Dolphins playoff chances still disappointing despite win over Raiders

The Las Vegas Raiders put up a better fight than most fans thought was possible, but the Miami Dolphins offense was too much for the Raiders to handle.

Miami consistently put up long drives all game long. The Dolphins opened with two eight-minute plus drives and then posted two others of over seven and one just under six minutes. Las Vegas couldn't overcome their own mistakes and Miami's time of possession.

With the victory, the Dolphins improved their record to four wins and stayed in the thick of the playoff chase, which they are not out of yet. Entering Week 11, Miami was holding the 10th spot in the AFC. Seven teams will make the playoffs.

After Sunday's games, the Dolphins moved up one spot in the AFC standings to No. 9, and things could have gone a lot better for Miami this week, but they didn't get hurt by the rest of the NFL.

The four division leaders in the AFC currently are the Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, Houston Texans, and Pittsburgh Steelers, who knocked the Baltimore Ravens down a peg with a huge win on Sunday.

The Los Angeles Chargers held on to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday night and improved to 7-3, which kept them well ahead of the Dolphins in the AFC standings.

Miami Dolphins need a lot of help to get in the playoffs after slow start

The loss by the Bengals did help, however, as it drops them to 4-7 and a game behind Miami in the AFC.

The Indianapolis Colts victory over the New York Jets on Sunday could have gone better for the Dolphins' seeding, but the Colts are now 1.5 games ahead of Miami with a 5-6 record.

The Dolphins are not chasing Indianapolis, though. They are chasing the Denver Broncos, who won again convincingly on Sunday. The Broncos improved their record to 6-5 with the win, and they hold the No. 7 seed in the AFC as it stands today and are playing quite well.

If Miami is going to have a chance to get into the postseason, they are going to need a lot of help. Specifically, they need the Chargers and Broncos to start losing games.

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