Chiefs Keys to Win vs. Raiders in Week Seven

The stakes are always high when the Kansas City Chiefs play the Las Vegas Raiders. These AFC West rivals have a long history together, and their familiarity with each other's advantages and disadvantages makes for exciting games. The Chiefs must perform well in all three phases—offense, defense, and special teams—and exploit the Raiders' weaknesses if they hope to win. These are the main areas that the Chiefs need to concentrate on in order to win. They found success with this in their Week Six win over the Detroit Lions.

First and foremost, maintaining offensive balance and safeguarding Patrick Mahomes will be crucial. In order to allow Mahomes to make judgments, the offensive line must withstand pressure. To keep the Raiders from teeing off on passing downs, the Chiefs should include a consistent amount of the run. The Raiders' secondary can be exposed by working the sidelines and using inventive route combinations to stretch their defense horizontally with Chris Jones and the rest of the crew. Kansas City's defense must force and take advantage of turnovers in the meantime. In this duel, the turnover fight is frequently the deciding factor. 

Due to their ineptitude in the red zone, the Raiders have only converted a small percentage of their trips into touchdowns. In order to make stops when it counts most, Kansas City must flex but not break in the red zone. Another top concern will be stopping the run; if Las Vegas can get rolling, it will waste time and put the Chiefs in awkward situations. Furthermore, the game can be skewed by situational football, which includes field position, the red zone, and third down. The Chiefs need to prevail in those contests, stay consistent throughout the four quarters, and steer clear of costly errors. The Chiefs have little room for error when playing the Raiders. Kansas City needs to keep its offensive balance, protect its quarterback, and make the Raiders make mistakes if it wants to win. On defense, Las Vegas will stay off balance by generating turnovers and halting the run. Last but not least, the Chiefs have to make the plays that separate a victory from a defeat in crucial situations like third downs, red zone excursions, and special teams. Kansas City has all it needs to defeat its division rival again if it performs well in those areas.