Beating Chiefs would stand as major upset
Kansas City favored by 15, setting largest home deficit since ’78
ALAMEDA, Calif. — If the Raiders win Sunday, it might be their greatest upset in franchise history. Certainly, recent history.
The Raiders are a 15-point underdog against the Kansas City Chiefs. Should the line hold, it will be the franchise’s largest-deficit line for a home game dating to when Pro Football Reference’s records first tracked the statistic in 1978. An upset win, however, wouldn’t be the first against an Andy Reid-coached team.
The only other time on record the Raiders were two-touchdown home underdogs came in 2009.
Coached by Reid, the Philadelphia Eagles were 3-1 and averaging 31.8 points. The Raiders, whose head coach was current offensive line coach Tom Cable, were 1-4 and coming off a 44-7 road loss to the New York Giants.
The Raiders won 13-9 at the Oakland-alameda County Coliseum. An 86-yard pass from quarterback Jamarcus Russell to tight end Zach Miller was the game’s only touch- down.
Notable
Quarterback Derek Carr needs 59 passing yards Sunday to surpass Rich Gannon for second-most in franchise history. Gannon threw for 17,585 yards in 74 career games with the Raiders. Carr is at 17,517 yards in 73 games.
Teammates voted tight end Jared Cook their Ed Block Courage Award nominee, the Raiders announced Tuesday. The accolade honors such qualities as inspiration, courage and sportsmanship. Cook, 31, has 47 receptions for 609 yards and five touchdowns. He is on pace for career highs in all three categories.
The Raiders signed former Dallas Cowboys guard Chaz Green. He becomes the 11th offensive lineman on their roster. Three of the team’s seven inactive players in Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens — Ian Silberman, guard-tackle Denver Kirkland and tackle Justin Murray — are offensive linemen.
Defensive end Jacquies Smith was formally placed on injured reserve Tuesday in a corresponding move. He exited Sunday with an Achilles’ injury.
Contact reporter Michael Gehlken at mgehlken@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Gehlkennfl on Twitter. Last week’s ranking in parentheses:
1. Saints 10-1 (1). They have the league’s No. 1-ranked run defense, allowing 73.2 yards per game. Saints haven’t finished in the top 10 in run defense since 1992.
2. Rams 10-1 (2). As they stalk the Saints for the No. 1 seed in the NFC, they take an NFC North tour the next two weeks at the Lions and Bears before closing the season against the Eagles, Cardinals and 49ers.
3. Chiefs 9-2 (3). No team has dominated its division since the start of the 2015 season like the Chiefs. They are 19-2 against AFC West competition in that span.
4. Patriots 8-3 (5). After missing nearly a month, Rob Gronkowski caught his first touchdown pass since Week 1 and delivered some big blocks in a win over the Jets.
5. Bears 8-3 (6). When the Bears can win on the road in a super-short week with their backup quarterback, Chase Daniel, it’s a testament to the strength of the roster.
6. Steelers 7-3-1 (4). It’s worth wondering if a bad loss in Denver will haunt the Steelers when it comes to playoff seeding. It was a rough way to end a six-game winning streak.
7. Chargers 8-3 (8). Their blowout victory over the Cardinals was marred by the loss of running back Melvin Gordon to an MCL sprain that could sideline him a few weeks.
8. Texans 8-3 (7). They put away the Titans without much trouble to win their eight straight. It’s an impressive streak, but the Texans lack a signature win.
9. Vikings 6-4-1 (9). Mike Zimmer is going to think twice about using his kicker, Dan Bailey, but kicking woes are nothing new to the Vikings coach.
10. Seahawks 6-5 (11). They’re very much in the playoff hunt now, especially when you consider they have two games with the 49ers and one with the Cardinals on the December schedule.
11. Cowboys 6-5 (12). Ezekiel Elliott is rolling, and the addition of wide receiver Amari Cooper has really brought life to the offense.
12. Panthers 6-5 (10). Time for a little soul-searching after losing three straight.
13. Colts 6-5 (15). All Eric Ebron does is catch touchdown passes.
14. Broncos 5-6 (18). Consecutive wins over the Steelers and Chargers have given them a little life, but Vance Joseph might need to make the playoffs to keep his job.
15. Titans 5-6 (14). Marcus Mariota completed his first 19 passes Monday night in Houston, but the Titans still got whipped.
16. Ravens 6-5 (16). They have won two straight with rookie Lamar Jackson at QB. Joe Flacco is seeing a hip specialist to get clearance to return to practice, so John Harbaugh will have a tough decision soon.
17. Eagles 5-6 (20). The defense surrendered 346 yards in the first half and trailed the Giants 19-3 before they rallied to win and keep their season alive.
18. Redskins 6-5 (17). They are clinging to the sixth spot in the NFC, but how long do they stay there with Colt Mccoy at quarterback?
19. Packers 4-6-1 (13). Sunday night’s loss in Minnesota was the eighth straight road defeat for the Packers, their longest such streak since 1978-79.
20. Browns 4-6-1 (24). Baker Mayfield is on fire. He tore up the Bengals, then was chilly in an encounter with former Browns coach turned Bengals assistant Hue Jackson.
21. Lions 4-7 (19). Matthew Stafford is catching a lot of heat for the Lions’ woes this season, but the parts around him haven’t been very good.
22. Bengals 5-6 (21). Marvin Lewis appears to be on borrowed time. For real this time.
23. Dolphins 5-6 (22). They led in the fourth quarter in Indianapolis but couldn’t close the deal with Ryan Tannehill, a familiar refrain.
24. Falcons 4-7 (23). One thing that stands out this season: Vic Beasley hasn’t been playing very well. The outside linebacker has only three sacks.
25. Bills 4-7 (27). Josh Allen returned for the win over the Jaguars, but evaluating the rookie quarterback is challenging with such a lack of skillposition talent around him.
26. Buccaneers 4-7 (29). The final five games will be the Bucs’ chance to evaluate the future of quarterback Jameis Winston.
27. Giants 3-8 (26). Eli Manning will start Sunday against the Bears, but coach Pat Shurmur hasn’t ruled out turning to rookie Kyle Lauletta or veteran Alex Tanney later this season.
28. Jaguars 3-8 (25). Let’s see, the Jaguars fired the offensive coordinator and benched quarterback Blake Bortles, and running back Leonard Fournette has been suspended for one game. That’s a lot to process.
29. Jets 3-8 (28). They’ve lost five straight, and the focus for Gang Green has turned to an offseason that will surely usher in major changes.
30. 49ers 2-9 (30). Reuben Foster’s time in San Francisco is up, so it’s time for defensive end Solomon Thomas to start playing at a high level as the remaining first-round pick from the 2017 draft class.
31. Raiders 2-9 (31). Believe it or not, the Raiders have been solid in the first half of many games this season, including Sunday’s loss in Baltimore. Perhaps they need to adopt the catchphrase “Just finish, baby.”
32. Cardinals 2-9 (32). After a drubbing by the Chargers, the Cardinals responded by cutting two starters: right tackle Andre Smith and cornerback Bene Benwikere.
Brad Biggs