chiefs vs raiders Out of all the mistakes and turnovers, penalties and close games the Chiefs gave a way this year you can bet there is one game in particular they would like to have back. That game would be the Chief’s September 20th battle at Arrowhead, in that game the Chiefs saw Oakland QB JaMarcus Russell complete only 7 of 24 passes for a mere 109 yards and the Chiefs as a whole out gained the Raiders 409 yards to 166 while controlling the clock 38 minutes compared to the Raiders 21 minutes. The Chiefs did everything in that game to win except put points on the board, QB Matt Cassel Threw for nearly 250 yards but was picked off by safety Michael Huff twice in that game, turnovers that stopped potential K.C. scoring drives.

The bad news is the Chiefs definitely let a game slip thru their grasp on that day the good news is they get a shot at redemption this Sunday in Oakland. Even though the Raiders have one more victory on the season than the Chiefs you could make a case that the Raiders have gotten worse while the Chiefs have taken marginal steps to get better. Case in point: Since the Chiefs played the Raiders in four out of their next six games they were beat by more than 20 points and in two of those games they were beat by more than 30 points. The Chiefs meanwhile were beat by more than 20 points twice and had two games that came down to less than a possession.

One thing is for certain when the Chiefs line up against the Raiders this Sunday they will have a much different look than they did last time these two teams played, Larry Johnson is gone and will be replaced in the starting lineup by the speedy Jamaal Charles or recently activated Kolby Smith. In addition the Chiefs could have a new starting wide receiver this go around as newly acquired Chris Chambers quickly built up a relationship with QB Matt Cassel who found Chambers on two touchdown passes in Jacksonville. While on paper this looks like a bore of a game two bad teams with bad offenses squaring off you have to throw the record out the window when these two teams get together, these two teams hate each other and the games always are close and always come down to the last second what more could a NFL fan ask for? Despite the records this could be one of the best games of the week.

Keys to the Game

1.Make JaMarcus beat you: Given JaMarcus’s horrible play this year the Chiefs should stack at least eight or nine defenders in the box and make the QB beat you. JaMarcus has thrown for two touchdowns and nine interceptions thru eight games that would put him on pace for a season of four TD passes and eighteen interceptions, which would have to be a record of inefficiency of some sort for a starting NFL QB. Bottom line JaMarcus is beyond horrible and the Raiders passing attack should be a after thought for the Chiefs they need to focus on corralling the three headed rushing attack the Raiders have.

2. Don’t beat yourself: It never fails if you can play mistake free football the Raiders will beat their selves, the mistake the Chiefs made last time they played the Raiders is the fact that they turned the ball over and made several on field mistakes. If the Chiefs can avoid turning the ball over and accumulating a lot of penalties eventually the Raiders will beat their selves. Coach Haley has a vision for this team and it is one that plays mistake free football he has eight games to instill that in his team this should be a test to see how crisp they can perform.

3. Be aggressive in the passing attack: Last week I believe the Chiefs learned something in Jacksonville, if you throw the ball more than five yards down the field you will gain more than five yards. After the Chiefs were down by two scores in Florida they decided to start airing it out and Matt Cassel found Chris Chambers and Dwayne Bowe on several throws and the Chiefs got two touchdowns out of the deal. The Raiders defense is nothing to fear and there is no reason the Chiefs cannot keep their aerial attack going this week.

Injury Report:

Chiefs:

David Herron LB Knee Out

Jovan Belcher LB Head Probable

Chris Chambers WR Foot Probable

Jon McGraw S Thigh Probable

Wade Smith C Ankle Probable

Mike Vrabel LB Hip Probable

Raiders:

Ricky Brown LB Ankle Out

Nick Miller WR Shin Out

Javon Walker WR Hamstring Out

Greg Ellis DE Knee Questionable

Robert Gallery G Fibula Probable

Cornell Green T Calf Probable

Darren McFadden RB Knee Probable

Chaz Schilens WR Foot Probable

Tony Stewart TE Chest Probable

Weather Report: Weather at kickoff will be 61 degrees and sunny with a 10 MPH west north westerly breeze

Final Score: Chiefs 17 Oakland 6

I still believe the Chiefs are going to turn the corner at some point this season and start executing on a higher level than what they have been. The Chiefs had a lot of changes in the off season and had a new playbook installed right before the beginning of the season which has slowed them down we are now eight games in and I expect to start seeing this team gel. While these games are always close I think the Chiefs will walk a way with more than a one possession victory.