Breaking Down the Raiders’ Victory Over the Chiefs

Some numbers to run by you after the Raiders’ win on Sunday: the Raiders are 6 and 0 at Arrowhead Stadium. Carson Palmer threw another gratuitous interception, this time in the first quarter of the game. The Raiders at one time went 1 for 10 on third down conversions and ended up 2 for 12 on the day. The Chiefs had 4 turnovers on the game. The Silver and Black are now 3-4 on the year.

That’s a lot of information. The grand news is the Raiders won over the KC Chiefs. A delightful day in the chilly sunshine in Kansas City, Missouri. A well deserved victory for all Raider fans, as well as the players, coaches, and front office.

Brady Quinn – we all hope he is O.K. and he is getting the treatment he needs to recover from his injury.

Carson Palmer has to be the best old guy (32 years old) out there. Play after play Hali,Houston, and other Chief defensive players harassed the Raider QB but he didn’t give up, he didn’t flinch, he kept playing. He finished, and that is what the Raiders did, finished as a team, and came away with a victory.

Palmer finished the day 14/28 for 209 yards well below his average of 277 yards  per game. His leadership and character are the foundation this team is counting on. He connected with seven different receivers and the newly named tandem of M&M, Myers and Moore had eight receptions between them. A very good day for the  young productive receivers.

Darren McFadden worked harder than any other running back on Sunday to gain his 114 yards. Every yard he gained was over, around, through, several chef players. McFadden paid for every yard he gained on Sunday with blood, sweat and tears. Run DMC made a difference.

Play calling is still a question, the offensive line when they move laterally it takes away from their punch and drive. The down hill sweep had some effectiveness that allowed players to get a hat on a hat, and create holes that McFadden could power thru. Kudos to the offensive line of the raiders.. You won the skirmishes on Sunday, allowing the silver and black to win the Battle and grab a victory.

Sebastian Janikowski had another outstanding day. Four FG on the afternoon, Gus the mule would be impressed. Six times the raiders were inside the RED ZONE and came away with two touchdowns and four FG. Shane Lechler averaged 42.7 yards on six  punts.

This dynamic duo can add points from 52-60 yards out on a FG, and flip the field on an offense on a field position punt.

The Raider defensive front seven pushed all day long against the chef offensive line that was not holding up to the pressure. The three sacks on the afternoon do not tell the story on how the chef Qb’s where out of rhythm all afternoon. The 11 knockdowns, half a dozen hurries, and 3 sacks accounted for many of the incomplete passes on the day.

The one time NFL rushing leader this year was limited to five attempts as he gained four yards, (that correct four yards) for an average of 0.8 per carry. Charles had been averaging 5.0 yards per carry and over 85 yards per game.

Seymour, Mcclain, Wheeler where members of the sack pack all collecting one sack each. Lee, and Giordano both tallied an interception. Kelly and Condo recovered a fumble a-piece to seal the deal on the day for the Chiefs.

Phillip Wheeler was a one man wrecking crew as he had eleven tackles on the day.

This was truly a game the raiders did not lose they stayed with the game plan ran downhill and attacked on defense. Reducing fumbles and interceptions increased their chances of winning.

It’s been awhile but the Raiders should have some confidence on both sides of the ball. Not cocky, but they should feel good about the way they played. Take the consistency and apply it to your formula for a victory over the Bucs.

“Confidence is contagious; so is lack of confidence”

-Vince Lombardi

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