[picapp]The Oakland Raiders managed to win their game in Kansas City despite having an anemic offense and a defense that yielded over 400 yards. However, JaMarcus Russell found a way to put aside the accuracy issues that hounded him for the entire game and lead the Raiders on a 67 yard drive to score the game winning touchdown.
Unlike last week where the defense let up after Russell had led the Raiders down for a late score, a sack by Greg Ellis and a pass defensed by Michael Huff put the game away allowing the Silver and Black to leave Arrowhead victorious for their third consecutive year.
Outside of the game winning drive, JaMarcus Russell looked terrible. It was only on the Raiders fourth drive that Russell completed any other passes. On that drive he led the Raiders down for Sebastian Janikowski’s 48 yard field goal. Russell did not complete a pass in the first or third quarters. His line of 7-24 for 109 yards doesn’t even tell the story on how out of sync he looked. He was overthrowing, underthrowing, and just plain missing. On the third possession, when the Raiders had taken over with great field possession after a failed on-side kick attempt, Russell completed the three and out by throwing a screen pass well over Darren McFadden’s head.
It seemed that the only time the Raiders offense could move the ball was when Michael Bush ran the ball. Bush was a key factor in the drive that resulted in the Raiders first field goal, and it was his run that provided the Raiders first first down of the second half after Michael Huff’s first interception. That drive culminated in Sebastian Janikowski’s 54 yard field goal to give the Raiders the lead.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Raiders were the very definition of “bend but don’t break defense.” As the game wore on, it became it became apparent that the Raiders defense was getting gassed by the humidity. Richard Seymour missed much of the second half, and Nnamdi Asomugha even missed some time in the fourth quarter when he was taken to the locker room for treatment. However, both of them were on the field for the final defensive stand.
This was a game that the Raiders had no business winning, which could be a karmicpayback for losing a game they had no business losing the week before. The Broncos and a shot at a tie for the league lead are there for the taking on Sunday in Oakland. If the Raiders play like they did Monday against the Chargers, they should take it easily. If the Raiders play like they did Sunday against the Chiefs, it will be long afternoon for the Silver and Black.
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