Kansas City Chiefs: Getting to know the Raiders before Week 11

The Kansas City Chiefs face the Raiders in a rematch on Sunday Night Football. Let’s get to know the enemy.

The lone loss on the year for the Kansas City Chiefs occurred against the Raiders in Week 5. The Chiefs will get a chance to avenge that loss and they’ll get an opportunity to do so under the bright lights of Sunday Night Football.

To get a further understanding of who the Raiders are as a team, I reached out to Brad Weiss of Just Blog Baby, the FanSided site for Raiders coverage. Here is my Q&A with Brad.

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1. Since the win over the Chiefs, the Raiders have lost to the Bucs but then won three straight. What have you learned about this team in that time?

BW: “The Bucs game was a tough loss, mostly due to the fact the Raiders had nearly their entire offensive line sit out practice that week due to COVID. SInce then, they have played much better on the defensive side of the ball, holding Cleveland to six points, and then keeping Denver to six for most of the game. The offense has been solid throughout, and they are leaning on Josh Jacobs more, which was the plan heading into the season. If they can play defense the way they have in two of the last three games, they can beat anybody. However, consistency on that side of the ball remains an issue.”

2. Outside of the Chiefs game, rookie Henry Riggs only has 133 receiving yards. Any worries about him?

BW: “Not really. Ruggs is doing a lot more than just what the box score is telling people. He has a bunch of long pass interference calls that extended drives, and beyond stats, having him in the lineup opens everything up all over the offense. When you have to respect teams deep, as team have to do now with Ruggs, and even Nelson Agholor, it creates space for the likes of Hunter Renfrow, Darren Waller, and Jacobs. He is a perfect compliment to this offense.”

3. Maxx Crosby has 6 sacks while the rest of the defense has a combined 5. Why the lack of pass rush?

BW: “The defensive line has been makeshift all season long, and you will see that again tonight with Clelin Ferrell out with COVID. The Raiders have struggled to get a rush for years, ever since they traded away Mack, but guys like Arden Key can make life uncomfortable. The last time the Raiders played KC, they did not bring Mahomes down a ton, but they did make him uncomfortable. They are also a young group, so they should continue to improve.”