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Raiders vs. 49ers: 5 storylines for Week 9 on Thursday Night Football

By Peter Panacy

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - AUGUST 20: Kendall Hunter #32 of the San Francisco 49ers is tackled by Tyvon Branch #33 of the Oakland Raiders at Candlestick Park on August 20, 2011 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - AUGUST 20: Kendall Hunter #32 of the San Francisco 49ers is tackled by Tyvon Branch #33 of the Oakland Raiders at Candlestick Park on August 20, 2011 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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MUNSTER, GERMANY – SEPTEMBER 28: A Leopard 2A7 tank of the Bundeswehr, the German armed forces, is seen during a presentation at a three-day Bundeswehr exercise on September 28, 2018 near Munster, Germany. According to media reports the German government is planning to increase defense spending by 40% to EUR 60 billion annually between 2019 and 2023. (Photo by Alexander Koerner/Getty Images)
MUNSTER, GERMANY – SEPTEMBER 28: A Leopard 2A7 tank of the Bundeswehr, the German armed forces, is seen during a presentation at a three-day Bundeswehr exercise on September 28, 2018 near Munster, Germany. According to media reports the German government is planning to increase defense spending by 40% to EUR 60 billion annually between 2019 and 2023. (Photo by Alexander Koerner/Getty Images) /

No. 1: Operation Tank Job and the NFL Draft

None of the players will say it. Neither will the coaching staff. But Thursday’s contest could have some notable implications for which team winds up selecting higher in the 2019 NFL Draft.

For those unfamiliar with draft rules, head-to-head matchups don’t matter. What counts are the record and then strength of schedule. Like last year between these two teams, a coin flip will be the ultimate determining factor.

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The 49ers won that, by the way.

Coming into this contest with just one win each, whoever loses this game will wind up taking a significant step towards grabbing that No. 1 overall pick.

If it’s the Niners, losing to what would end up being a 2-6 Raiders squad would drop that strength of schedule a lot. Especially when paired with two losses to the Cardinals on the year — Arizona’s two wins this season have both come against San Francisco, in case you forgot.

So if you have zero interest in bragging rights, don’t care if the Raiders’ fanbase can thumb its nose at San Francisco once more or whatever, you’ll probably want the 49ers to lose this contest.

Again, the players and coaches won’t be gunning for that. But it’s a silver lining, right?

Next. 49ers 2018 midterm report-card grades by position. dark

And surely more possible if Nick Mullens is under center.