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As a blogger for a Broncos blog, I obviously took a lot of heat from the community for the egregious error of listing the Oakland Raiders three full spots from the bottom. Oh the travesty! I sometimes forget how deep the hatred for the Raiders runs in our collective orange and blue blood, but thank you all for reminding me.
In any case, the bottom three teams in my opinion are simply part of a three-legged stool. Which one breaks free first and falls to the floor is anyone's guess.
30. Oakland Raiders (2012 Record: 4-12)
For a short while, I thought the Raiders drafted pretty well; however, reactions and research from their own fanbase has swayed me to think better of rewarding the franchise with a higher ranking. The biggest difference of opinion I had is that I think Tyler Wilson might actually end up being the Raiders starting quarterback this year. His stock plummeted after a down senior season, but if you look at the situation he was in you would be hard pressed to find any quarterback who would thrive in that situation.
Even if Wilson does win the job, the team probably isn't going to do much other than be more competitive. Without Wilson, I think the entire season is going to be a disaster for this club. I see a depth chart wholly devoid of talent, a salary cap disaster and inexperience at both the head coach and general manager position. 30th here might even be generous, but they do play in a weak division.
The long term question with this franchise remains. Will they stay the course long enough to recover from their decade-long dysfunctional run? If they stay the course and keep grinding with the same coaching and front office staff, I think they eventually return to prominence. They are dealing with the fallout of a decade of mismanagement, which has severely limited their ability to field a competitive football team.