Oakland Raiders vs. Kansas City Chiefs: Breaking Down Kansas City's Game Plan

Kansas City's three-game losing streak started three weeks ago in Oakland when the Raiders earned their first win of the season. In addition to getting revenge, the Chiefs look to snap their losing streak against the team it all started against. This time, the two teams face off at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.

But it is easier said than done. Although the expectation is to defeat Oakland at home, the Raiders have come away victorious in six of the last seven meetings at Arrowhead Stadium. And if the Raiders beat the Chiefs earlier this season, they are certainly capable of doing it again.

Here are the keys for Kansas City to prevent another upset and conclude its losing streak.

Improve the play-calling

During the three-game skid, Jamaal Charles' touches have gone from 24, to 14, to 12. Despite just 12 touches, and even missing part of the first half due to injury, Charles still came away with a rushing touchdown and he caught a touchdown pass after returning from the locker room. Chiefs coach Andy Reid gave Charles very few catches. For a player who scored a pair of touchdowns on just a dozen touches shows he needs the ball more. Especially when the rest of the offense can't produce or is inconsistent.

In addition to the lack of handoffs and passes to Charles, Reid's play-calling overall must improve.

Surely, you questioned Kansas City during its two-minute offense against Arizona? With no timeouts and less than two minutes to go, Kansas City's offense played with no sense of urgency. If the Chiefs find themselves in this situation again, they must move quickly.

Stop the run

Kansas City has done a good job defensively locking down teams in the red zone. The defense forced the Cardinals to punt three times in the fourth quarter. Against the Raiders and Broncos, the defense allowed two touchdowns early in both of those games. After rough starts in both of those games, the Chiefs allowed only one more touchdown against the Raiders and kept the Broncos out of the end zone the rest of the game.

Against the Cardinals, the Chiefs managed to allow just one touchdown. 

Kansas City's biggest issue in the past four weeks has been stopping the run. It all started in Kansas City's most recent win when Marshawn Lynch ran for 124 yards. The Raiders, Broncos and Cardinals all learned from Seattle as all three teams had a backup running back log 100 yards against the Chiefs with ease.

The Chiefs have gone from the middle of the pack to now being one of the worst run-stopping teams in the NFL. Although the Chiefs have found a way to not allow offenses to get to the end zone, stopping the run consistently could make the difference of a few more points.

Outside linebacker and league-leading sack artist Justin Houston has stepped up in the run-stopping department recently, while inside linebacker Josh Mauga has declined lately. Teams won't be able to run up the middle with nose tackle Dontari Poe's presence, forcing teams to try to attack the outside more.

Succeed on third down, offensively and defensively

The Kansas City Chiefs have converted on only 9-of-37 third-down attempts in the past three games. The Chiefs combined for only three against Oakland and Denver, but they did better when going 6-of-14 on third down against the Cardinals.

Quarterback Alex Smith has not been in sync with his pass-catchers much, and some of that is due to the offensive line not giving him enough time. If the line can protect Smith for three seconds, the rest is up to him to make the plays happen.

Defensively, the Raiders, Broncos and Cardinals have not had issues on third down against the Chiefs. Kansas City's defense has given up 23 conversions out of 51 attempts combined against those three teams.

Third down is a key part of the game of football. A team's ability to come through on third down could be a direct correlation to winning or losing. For the Chiefs, they have lost the battle on third down 23-9, which has translated into dropping three consecutive games. 

With the crowd behind them at Arrowhead Stadium, the Chiefs must be more efficient on third down on both sides of the ball. If the Chiefs can erase their recent third-down woes, their chances of winning will be a lot greater.

This simply comes with pressure from Houston and outside linebacker Tamba Hali, along with Poe up front in the middle. If the defensive backs can hold their ground and cover the receivers, Raiders rookie quarterback Derek Carr will struggle.

Follow @Farzin21