Chiefs vs. Raiders - Storylines for each team

Don’t Look Now, But It’s Raider Week

How about them Kansas City Chiefs? Back to back nail bitters with outstanding play coming from all sides, but the fun hasn’t stopped yet. The Chiefs are facing the Raiders on Thursday Night Football for the AFC West crown. The Chiefs appear to be fully healthy, as all available players practiced with just four players practicing with a limited designation.

The Raiders on the other hand had four players who missed Monday practice and two with limited designation. Starting rookie safety Karl Joseph was one player who missed practice, and was seen with a walking boot.

It’s fair to say this may again be a matchup of the week for the Kansas City Chiefs. Now lets take a look at some of the storylines for each side.

Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Pay The Man

How could I not start the Chiefs section off without mentioning Eric Berry?

Eric Berry single handily won us our game against the Falcons. Berry is currently playing on the franchise tag for $10.8 million this season. The current top safety contract by average guarantee per year is Devin McCourty who signed a 5 year $47.5 million dollar contract in 2015.

The Chiefs will be tight in the salary cap as they’re currently projected to be roughly $1.5 million over the salary cap. Lets hope John Dorsey is able to work some salary cap magic and pay the man.

Chiefs Are Finally Healthy

As mentioned before the Chiefs had all available players at practice on Monday with 4 being designated as a limited participant. Including the usually limited Tamba Hali.

Jeremy Maclin and Phillip Gaines should return this week and provide immediate support on offense and defense against the Raiders. Maclin has been out since Week 9, and Gaines has been out since Week 12.

Dee Ford will also be in his second game back after a hamstring injury. Ford should be in for an increased snap count after only participating in 36 percent of snaps against the Falcons. On the other side of the ball, all OL starters participated in 100 percent of snaps against the Falcons. Something that hasn’t happened often this year, and will make a difference going forward.

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Murray Returns To The Running Game

During their previous wWeek 6 matchup the Raiders were only able to muster 64 yards on 17 rushing attempts. However, the Raiders were missing a key component, Latavius Murray who missed the prior tussle. Since his return the Raiders have rushed for an average of 119.2 yards a game.

But the Raiders have still struggled at times despite ranking 7th in the league in rushing yards. In recent weeks against the Panthers and Texans in Weeks 11 and 12, the Raiders were only able to manage 86 rushing yards on 51 attempts (1.69 yards per attempt).

The Chiefs rank 27th (121.9 yards per game) in rushing yards allowed. Latavius Murray could certainly be in for a big game against the Kansas City Chiefs, but it might not help them win the game.

Returning To Form

Kalil Mack has appeared to regain his dominating form as he entered the previous matchup with just 1 sack on the season. But Mack now enters the matchup with eight sacks in the previous 6 weeks since. As of the start of week 14 Mack is ranked as the Ni. 3 defensive player according to PFF.

In week 12 against the Carolina Panthers Mack became the first players since 2009 to record a sack, forced fumble & recovery, and a touchdown in the same game. In Week 13 against the Bills Mack had a strip sack on the Bills second to last drive to help secure the win.

Against the Chiefs Mack will likely see a lot of work against right tackle Mitchell Schwartz and right guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif who have played well overall this season, but struggled in the second half of the season. Mack will be called upon again to stop a Chiefs team that has found just about every way to win this season.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Chiefs aren’t winning pretty behind their defense and special teams, but it’s certainly fun to watch. The Raiders are winning with big offense behind an MVP candidate in Derek Carr. Both are coming into this game trying to make a statement. The Chiefs are fighting for the AFC crown and a chance at the #2 seed in the playoffs. The Raiders are looking to keep their crown and have a chance at the #1 seed in the playoffs.

Justin Houston, Eric Berry, Marcus Peters, Spencer Ware, and Alex Smith have all fought hard to get the Chiefs where they are right now. The Raiders have Kalil Mack, Amari Cooper, Latavius Murray, Sean Smith, and of course Derek Carr who have lead the team to an AFC West tie at 10-2.

If the Raiders want to beat the Chiefs they’ll need to do what the Chiefs do best. The Raiders will need to force turnovers and make plays on special teams. If the Chiefs want to beat the Raiders they’ll have to force Carr into tough situations, and keep doing what they’ve been doing. The Chiefs will need to force turnovers and make plays on defense and special teams.