Oakland Raiders: The Good, Bad, And Ugly In Loss To The Chiefs
By Kevin Saito
The Oakland Raiders squared off with division rival Kansas City and walked away with a humbling, disjointed effort in the loss.
The Oakland Raiders went into their matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs with a chance to tighten their grip on first place in the AFC West. They also had the opportunity to silence many of their critics who don’t believe they’re nearly as good as their 4-1 record (at the time) would indicate. They came away from the game with neither. And if anything, the voices of their critics have only grown louder.
The effort the team put forward against Kansas City was their worst of the season. By far. Not just statistically speaking, but in terms of overall performance. The offense couldn’t find a spark anywhere. Outside of their first drive, the Oakland offense was stymied all day long and couldn’t manage to put together any sort of momentum.
The defense – well, what more needs to be said about the defense? They didn’t look like they could have stopped the Chiefs if Kansas City had played with eight guys blindfolded and handcuffed on the field. The Chiefs got whatever they wanted from the Raiders defense – and then some.
And even the special teams, usually a solid group on this Raiders squad, chipped in by giving up a 50 yard punt return to Tyreek Hill and a missed field goal.
Of course, some will place much of the blame on the sloppy play on the weather and field conditions. But as Amari Cooper said postgame, the Chiefs had to play in it too.
The bottom line is that the Raiders got their backsides handed to them by Andy Reid and the Chiefs. They were beaten – soundly – in all three phases of the game. When you get whooped that thoroughly, it’s not surprising that you walk away with a 26-10 loss that didn’t even feel that close.
The good news is that the Raiders can now turn the page and focus on their next game. They’ve got another opportunity to clean up their mess this coming Sunday in Jacksonville. But for now, let’s look back at the week that was and delve a little deeper into the good, the bad, and the ugly from the loss to Kansas City.