Five things to know about the Chiefs’ next opponent: Oakland Raiders (Round 2)
Last week, the Chiefs’ game against the Raiders this Sunday was flexed from a noon kickoff to 3:25 p.m.
At the time, it seemed likely that both teams would have a 7-4 record and the winner Dec. 1 would be all alone in first place atop the AFC West.
But the Raiders were thumped by the Jets Sunday, and that 34-3 loss dropped Oakland’s record to 6-5. Still, it’s a big game because the Chiefs, 7-4, can take a two-game lead in the division standings with a win and would own a tie-breaker over the Raiders. The Chiefs beat the Raiders 28-10 in September at Oakland.
Each week, we take an early look at the Chiefs’ next opponent. Here are five things to know about the Raiders ahead of Sunday’s game, which will be broadcast on CBS (Ch. 5):
1. Check the forecast
Raiders quarterback Derek Carr entered Sunday’s game on a roll, leading Oakland to three straight victories. He had completed 72.3% of his passes for 2,494 yards, 15 touchdowns and just five interceptions this season.
But against the Jets, Carr completed 15 of 27 passes for 127 yards and an interception. His quarterback rating was 52.5.
Carr was pulled in the third quarter in favor of Mike Glennon when the game was out of reach.
It was 43 degrees at kickoff, and the cold may have affected Carr. He is now 2-9 in his career in games that started with the temperature below 50 degrees. Entering Sunday’s game in KC, he has a 66.3 passer rating in his previous 10 cold-weather games.
‘’I love it cold,’‘ Carr assured reporters last week. ‘‘If I could have it 50 degrees in my house, I would. My wife would kill me, but I’d do it. So, I’ve never really minded the cold or anything like that.’‘
That didn’t seem to be the case Sunday.
The forecast for Sunday at Arrowhead: a high of 39 degrees and sunny.
2. Maxx power
Rookie defensive end Maxx Crosby had the Raiders’ lone sack Sunday and has 7 1/2 so far this season.
Crosby, who was picked in the fourth round out of Eastern Michigan, was the AFC’s defensive player of the week after collecting three sacks against the Bengals a week earlier.
Here is his sack of Jets quarterback Sam Darnold:
Two other rookies, defensive ends Clelin Ferrell and cornerback Trayvon Mullen, have also been key contributors to the Raiders’ defense.
But the Raiders’ most impactful rookie is running back Josh Jacobs, who has 957 rushing yards in 201 attempts with seven touchdowns. He is fifth in the NFL in rushing yards per game (87.0). Jacobs is averaging 4.8 yards per attempt, though the Jets held him to 34 yards on 10 carries.
Jacobs was picking up big yardage on first downs heading into Sunday’s game (per ESPN):
The Associated Press noted the Raiders are the first team since sacks became an official stat in 1982 to get at least 10 touchdowns and 10 sacks from rookies in the first 10 games of a season.
3. Third-down success
Oakland converted on just five of 15 third downs against the Jets, well below their season average.
The Raiders had been converting on 47.7% of their third-down plays before Sunday’s game. They are ranked fourth now, converting on 46.1% of third-down plays.
The Chiefs are fifth in the NFL (45.3%).
4. Road kill
The Raiders have struggled away from home. They are 1-4 in road games, having been outscored 161-96.
Oakland was 1-7 away on the road a year ago, Jon Gruden’s first season back as the team’s coach. The Raiders were 2-6 in road games in the 2017 season.
5. Penalties
Only Arizona and Cleveland have been penalized more often this season than Oakland, which has been flagged 92 times. The Raiders have amassed 814 penalty yards, second only to the Browns (892 yards in 94 penalties).
The Raiders were penalized just four times for 35 yards in Sunday’s loss to the Jets.
This story was originally published November 25, 2019 at 9:24 AM.
