Kansas City Chiefs vs. Oakland Raiders: Full Report Card Grades for Kansas City
The Kansas City Chiefs had their five-game winning streak snapped after the winless Raiders stunned them 24-20. After trailing 14-0 to start off, the Raiders made it hard on the Chiefs.
The Chiefs manufactured a comeback and scored 17 unanswered points. However, it was not enough as the Raiders got the last laugh with a touchdown score with less than two minutes to go.
In a shocking turn of events during a roller-coaster game, the Chiefs fell to the Raiders, allowing them to capture their first win.
In this slideshow, we grade every positional unit for Kansas City. As always, get involved with your thoughts on these grades below.
Quarterback
1 of 11
After a relatively quiet first half, Alex Smith bounced back in the second half. At one point, Smith completed 10 consecutive passes to try and lead the Chiefs to a comeback win.
Though Smith finished with two touchdowns, his pass to Anthony Fasano was not thrown well and almost resulted in an incompletion. He finished 20-of-36 passing for 233 yards, but it was not enough to come away with a win.
Smith's inability to throw the ball downfield has hurt the Chiefs. At the same time, it has been proven the Chiefs don't have a reliable threat to throw to downfield.
Grade: B-
Running Back
2 of 11
Jamaal Charles was responsible for 19 of the team's 24 rushes while also co-leading the team in receptions with four. Charles ended up with 23 touches for 122 yards and a touchdown on offense.
Similar to the game against Buffalo, Charles had no place to run in the first half, completely shut down and silent.
Charles got going in the second half, but as the lone running back in this game, he was relied upon to try to lift the team.
Grade: B+
Tight End
3 of 11
Fasano caught a touchdown pass to help the Chiefs rally in the second half, while Travis Kelce co-led the team in catches and the entire game in receiving yards.
Kelce went silent the last two games against the Seahawks and Bills, but he was more active on Thursday night against the Raiders.
With the lack of talent at wide receiver, Smith will continue to throw in the direction of the tight ends in hopes that it makes up for some of the offense's woes.
Grade: B+
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Wide Receiver
4 of 11
As the primary wide receiver on the team, Dwayne Bowe has been the lone active wideout. Against the Raiders, the Chiefs got a little bit of involvement from other wide receivers in Albert Wilson, Frankie Hammond and Junior Hemingway.
The three combined for four catches for 37 yards.
As for Bowe, he finished with three receptions for 42 yards.
The activity from the wide receivers needs to be better. But it has been proven at this point that the wide receivers have plenty of room to grow and have had little impact in helping the Chiefs win the seven games that they have under their belt this year.
Grade: C+
Offensive Line
5 of 11
Kansas City's offensive line did Smith and Charles little favor when it came to blocking for them. Smith was given little time to throw on certain plays, while Charles was dragged down for either a short gain or behind the line of scrimmage.
The Raiders came away with several pressures. Statistically, they finished with four quarterback hits and two sacks.
The offensive line has been inconsistent this year, and the Chiefs need the group to be more reliable.
Grade: C
Defensive Line
6 of 11
The Raiders gashed Kansas City's defense, starting with its defensive line, by using running back Latavius Murray in the early part of the game.
Murray ran four times for 112 yards and two touchdown scores. Altogether, Oakland rushed for 179 yards, exposing Kansas City's biggest weakness on defense.
The defensive line could not stop the Raiders, who converted on eight of 16 third downs.
The line got beat against the run and the pass.
Grade: C-
Linebacker
7 of 11
Even though it was nice to see Justin Houston back in the sack column after a two-week drought, the Raiders only allowed one sack and helped Derek Carr stay on his feet.
Oakland, which had only allowed 12 sacks prior to this game, did a good job giving Carr the time he needed while holding off Houston and Tamba Hali.
Houston and Josh Mauga each had a quarterback hit and collected three of the team's four tackles for a loss.
The linebackers generally do a better job of creating pressure and stopping the run. Lately, this unit has taken steps back, but it still remains the best unit on the team.
Grade: B
Secondary
8 of 11
Ron Parker got plenty of attention in this game as Carr picked on him throughout the night. Although there was an unfair penalty call on Parker late in the game, it is no excuse for how Parker did for the second straight game.
Receivers were able to get open in space, make a catch or go deep and beat Parker downfield.
Rookie Phillip Gaines was also caught with a key missed tackle on third down early in the game, which would have forced the Raiders to punt had he held on. Instead, the Raiders continued to march down the field and scored the first touchdown of the game.
As for Eric Berry, he has not been in his Pro Bowl form since his return.
Grade: C-
Special Teams
9 of 11
Dustin Colquitt has no issues getting his punts away, finding ways to use his leg and pin the Raiders deep in their own territory and not allowing good field position. Meanwhile, rookie Cairo Santos added two field goals, extending his field-goal streak to 13.
Although Knile Davis and De'Anthony Thomas combined for 113 kick return yards off three returns, none resulted in touchdowns as the longest went for 48 yards.
As for punt returns, Thomas proved he was a rookie by making rookie moves while fielding punts near the end zone and taking a punt with a bounce as defenders were nearby.
Special teams coordinator Dave Toub knows he has a special and talented player in Thomas, but he has to make sure he is playing smart, too.
Grade: C
Coaching
10 of 11
Andy Reid was simply outcoached by Tony Sparano, an interim head coach. When the Chiefs fell early 14-0, you knew coaching played a role.
With the early deficit, it was evident that Reid did not have a good game plan coming into the match against the Raiders. This forced the Chiefs to play catchup and create a "tale of two halves" kind of game.
Although the Chiefs came through against the Buffalo Bills, those kinds of victories don't happen every time.
Reid has done a good job leading the Chiefs to seven wins after an 0-2 start, but losing to the Raiders stings and it starts with Reid.
Grade: C+
Overall
11 of 11
QB: B-
RB: B+
TE: B+
WR: C+
OL: C
DL: C-
LB: B
DB: C-
ST: C
Coaching: C+
Cumulative: C
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