The Raiders enter Week 13 as the ultimate underdogs against the Chiefs

The Oakland Raiders will enter their Week 13 matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs as the ultimate underdogs. But for the Raiders, it’s a must-win.

The Oakland Raiders season is at a crossroads as they travel to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 13. In every imaginable way, the Raiders should stand no chance of winning this game.

But with their season on the line, it’s a game they simply have to win.

The Raiders currently hold a 6-5 record still right in the thick of things in the AFC wild-card race and only a game back of the Chiefs who stand alone atop the AFC West with a 7-4 record. On paper, that doesn’t seem as lopsided as it’s being made out to be.

But the Raiders are 9.5-point underdogs for a reason.

Oakland is fresh off a disastrous letdown last week in which they were blown out on the road by the New York Jets to the tune of a 34-3 thrashing. After three straight victories, it wasn’t exactly the result that Raiders fans were looking for.

On the other hand, the Chiefs will be returning from a bye week in which they were able to get healthier and well-rested for this crucial divisional matchup. And historically speaking, that bodes well for head coach Andy Reid and the Chiefs.

Reid is an incredible 17-3 when coming off a bye week as few coaches make better use of the extra preparation time than he does. The Chiefs will be fresh, rested, and prepared.

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Meanwhile, the Raiders will try not to let last week’s embarrassment hang over their heads for too long. Unfortunately, poor timing isn’t the only thing that the Silver and Black will have working against them.

The Raiders won’t be playing this one in the comfy confines of the Coliseum. Instead, they will be traveling to Arrowhead Stadium in downtown Kansas City — a place where they have struggled immensely over the years.

To find the last Raiders victory in Arrowhead you have to travel all the way back to 2012, the first year of the Dennis Allen era. In the six years since then, the Raiders have yet to win a game on the road in Kansas City.

And only one of those six losses has been within seven points.

In his five career starts in Arrowhead, quarterback Derek Carr is a swift 0-5 and his performances haven’t exactly been inspiring either. In 11 career starts against the Chiefs (either home or away), Carr has just a 2-9 record and had thrown 14 touchdowns to go along with 11 interceptions.

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And his 74.8 QB rating is his worst against any team in the NFL. Carr underwhelms against the Chiefs, especially on the road in Kansas City.

Not only will the Chiefs enter this game with all the momentum on their side and an extra week of preparation and rest, but they will have history in their favor in more than one way.

It’s the perfect storm of events that make this matchup seemingly a foregone conclusion before kickoff. But of course, no game is won until all 60 minutes tick off the clock.

The Raiders seem like the ultimate underdogs mostly because they are. But even an underdog stands a fighting chance.

They’ve been proving people wrong all year. And with their season on the line, the Raiders will need to show that there’s still some fight left in these underdogs.