Category: Oakland Raiders

Carr continues to steer Raiders in right direction with Denver looming

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

OAKLAND, Calif — Winning football games in the NFL are extremely difficult, especially when you don’t have a quarterback.

Ask teams like the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears and the New York Jets who are playing musical chairs at the game’s most critical and scrutinized position how difficult it is to win in the NFL.

Those teams are a combine 5-25 this seasons, while the likes of the New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys, and the Atlanta Falcons are a combine 24-4 this season with smart signal callers who can take over games.

Then there is Derek Carr and the 6-2 Oakland Raiders who continue to surprise each week.

Carr, who has ice water in his veins to go along with great confidence, plays more like a 10-year veteran than a third-year quarterback as evidence to his record-setting performance in Oakland’s wild 30-24 overtime victory in Tampa in Week 8.

The Oakland quarterback threw for 513 yards (setting a new franchise record, breaking the mark held by Cotton Davidson), with four touchdowns and no interceptions on 40-of-59 passes against the Buccaneers.

Carr and the Raiders’ offense racked up 626 total yards while dominating the time of possession by nearly 15 minutes. Tampa Bay’s defense looked gassed under the sweltering West Florida sun, staying on the field for 85 plays Sunday.

Carr found wide receiver Seth Roberts for a 41-yard catch-and-run touchdown down the middle of the field with under two minutes in overtime. Before that, Carr found tight end Mychal Rivera for the game-tying score with 1:38 left.

The win moved Oakland to 5-0 on the road this season. It’s the first time that the franchise is 5-0 on the road in a season since 1977.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Raiders became the 46th team under the current playoff format to win five straight road games in a season.

The previous 45 teams have all gone on to make the playoffs that season.

On the season, Carr has thrown for 17 touchdowns (third-best) to just three interceptions. His 2,231 yards through the air ranks him fifth among all quarterbacks in the league.

But many outside of the Bay Area aren’t sold on the Raiders, who haven’t made the playoffs since 2002 which is the last time Oakland played in the Super Bowl, because they don’t have a signature win.

With the hated Denver Broncos coming into town and the game being featured on NBC’s Sunday Night Football, Carr and the Raiders will have a chance to show the rest of the country how good they really are with first place in the highly competitive AFC West at stake.

Denver (6-2) dropped division rival San Diego at home 27-19 Sunday behind their punishing third ranked defense.

Super Bowl 50 MVP linebacker Von Miller recorded one of four sacks on the day for Denver. Miller is second in the NFL with 8.5 sacks this season.

The defense also added three interceptions, one of which was returned 49 yards for a touchdown by free safety Bradley Roby in the second quarter against San Diego Sunday.

This is the type of game that Carr and the Raiders must get up for more so than the previous eight games this season.

Wide receiver Amari Cooper had a career day, victimizing Tampa Bay for 12 receptions for 173 yards and a touchdown, while fellow wide receiver Michael Crabtree added eight catches for 108 yards against the Buccaneers.

Cooper is third among NFL wide receivers with 787 receiving yards, while Crabtree is tied with Green Bay’s Jordy Nelson and Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans for the league lead in touchdown catches with six.

The duo are considered one of the best in the league, but will have their hands full with Denver’s cornerback tandem in Aqib Talib and Chris Harris, Jr.

Talib and Harris Jr. lead one of the best secondaries in the league, along with hard-hitting safeties T.J. Ward and Darian Stewart. Denver surrenders a league-low 183.9 passing yards per game to opposing teams, while Oakland averages 285 passing yards per game, fourth-best in the league.

Despite recording a league-record 23 penalties for 200 yards on Sunday (yes, that is two football fields worth of penalties if you’re scoring at home), the Raiders are proving that they can play with anybody because they have a quarterback

Oakland’s 31st ranked defense which has allowed 410.4 yards per game to opposing offenses, yielded just 270 yards of total offense against the Buccaneers.

After a slow start, linebacker Khalil Mack has returned to dominating fashion. Mack registered two sacks off Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston, giving him five of Oakland’s 11 sacks for the season.

Carr who has quickly become an MVP candidate, and the  will need to lead Oakland to victory over the Super Bowl champs if the Raiders are to garner any respect outside of the 510 area code.

Carr and Raiders set records in win

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By Jeremy Kahn

AP photo: Oakland Raiders wide receiver Seth Roberts (10) starts his run towards the end zone after a pass from Raider quarterback Derek Carr for a 41 yard overtime touchdown to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa

Derek Carr did something on Sunday afternoon that no other Oakland Raiders quarterback ever had done since the team was founded in 1960.

Carr finished the game with a team record 513 yards passing, as he went 40-of-59 passing and the Raiders defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30-24 in overtime at Raymond James Stadium. With the victory, the Raiders improve to 5-0 on the road and to 6-2 on the season.

The 513 yards broke a 52-year old record that was orinigally set by Cotton Davidson.

Things were not all good for the Raiders, as they set an NFL record for most penalties in a game with 23 for a whopping 200 yards.

Carr found Seth Roberts for the game-winning touchdown with under two minutes remaining in the overtime. Sebastian Janikowski missed a potential game-winning field goal from 52 yards out on the Raiders first possession of the extra session.

That was the second missed field goal of the game for Janikowski, who missed a 50-yard field goal at the end of regulation that would have given the Raiders the win.

Mychal Rivera sent the game into overtime, as he scored his first touchdown of the season with 1:38 remaining in regulation.

Both Amari Cooper and former Buccaneers offensive lineman Donald Penn each caught touchdown passes. Cooper ended the afternoon with 12 catches for 173 yards, while Michael Crabtree caught eight passes for 108 yards.

The Raiders amassed 626 yards of total offense, as they were on the field nearly 15 minutes more than the Buccaneers, who were on the field for 85 plays on defense.

Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston threw for 180 yards, and Jacquizz Rodgers gave them a 24-17 lead late in the fourth quarter.

Carr hooked with Roberts for a game-winning 41-yard touchdown on fourth and four. Two Buccaneers defenders missed Roberts, and he scampered the remaining 30 yards for the win.

This is the first time that the Raiders are 5-0 on the road since John Madden was on the sidelines during the 1977 season. That season, the Raiders as the defending Super Bowl champions made it all the way to the AFC Championship game where they lost to the Denver Broncos 20-17 at Mile High Stadium.

Oakland Raiders-Tampa Bay Buccaneers preview: Raiders look for Florida sweep in Tampa

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

AP photo: Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio goes out for a third quarter hand shake with Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) during their visit with the Jacksonville Jaguars last Sunday

TAMPA, FL — With already four wins on the road this season, the Oakland Raiders have a chance to go 5-0 on the road if they can knock off the Buccaneers in Week 8 at Raymond James Stadium Sunday.

Kickoff is set for 1:05 p.m. ET/10:05 a.m. PT.

The 33-16 Week 7 victory over the Jaguars in Jacksonville was a satisfying win for the organization and for head coach Jack Del Rio, who was fired by the Jaguars after nine seasons. Del Rio was booed by Jaguars fans while leading the Silver and Black on to the field.

After missing two games with turf toe, running back Latavius Murray returned to the starting lineup and gave the running game a boost by scoring two touchdowns on the ground. Murray led Oakland with 59 yards on 17 carries.

Quarterback Derek Carr continues to be one of the best passers in the league, after completing 23-of-37 passes for 200 yards and one touchdown to wide receiver Michael Crabtree.

After catching just two passes on four targets for 10 yards in Oakland’s 26-10 loss to the visiting Kansas City Chiefs in Week 6, Crabtree bounced back with eight catches (on 11 targets) for 96 yards. Crabtree hauled in a 2-yard touchdown catch to give Oakland a 20-6 lead shortly before halftime and the rout was on.

Oakland’s defense forced two interceptions and forced a fumble against a Jaguars (2-5) team that like Oakland, came into the 2016 season with high expectations but have turned into one of the more disappointing teams in the league.

Jacksonville finished with 344 yards of total offense, picking up most of those yards when the game was out of reach. It was the least amount of yards that Oakland’s 32nd ranked defense has surrendered this season.

Instead of traveling back to California then turning around to return to Florida, the Raiders (5-2) for the first time since 2001, remained in Florida and trained at the IMG Academy in Bradenton in preparation for Tampa Bay.

Tampa Bay (3-3) is an intriguing opponent for the Silver and Black, who shouldn’t overlook this team heading into next week’s showdown with the Denver Broncos on Sunday Night Football in Oakland.

The Buccaneers traveled to the West Coast and thrashed another bottom-feeder in the San Francisco 49ers 34-17 in Week 7.

Running back Jacquizz Rodgers, who was picked up on waivers from the Chicago Bears, has filled in nicely for oft-injured starter Doug Martin with back-to-back 100-yard rushing games.

After recording his first career 100-yard rushing game in a 17-14 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Week 5, Rodgers ran roughshod over the Niners for a career-high 154 yards on 26 carries. Oakland will need to stop the run early or Rodgers could have another breakout performance.

Tampa Bay found itself down 14-0 early before exploding for 27 unanswered points and piling up 249 yards on the ground. Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston tossed three touchdowns and 269 yards on 21-of-30 passes and an interception.

Even without veteran wide receiver Vincent Jackson, who was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury, Tampa Bay has some play-makers that can pose problems for Oakland’s defense.

Against San Francisco, wide receiver Mike Evans caught eight passes for 96 yards and two touchdowns, while fourth year wide receiver Russell Shepard hauled in five passes for 77 yards including a 19-yard touchdown catch from Winston right before the end of the first half.

Evans is tied with Crabtree for the league lead with six touchdown catches this season.

Backup running back Peyton Barber’s 44-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter iced the game for Tampa Bay. Barber finished with 84 yards on 12 carries.

One match up to watch out for will be between Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper and Buccaneers rookie cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III.

Cooper lit up the former Florida cornerback with 10 catches for 201 yards and three touchdowns in Alabama’s 42-21 victory on Sep. 20, 2014 in Tuscaloosa.

 

 

 

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Bucs coach Kotter says it’s hard to prepare for receivers like Cooper and Crabtree

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AP file photo: Michael Crabtree (15) and Amari Cooper (89) warm up before their game in San Diego Sun Oct 25th at Qualcomm Stadium

The Oakland Raiders after having a successful game last week in Jacksonville spent the rest of the week in Florida in Sarasota working out and getting prepared for this Sunday’s game in Tampa Bay. Also getting prepared are receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree who had success in Jacksonville as Crabtree had eight catches for 96 yards, and a touchdown.

Tampa Bay head coach Dirk Kotter said it’s not easy to prepare for wide receivers like Crabtree and Cooper who says they’re all over the place. Kotter says both Cooper and Crabtree both play at very high level and compared them to former Atlanta Falcons Julio Jones and Roddy White. J Hawkes talks about his pick in the Raiders at Tampa Bay contest for this Sunday.

Joe Hawkes Beamon is a talk show host on Sportstalk and does the Raiders podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Oakland Raiders-Jacksonville Jaguars game wrap: Murray returns in win

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By Jeremy Kahn

AP photo: Oakland Raiders running back Latavius Murray (28) takes a dive right into the end zone while he’s grabbed from behind by the Jacksonville Jaguars free safety Tashaun Gipson (39) just getting over the line for a fourth quarter touchdown in Jacksonville on Sunday

What a nice game for Latavius Murray to return to the playing field after missing the two previous games due to turf toe.

Murray scored two touchdowns, as the Oakland Raiders defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 33-16 at EverBank Field.

The running back out of Central Florida gained 59 yards on 18 carries, helping the Raiders to their fourth straight win on the road this season and are 5-2 for the first time since the 2001 season.

Michael Crabtree caught right passes for 96 yards and a touchdown, while Sebastian Janikowski kicked four field goals.

Carr went 23-for-37 for 200 yards and the touchdown pass to Crabtree, as Carr was not sacked nor did he throw an interception.

Crabtree was the leading receiver with those eight catches, while both Amari Cooper and Seth Roberts each caught four passes.

Janikowski got the Raiders on the board in the first quarter, as he kicked a 36-yard field goal and then extended the lead to 6-0, when he kicked a 32-yard field goal.

After Jason Myers cut the Raiders in half, Murray scored the first of his two touchdowns and after another Myers field goal, Crabtree caught a two-yard touchdown pass from Carr.

Myers and Janikowski exchanged field goals in the third quarter, and then Janikowski extended the Raiders lead up to 26-9.

Following a Jaguars touchdown cut the Raiders lead down to 26-16 with 4:12 remaining in the game, and then disaster nearly struck.

After a low snap on a punt, Marquette King picked up the ball and scampered 27 yards for a big first down.

Murray then clinched the game, as he scored his second touchdown of the game, when he ran it in from nine yards out.

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Davis said Oakland was in the drivers seat to keep the team but they didn’t accomplish anything

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AP photo: Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis addresses the media Wednesday at the NFL Fall Meetings in Houston

On the Raiders podcast with Joe:

Defense has been the chanted word heard from local teams fans such in places like Stanford, Cal, or at the 49ers. For the Oakland Raiders Joe will take a look at what was missing on the Raiders defense last Sunday at the Oakland Coliseum against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Joe takes a look at the most impressive part about the Kansas City Chiefs offense and why the Raiders defense just couldn’t contain them.

The Raiders lost last Sunday but they certainly put a lot of stock in wide receiver Amari Cooper who caught nine passes in the first half of the game.

Will the Raiders be up to the task in being able to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday in Florida.

Raiders owner Mark Davis makes the case to move to Vegas, the city of Oakland has no money to finance a new stadium and Davis said he put Oakland in the drivers seat but Oakland has no plans to finance a new stadium and so Davis says there is no choice but to move the team to Vegas.

Joe Hawkes Beamon takes a look at the Raiders-Jaguars match up for this Sunday at http://www.sportsraadioservice.com

Oakland Raiders-Jacksonville Jaguars preview: Raiders hit the road for Jacksonville

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

AP file photo: Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr looks for some help out there in last Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs

OAKLAND, Calif — Looking to get back to winning football, the Raiders begin a two-game trip through the Sunshine State with a stop in Jacksonville Sunday to take on the Jaguars at EverBank Field in Week 7 action.

It’s the Raiders second game against the AFC South this season. Oakland derailed the Tennessee Titans 17-10 in Nashville in Week 3.

Kickoff is set for 10:00 a.m. PT in Oakland, 1:00 p.m. ET.

Oakland (4-2) were tripped up by Kansas City 26-10 last Sunday in a rainy, muddy game at the Oakland Coliseum that dropped the Raiders to 1-2 at home on the season. It was the first time this season that these two AFC West rivals faced each other.

Quarterback Derek Carr threw for 225 yards on 22-of-34 passing with one touchdown and one interception for Oakland, who were held scoreless in the second half.

Carr has thrown for 1,608 yards, 12 touchdowns, and just three interceptions in six games for Oakland this year.

Wide receiver Amari Cooper finished with a career-high 10 catches for 129 yards.

Cooper led all Raiders wide receivers with 14 targets, while fellow wide receiver Andre Holmes hauled in his second touchdown catch of the season on the Raiders’ opening drive of the game.

Oakland’s running game was powered by rookie DeAndre Washington, who led the Raiders with 49 yards rushing. The Raiders played without starter Latavius Murray, who missed his second straight game with a toe injury.

On defense, the Raiders allowed 406 total yards to the Chiefs Sunday. Oakland’s defense ranks 32nd in the NFL, allowing 444.8 yards per game after giving up 500+ yards in the team’s first two games of the season.

Rookie safety Karl Joseph led Oakland with 11 tackles (seven solo) and defensive end Khalil Mack registered his second sack of the season, sacking Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith in the first quarter that forced a punt.

Jacksonville (2-3) scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to take down the Chicago Bears 17-16 at Soldier Field last week.

Quarterback Blake Bortles, who was drafted in the same class as Carr in 2014 out of Central Florida, completed 20-of-33 passes for 271 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

Bortles, who threw a career-high 4,428 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions in 2015, has thrown for 1,321 yards, eight touchdowns, and seven interceptions this season.

Oakland’s much maligned secondary could have their hands full with Jacksonville’s wide receivers, most notably Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns.

After exploding in 2015 with 90 catches for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns (all team-highs), Robinson is second on Jacksonville with 287 receiving yards and leads the team with three touchdowns on 24 catches.

Hurns, who is first on the team with 300 receiving yards, has just one touchdown through five games for Jacksonville after hauling in 64 catches for 1,031 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2015.

Jacksonville has a very aggressive defense led by linebackers Paul Posluszny and Telvin Smith. The duo have combined for 86 tackles this season, which are second in the league behind Buffalo linebacker duo of Zach Brown and Preston Brown’s (no relation) 121 tackles.

Defensive end Yannick Ngakoue leads all rookies with four sacks this season and will be a test for Oakland’s stout offensive line.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will stay in Florida in preparation for their Week 8 meeting at Tampa against the Buccaneers, before returning home for their big showdown with the Denver Broncos on Sunday Night Football in Week 9 before their bye week.

Oakland Raiders post game analysis: Carr, Raiders take step back with loss to Kansas City

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

AP photo: Tamba Hali recovered for the Kansas City Chiefs (left) and defensive back Daniel Sorenson (49) and in the foreground Michael Crabtree of the Oakland Raiders

OAKLAND, Calif — Rookie Jalen Richard opened the game with a 50-yard return and quarterback Derek Carr completed four of five passes, including a 3-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Andre Holmes in the back of the end zone, but that was all the big plays that Oakland would generate, dropping their second home game of the season to the visiting Kansas City Chiefs 26-10 in Week 6.

For an offense that averaged 28.4 points per game coming into the game, Carr and the offense struggled on a rainy and soggy Sunday afternoon in Oakland, being held scoreless in the second half.

Carr completed 22 of 34 passes for 225 yards, one touchdown, and an interception.

It was the 12th straight game that Carr has thrown a touchdown, a career-high, but the third-year quarterback threw a terrible pass intended for wide receiver Michael Crabtree that was intercepted by Oakland native Marcus Peters on Oakland’s second drive of the game.

Peters’ first quarter interception was his league-leading fifth of the season.

Wide receiver Amari Cooper had a huge first half, hauling in nine catches for 117 yards, but only had one catch the rest of the way finishing with 10 catches for 127 yards. Fellow wide receiver Michael Crabtree had just one catch for five yards in the first half, finished with two catches for 10 yards.

Oakland was force-feeding Cooper the ball, targeting the former Alabama wide receiver 13 times, while Crabtree finished with just four targets.

The Raiders, who were without starting running back Latavius Murray, was held to just 65 yards on the ground by Kansas City, the lowest by the Chiefs versus any opponent this year.

Kansas City unleashed defensive end Dee Ford, who wrecked havoc on Carr by recording two sacks, one resulting in a fumble that the Chiefs recovered and killed any chances for an Oakland comeback.

Alex Smith finished 19 of 22 for 224 yards and Spencer Ware rumbled for a career-high 131 yards and one touchdown helping Kansas City (3-2) pick up their third straight win against the Silver and Black, and seventh straight win within the AFC West.

Smith is now 3-1 against the Raiders in Oakland for his career.

Oakland (4-2) will head to Florida for the next two weeks, gearing up for games in Jacksonville and Tampa Bay before returning home for a showdown with the Denver Broncos, the co-leader in the AFC West with Oakland on Nov. 6.

 

 

Oakland Raiders post game wrap: Raiders falter in the rain 26-10

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By Jeremy Kahn

AP photo: Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio (left) expression after the loss at the Oakland Coliseum on Sunday

OAKLAND-Whenever the Oakland Raiders and the Kansas City Chiefs you know something will come out of it.

Spencer Ware gained a career-high 131 yards and scored a touchdown, as the Chiefs defeated the Raiders 26-10.

The Chiefs took advantage of two turnovers by the Raiders offense, as Alex Smith went 19-for-22 for 224 yards. Jamaal Charles and defensive lineman Dontari Poe each scored on running touchdowns to help the Chiefs send the Raiders to their second loss of the season.

Oakland native and McClymonds High School graduate intercepted a Derek Carr pass just prior to the Ware touchdown.

The Raiders scored on their opening possession to take a quick 7-0 lead, as Carr found Andre Holmes from three yards out.

After the Chiefs were forced to punt on the ensuing possession, Carr threw an interception to Peters.

Ten plays later, the Chiefs tied up the game, when Ware scored from two yards out.

Sebastian Janikowski missed a 52-yard field goal in the second quarter to give the ball back to the Chiefs with good position.

Charles culminated the six play drive, as he scored from four yards out; however Cairo Santos missed the ensuing extra point.

Instead of kicking a 50-yard field goal, the Raiders went for it on fourth down and were unable to convert, when Carr’s pass to Seth Roberts fell incomplete.

Santos continued his kicking miscues on the next Chiefs possession, as his 38-yard field goal was wide left.

Janikowski cut the Chiefs lead in half, as he nailed a 46-yard field goal at the end of the quarter; however that would be the last points the Raiders would score on the afternoon.

Just seven plays into the second half, the Chiefs lengthened their lead up to 10 points, as Poe scored from one yard out.

After a three-and-out by the Raiders, the Chiefs extended their lead up to 13 points, as Santos nailed a 22-yard field goal. The big play on the drive came from the feet of Ware, who went down the left sideline for a 30-yard scamper down to the Raiders six-yard line.

The game became a punt fest, as the two teams combined for three punts on their next three teams until Santos closed out the scoring with a 44-yard field goal.

Following the Santos field goal, the Raiders began to drive and got all the way down to the Chiefs 20-yard line; however Carr was sacked at the 23, fumbled the ball as he was hit by Dee Ford and Tamba Hali recovered the fumble at the Chiefs 12-yard line.

The Chiefs were unable to close out the game, as they were forced to punt the ball back to the Raiders.

Luckily for the Chiefs, the Raiders were unable to capitalize, as they were forced to turn the ball over on downs for the second time on the afternoon.

That would be the last time that the Raiders would see the ball on the afternoon, as the Chiefs ran out the clock after the two-minute remaining.

It was a big day for Amari Cooper, as he caught 10 passes for 129 yards. With nine catches in the first half, Cooper was the first Raiders receiver to have nine catches or more in the first half since Jerry Rice caught 10 passes against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the 2002 season.

Carr went 22-for-34 for 224 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Once again, the Raiders were without the services of Latavius Murray and were led by De’Andre Washington, who carried the ball 10 times for 49 yards.

Oakland Raiders preview: Raiders welcome Chiefs to Oakland with first place in the AFC West at stake

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

AP photo: Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is jubilant after throwing a second half touchdown pass to wide receiver Michael Crabtree last Sunday at the Oakland Coliseum

OAKLAND, Calif — With the Denver Broncos (4-2) losing to the Chargers (2-4) 21-13 in San Diego Thursday night, the Raiders have a chance to move into sole possession of first place in the AFC West with a win Sunday over the visiting Kansas City Chiefs  at the Oakland Coliseum.

Kickoff is set at 1:05 p.m. PT.

The Raiders had to rely on a botched field goal attempt by San Diego last Sunday to preserve a 34-31 home win over the visiting Chargers.

Oakland quarterback Derek Carr completed 25-of-40 passes for 317 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception against a banged up Chargers’ defense that carried 14 players on injured reserve.

Carr has definitely stepped up his game in year three, ranking in the top-1o in the league in passing touchdown passes (11; ranking fourth), passing yards (1,383; ranking eighth) and passer rating (102.3; ranking 11th) through the first five games this season.

Carr is engineering the NFL’s fourth ranked offense, averaging 28.4 points per game.

These are one of those “benchmark” games that will determine if Oakland is a definite contender in the AFC this year, as Carr recently told 95.7 the Game via the Raiders’ official website.

“Huge test for us, and that’s the thing, that’s the mindset,” Carr said this week. “We’ve got to stay focused, we’re getting a team we haven’t beaten in two years coming to our place,” Carr further explained.

“That’s a big deal, that’s a huge deal, they had our number last year, they beat us twice and that’s what they earned. We can’t sit here and look at records and pat ourselves on the back, we’re playing a team we have not beat.”

Oakland, winners of three straight games, are off to their best start at 4-1 since the 2002 season when the Raiders appeared in the Super Bowl.

Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio thinks there is still room for improvement, but likes what he has seen from his squad so far this season.

“I think we have a healthy perspective of what we want to look like and knowing that we’re not quite there,” Del Rio said recently via CBSSports.com. “There is a lot of work in front of us. I don’t think anybody would disagree with that. A lot of things we must do better as we go forward. We’re working hard at it.”

Kansas City (2-2) are coming off a bye week in Week 5, but have been one of the hardest teams to figure out through the first quarter of the year.

After looking like world-beaters by forcing eight turnovers (six interceptions) in a 24-3 win over Ryan Fitzpatrick and New York Jets at Arrowhead Stadium in Week 3, the Chiefs allowed 300 yards through the air and five touchdown passes from Ben Rothelisberger in a 43-14 loss in Pittsburgh in Week 4.

But Kansas City  may have the secret formula to slow down Oakland in the form of head coach Andy Reid, whose teams are 15-2 coming off a bye week.

“Every year is different,” Reid said per the Kansas City Star. “It’s situational, who you play and where you play. I don’t even look at that.”

Since arriving in Kansas City in 2013, Reid is 5-1 against Oakland as Kansas City’s head coach. With a win, Reid will move into 13th place on the NFL all-time wins list for coaches passing former Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks head coach, Mike Holmgren, a coaching mentor to Reid.

Chiefs starting quarterback Alex Smith has performed well in the past against Oakland, sporting a 7-1 record against the Raiders throwing 18 touchdowns and just three interceptions.

Smith is 2-1 in Oakland, throwing nine touchdowns and zero interceptions. This season, Smith has thrown for 1,073 yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions with a passer rating of 87.7.

The Silver and Black can have their hands full against a Kansas City team that took both meetings from Oakland last season, a 34-20 win in the Bay Area in Week 13, and a 23-17 victory in Kansas City in Week 17.

Including the postseason, Kansas City leads the all-time series between these two fierce rivals, 60-52-2.

Kansas City’s 17th ranked defense sports one of the game’s best young players in West Oakland native, cornerback Marcus Peters, the reigning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year who leads the NFL with four interceptions this season.

Peters should see a lot of wide receiver Michael Crabtree, but the real battle will be between Peters and the Raiders other wide receiver, Amari Cooper. Two of the best young players at their positions should be fun to watch.

Peters returned an interception 58 yards and broke up two passes in Oakland last season.