Buccaneers at Raiders -- Week 9
Where: O.co Coliseum, Oakland (grass, outdoors)
When: Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET (CBS)
Spread: Raiders by 1.5
Forecast: Partly cloudy with temperatures in the mid-70s and zero percent chance of rain.
Records: Raiders (Overall: 3-4, AFC West: 1-2); Buccaneers (Overall: 3-4, NFC South: 1-1)
Past results: Two most recent meetings -- Dec. 28, 2008: Raiders 31, Bucs 24; Sept. 26, 2004: Raiders 30, Bucs 20. Series record: Raiders lead the regular-season 6-1 and are 5-0 at home. Tampa Bay leads the postseason series 1-0 with a 48-21 victory in Super Bowl XXXVII.
What matters: After starting 1-4, the Raiders have won back-to-back games and can get to .500 at the midpoint of their season with a third straight win Sunday. If they win and Denver loses to Cincinnati, then the Raiders would move into a three-way tie for first place in the AFC West with the Broncos and Chargers at 4-4. To do that, the Raiders will have to beat a surging Bucs team that started 1-3 but has won two of its past three and can get to .500 with a victory.
Who matters: Buccaneers QB Josh Freeman has thrown three TDs passes in each of his past three games, and the Raiders expect him to attack them on deep strikes to 6-foot-5 WR Vincent Jackson, an ex-Charger, and 6-2 WR Mike Williams. It will up to Raiders CBs Michael Huff and Pat Lee, FS Matt Giordano and SS Tyvon Branch to make plays when Freeman throws deep. Raiders RB Darren McFadden rushed for a season-high 114 yards last week against Kansas City, but he had only 17 yards at halftime and did most of his damage in the fourth quarter when a mix of zone and power gap blocking began to give him more room to run. McFadden needs to get untracked earlier, which might not be easy against a Bucs run defense that's ranked sixth in the NFL.
Key matchups: Raiders QB Carson Palmer vs. Bucs pass defense. Palmer is averaging 264 passing yards per game and is on pace to throw for a career-high 4,224 yards. He'll attack a Bucs pass defense that ranks 31st in the NFL, allowing 309.6 yards per game. Palmer has completed at least 14 passes to seven different Raiders, but WR Denarius Moore is his favorite target. Moore has caught a TD pass in three straight games. ... Raiders run defense vs. Bucs RB Doug Martin. Martin, the reigning NFC Offensive Rookie of the Month, ranks 11th in the NFL in rushing with 543 yards. The Raiders rank 11th against the run. If they can contain Martin, then the Raiders can make the Bucs one-dimensional and crank up the pass-rush heat on Freeman. Martin lost one of his best blockers this week when All-Pro G Carl Nicks went on injured reserve with a toe injury.
Injuries of note: Starting CB Shawntae Spencer (foot) and OT Khalif Barnes (groin) will miss their sixth straight games. Starting CB Ron Bartell (broken shoulder blade), who was placed on the short-term injured list after being hurt in the opener, resumed practicing Wednesday but isn't eligible to play until Nov. 11 at Baltimore. OLB Keenan Clayton (shoulder), a special-teams regular, missed practice Friday and is doubtful. MLB Rolando McClain (toe) and backup RB Taiwan Jones (knee) are questionable.
Inside stuff: The Raiders have placed a heavy emphasis during practice this week on their red-zone offense, for good reason. They rank 31st in the NFL in red-zone efficiency with only eight touchdowns in 23 trips inside the 20 (34.8 percent).
Connections: Tampa Bay special teams coordinator Bob Ligashesky was the Raiders' assistant special teams coach in 2011. ... Buccaneers WR/PR Roscoe Parrish was with the Raiders briefly during training camp and played in one preseason game before being cut. ... Raiders defensive backs coach Johnnie Lynn coached Tampa Bay's secondary from 1994-95.
Record watch: DT Tommy Kelly has 33 career sacks and needs one more to move past Rod Martin (33.5) into seventh place on the Raiders' all-time sacks list. Derrick Burgess is sixth with 38.5 sacks.
Stat you should know: The Raiders have scored in the final two minutes of the first half in all seven of their games.
Looking ahead: The Raiders start the second half of their season with a rough road trip to Baltimore and then return home to face Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints. After that, they travel to face Cincinnati, where ex-Raiders coach Hue Jackson landed as an assistant defensive backs/special teams coach.
Prediction: Raiders 27, Buccaneers 24
Follow Raiders reporter Eric Gilmore on Twitter @CBSRaiders.