Tough Match Ahead For The Raiders Against Undefeated Chiefs At Arrowhead Stadium
By JL Herrera
The Oakland Raiders have a difficult match this Sunday against the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs. The game will also be played at Arrowhead Stadium, where the noise from the home crowd is known to affect visiting teams. It is not like they really need the home crowd's cheering this time around, as the Chiefs are a very well-rounded team for this 2013 NFL season.
The game on Sunday between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Oakland Raiders will be the 109th meeting between the two AFC West rivals. The all-time record between the two is split down the middle. The record is 47-47-2. Who will sit on top with the winning record after Sunday's match?
The Chiefs 2013 Record
So far, the Kansas City Chiefs are undefeated (5-0) with some spectacular victories. However, their opponents have not been top of the line so far. The only two worthy opponents that the Chiefs can brag about beating so far this season are the Dallas Cowboys and the Tennessee Titans.
Last week, the Chiefs took down a 3-1 Titans in which most of the Chiefs defense governed the game. Not much was seen from the Chiefs offense against the Titans.
As for the Cowboys, they are playing tough, but are having bad luck. The Chiefs took care of the Cowboys, and maybe the home field advantage helped, but it was a close game. The final score for the Chiefs hosting the Cowboys was 17-16.
The other victims of the Chiefs this season are actually teams that have been having problems getting a win. The Eagles, the Giants, and the Jaguars all have losing records, with only the Eagles having a victory so far.
Offensive Strength
The Chiefs have fire power this season, but their main strength is the passing game. Their new quarterback Alex Smith, an ex-49er, is having a nice season. His passing rating is 83.7 and Smith has plenty of receivers for passing. Running back Jamaal Charles, who has 220 receiving yards with two touchdowns, has been included in the passing mix. Wide receivers Dwayne Bowe and Donnie Avery have very impressive stats as well, and both combine to 487 in receiving yards.
Alex Smith will be playing the air ball against the Raiders rather conservative, especially when the Raiders picked off Philip Rivers from the Chargers on Sunday night. The Chiefs will try to use the running game as well, maybe in heavy doses, with their spectacular runner Jamaal Charles.
Offensive Weaknesses
So far, the running game has not been very explosive for the Kansas City Chiefs. Jamaal Charles has been doing better at receiving the ball than running it. Now, Charles does have 397 yards in five games with three touchdowns rushing. His longest run is a 27 yarder. One can never underestimate a runner like Charles, though. If he is cold, that only means that he is due for good day, so the Raiders will have to keep an eye for the run.
The other leading rusher is quarterback Alex Smith, and Smith is not there to be a scrambling quarterback. This means that his wide receivers might have problems getting open, forcing Smith to run for it. Remember, the Raiders have a strong secondary.
The Defense
With coach Andy Reid, the defensive unit of the Chiefs has gotten stronger running the 3-4 line. According to Reid, the 3-4 defense gives a team flexibility room. So far, the Chiefs have been successful with that format—no one has been able to score more than 17 points on the Chiefs this season. Only the Cowboys and the Titans reached that limit, and both of these teams can be high scoring offensive teams.
Who Has the Advantage?
The Kansas City will have the advantage against an Oakland Raiders team that has been struggling with starters and injuries. Plus, the Chiefs fans will be as loud as ever at the Arrowhead Stadium to make things more difficult for the Silver and Black. In the end, the Raiders will have to really study their opponent's weaknesses and take advantage of that without making vital mistakes themselves.
For more Raiders news and updates, visit Raiders Central.
J.L. Herrera is a huge fan of football and has been following the Raiders since the 1980s during the LA era. J.L. is also a freelance writer and copywriter on the web. He taught English for a little more than a decade in Los Angeles at the secondary level. While writing for web based news outlets, J.L. enjoys reading, creative writing, and watching sports. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
