bowl wide receiver Chad Ochocinco and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth.

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If Ochocinco and Haynesworth payoff, the Jets will be in trouble in the AFC East division and the Patriots will be incredibly tough to stop once again this season.

#3 Pittsburgh Steelers

Last season the Pittsburgh Steelers were able to become one of the league’s elite teams once again as they dominated the competition in the AFC Conference and got all the way to the Super Bowl. Despite losing to the Green Bay Packers in the big game last February, the Pittsburgh Steelers will come into this NFL regular season looking to get right back on track and become a dominant squad once again.

The competition has only gotten tougher for the Pittsburgh Steelers as they will have to face an improved Baltimore Ravens team within their own division (AFC North), but Big Ben and company seem confident they can compete with the best of the best this year.

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#4 Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles made a lot of noise in the NFL offseason by adding multiple Pro Bowlers and becoming the Miami Heat of the NFL. Now that they have tons of weapons on both sides of the football and have re-signed superstar quarterback Michael Vick to a $100 million dollar deal, the Eagles are built to win now and will have extremely high expectations heading into the NFL regular season.

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#5 New Orleans Saints

Last year was a disappointment for the New Orleans Saints as they failed to win the NFC South division title and lost in the first round of the playoffs against the lowly Seattle Seahawks. This year they seem to be ready to turn things around with a new-look in the backfield with rookie running back Mark Ingram.

Whether or not the New Orleans Saints can get the best of the Atlanta Falcons and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC South remains to be seen, but they will definitely be looking to bounce back with a vengeance this season.