Chiefs Make It Look Easy

Final: OAK 9 KC 40

Here we go with another post before the game ends. This team is nowhere near close to being a playoff team. A blowout loss last week. A blowout this week. I am not surprised that this team continues to fold in big moments.

The only positive was the running game. This was exactly the game plan to keep Mahomes and the red hot offense off the field. Josh Jacobs had over 100+ rushing yards. And that's that. You can't really fault the defense on this one. This team had three turnovers. That's the last thing you wanted to do. And the Chiefs made them pay. Carr threw a pick to Tyrann Mathieu after a solid opening drive. Trevor Davis fumbled on the kickoff return. Carr threw a pick 6. All those turnovers allowed the Chiefs to jump to a 21-0 lead. And they never looked back as Mahomes and the offense absolutely gashed this team. As I said, you can't completely blame the defense on this when the offense outside of the running game couldn't anything going. The Raiders went the length of the game to throw one completed pass to a wideout. That's just sad.

Let's talk about Derek Carr for a bit. He makes us Raider fans bipolar. When he plays great, he's great. When he plays poor, he's garbage. It's a controversial topic. Of course, it's a team game. He's not completely to blame. But, let's face facts here. The Raiders are paying him over $100 million just to play game manager and play scared in the pocket. Both Reggie McKenzie previously and Mike Mayock thus far have invested so many resources to build a talented offensive unit around him. And he can't deliver. You can pin some blame on the turnover for offensive coordinators that Carr had the over the years. You can blame the Antonio Brown fiasco. You can blame the turnover from the 2016 and 2017 rosters. But you know what separates the Aaron Rodgers' of the world? The Russell Wilsons of the world? Heck, even the Tom Brady's of the world? They find ways to make the team better with the weapons they have, with the O-line they have. You don't hear many fans clamoring that they need to give them more talent on that unit or give them more time to learn a new system.

For six years, we've made those kinds of excuses for Carr. He needs a better O-line. Reggie McKenzie gave him that with Gabe Jackson and Rodney Hudson and later, Mike Mayock gave him that with Trent Brown. He needs weapons. They give him Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree and later Jared Cook and Darren Waller. He needs a running game. They gave him Marshawn Lynch who still had some left in the tank and drafted a stud in Josh Jacobs. All those years, they've invested on the offensive end to build around Carr. Hence why they couldn't build up the defense as well. Because all of the investments is going to Carr and the offense. I love DC the person. He had some good years in 2015 and 2016. But, it's time to take the blinders off for good. He may be the record holder of stats in franchise history. But, the overall W-L record as a starter, the record in cold weather games, and the record against the Chiefs speak for themselves. He stares down receivers. He's too timid to extend plays with his legs nowadays. There's no time to give him more time. He's either the guy or he's not. It's time to look this in the mirror.

**Next week, I will not be posting all week. The semester is ending and I gotta put all my writing efforts for a Master's paper in progress. Lakers' Weekly Roundup for this week will be posted soon. Then, I'm going dark from this blog all of next week.**

Raiders Flop in AFC West Battle vs. Chiefs

Welcome in to the full recap of the Raiders' Week 14 road matchup vs. the Kansas City Chiefs where 1st place in the AFC West was on the line, but the Raiders didn't show up for three quarters as they fell to the Chiefs 15-26.

Such an epic fail of epic proportions. But I've seen worse as a Raider fan throughout the losing seasons. This was a game the Raiders had to have not only to be on top of the AFC West, but to keep their playoff hopes alive. And they wet the bed big time today. The first possession of the game set the tone with an incomplete pass to Coop, a run to Lynch for a minimal gain, and a sack on Carr to force a quick 3 and out against a Chiefs defense that's missing some key players. The Chiefs offense under Alex Smith was anemic through the past 6 losses, but they clicked against the Raiders' weak secondary. The Raiders offense finally woke up in the 4th quarter to make the final stretch of the game entertaining after three quarters of mundane football. But 26 down with 7 minutes to go in the 4th, especially when those scores were because of the defense being on the field for too long is a tall task to come back from.

(+)

Slash Bros. Bruce Irvin with two sacks. Khalil Mack with one sack. Irvin looked like he had a third sack this game, but the stats sheet say NaVorro Bowman had that sack. I saw that play again where they had pressure on Smith and it looked like Bowman had the sack rather than Irvin. But aside from that, the Slash Bros came to play today as I said countless times in the comments sections. They were doing their jobs generating outside and inside pressure on Smith.

Jared Cook, 5 receptions, 75 yards, 1 TD. It took all three quarters for the offense to finally go to Jared. Why? When the receivers were not connecting with Derek Carr, it's obvious they have to go to the Tight End who can catch! Why wait to find Cook when the game was pretty much out of reach? 

(-)

Entire offense. Like I keep saying, it took three quarters for the offense to finally show up. From Todd Downing's playcalling, to Derek Carr being off target with the receivers, to the receivers dropping balls, the offense was stagnant until the fourth quarter. Shorthanded Chiefs defense and the offense was nearly shut out. So many predictable screens that even a pop warner defense can see through the play. They keep running the ball in singleback formation, which is why Lynch got stuffed early on and why Washington got stuffed when he was giving Lynch a break. Why not run more I Formations when running the ball? It's always gotta be in Singleback formation whenever they call run. That's what's frustrating. Derek Carr was off target. I'm starting to be convinced that it was way too preemptive to give him that extension when he was just coming off a major injury. Receivers dropping balls, looks like the Raiders need to hire new receiver coaches in addition to giving Downing the boot for a proven OC. This offense has been frustrating to watch all season long. They are too talented to be held down like this.

Secondary. No surprises here that there's still problem in the secondary. The Chiefs exposed that big time throwing the ball to Tyreek Hill and Hill just carved up Carrie and McDonald all game long.

Marquette King. This was not good game punting-wise for Marquette King. A 40.9 average on 7 punts is not good. Most of his punts today didn't reach past Kansas City territory, which is why the Chiefs had good field position in some of their drives today. I'd say he only had one good punt today when he punt the ball out of bounds inside the 20 to prevent Tyreek Hill from fielding a decent return. One deep punt went for a touchback and the rest gave Kansas City good field position to start.

MVP

Bruce Irvin, 4 tackles, 2 sacks

Had to give it to one of the Slash Bros. But, Bruce deserves this one considering he's been playing better since Pagano took over. One of the few players who came to play today in this critical division battle.






Conclusion

While the Raiders are not mathematically eliminated, this loss pretty much shuts up any hope of running the table any further. This whole season has been one big disappointment. The most overhyped season after an overachieving 12-4 season playing against sub .500 teams. This was the season where the Raiders needed to prove that last season was no fluke. And with the lackluster season, they're proving that last year was a fluke. Today summed it up. Critical matchup of their lives against a reeling Chiefs team and the Raiders looked more like the team who just lost six straight games rather than the Chiefs. Not much to say. With playoff hopes fading, the Raiders just need to salvage what they can heading into next season. And definitely, expect drastic changes to follow after this debacle of a season. Raiders play the Cowboys next week on Sunday Night. That matchup was supposed be the preview of the Super Bowl, but it's looking more like both teams are playing for pride with their playoff hopes on life support. I'll see you guys next week for that game.

Week 14: RAIDERS @ Chiefs 2nd Half Open Thread and Discussion

This is the 2nd half open thread of the Raiders-Chiefs Week 14 divisional matchup for 1st place in the AFC West. As usual, leave a comment below and share your thoughts on the game.

Q4

OAK 15 KC 26

A little drama in the final quarter in this game, but the Raiders waited a little too long to finally get things going on offense. Coming from 26 down in the middle of the 4th quarter is insurmountable. Good effort though with the Lynch TD, the onside kick recovery, the TD to Cook, and the 2-point to Crab, but all for naught if they couldn't do that in the first three quarters of the game. Stay tuned for the full recap.

Q3

OAK 0 KC 26

That last sack from Justin Houston sums up how poor this offense is playing. From Derek Carr to the offensive line to the receivers, nothing positive is generating from this unit. Todd Downing put together a really pathetic gameplan against this shorthanded Chiefs defense. This offense has been a disappointment all season long. 

Week 14: RAIDERS @ Kansas City Chiefs 1st Half Open Thread and Discussion

The fight for first place in the AFC West race! This is the first half open thread of the Raiders' Week 14 road matchup against the Chiefs. Leave a comment below and share your thoughts on the game.

Q2

OAK 0 KC 16

With the way this first half went you might as well rewrite this from Raiders vs. Chiefs to Khalil Mack and Bruce Irvin vs. the Chiefs. As I said in the comments, they are the only one's coming out to play. They're the only players who look like they really want this game. 3 sacks from Bruce. Khalil had a sack. Both are generating outside and inside pressure on Alex Smith. They are carrying this team. The rest of the defense is giving up a lot of pass plays. I was skeptical about the defense in the last two games and now they're playing against a proven QB and they're getting roasted. The offense, don't get me started. The playcalling is garbage. Todd Downing is calling all kinds of predictable screens and running run plays in singleback formation again! Derek Carr and the receivers are not on the same page. Marquette King is not having a good day punting the ball and pinning KC deep. This is the season is right here and it seems that they don't want it. The 2nd half will open up shortly.

Q1

OAK 0 KC 3

Terrible is an overused statement to describe this first quarter. The Raiders get first possession of the game, here were the plays: dropped pass, a run for no gain, and a sack allowed from the O-line. Story of the season on how underwhelming this offense is. KC's defense is shorthanded and the offense outside of Marshawn Lynch's big run cannot generate anything. Meanwhile the defense did its job the last two possessions. The D-line is creating pressure. Bruce Irvin already has two sacks. But, the secondary is starting to break, giving up big pass plays against a really anemic Chiefs passing game. Right now, the Raiders look really unfocused on what's at hand in this game. I'm sure all of you had a weird feeling heading into this game that the Raiders would wet the bed. That is becoming reality with this kind of start.