It didn’t resemble anything close to chess, with Chiefs players flying downfield and Patrick Mahomes just winging it to them in a 28-point second-quarter explosion.
But that’s what it was. The Chiefs figured out what the Raiders were doing defensively, with inverted coverages and cornerback Daryl Worley playing safety at times. And then Kansas City set up the Raiders for two of the four touchdowns in its 28-10 win on Sunday.
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The other two were just the league’s best player telling his receivers to run to the end zone and look up. Mahomes finished with 443 passing yards and four touchdowns and buried the Raiders in the last NFL game played on the infield dirt at the Coliseum.
“He was the MVP for a reason,” Worley said.
It’s good thing that Kansas City coach Andy Reid is good friends with Raiders coach Jon Gruden. Mahomes had 278 yards passing in the second quarter after he got comfortable, and could have set every record in the book had Reid not quickly called off the dogs.
It was a tough pill to swallow for Gruden, whose primary focus this offseason was to get faster players who matched up with the Chiefs.
And Gruden had to be feeling it when the Raiders shut out the Chiefs in the first quarter and were up 10-0.
“We jumped out on them and it felt good,” safety Karl Joseph said.
But then a flurry of haymakers came that silenced the crowd of 52,748.
A 44-yard strike to Demarcus Robinson. A 42-yard bomb to Mecole Hardman with the Raiders safeties again chasing in vain. A 27-yard touchdown to Travis Kelce over Joseph. And a 39-yard heave that Robinson jumped over Gareon Conley for.
“Some of it was on us, and some of it was them having the right play call in the right situation,” Joseph said. “They showed what kind of team they are. They went to the AFC Championship Game for a reason.”
It was the first time in franchise history that the Raiders were outscored by 28 points in a quarter, and the shortest of Mahomes’ touchdown passes went for 27 yards. The last time a player in the NFL threw for more than 278 yards in a quarter was 11 years ago, when the Saints’ Drew Brees threw for 294 against the Falcons.
Adjustments, adjustments, adjustments …
The Chiefs started dictating and exploiting the Raiders’ coverages in the second quarter.
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“They picked up on our checks and formations and it took us a minute to get back to doing it a different way,” linebacker Nicholas Morrow said. “They made the adjustments faster than we did.”
Gruden said he was proud of his team’s effort coming off a short week after Monday’s win over the Broncos. And he only blamed miscommunication on the first touchdown to Robinson, when slot corner Lamarcus Joyner stopped running with him, anticipating safety help that never came.
“We had a breakdown in one coverage,” Gruden said. “But a couple of those were just incredible throws and catches, also. You have to tip your hat to them.”
And then, behind closed doors, Gruden probably chucked the hat. Especially considering the 1-1 Raiders now start that brutal stretch of the schedule in which they don’t play at home again for 48 days.
It’s only Week 2, but one could say that the ease with which the Raiders went down Sunday is a little disconcerting given every move they made this offseason was with the idea of getting faster and matching up with the Chiefs.
Key free-agent signing Joyner, at slot cornerback, struggled mightily.
There wasn’t much of a pass rush from first-round pick Clelin Ferrell or free-agent signees Benson Mayowa and Josh Mauro. The Raiders had two sacks, but that’s only because Mahomes got carried away with how much time he had the other 44 times he dropped back to pass.
Second-year defensive end Arden Key, whom the coaches were excited about again after a strong training camp and preseason, has been largely invisible.
“We didn’t get enough pressure,” Gruden said. “We let Mahomes move around back there and cock his arm. And when he gets an opportunity to do that, he can drop them in no matter where they are.”
The Raiders still don’t have anyone that can cover the tight end Kelce (seven catches for 107 yards).
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And offensively, Gruden was relying on Antonio Brown’s speed to open things up against the Chiefs. Brown defected and had a big day Sunday with the Patriots, while Ryan Grant took most of the snaps that would have been Brown’s. Grant finished with one catch on five targets for minus-2 yards, was called for offensive pass interference twice and was called for a false start on fourth-and-2.
Carr wound up in a tough spot because he didn’t want to force things to try and keep up with Mahomes. But then those irritating lights on the scoreboard keep changing.
Carr started where he left off Monday night and completed 6 of 10 passes for 71 yards on the first two possessions. The first drive led to a field goal and the second drive ended with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Tyrell Williams. But the Raiders punted on their next four possessions and Carr then threw two second-half interceptions.
Both Gruden and Carr said the offense fell apart partly because of the temporary absences of Williams (hip) and running back Josh Jacobs (cramping).
“We lost our rhythm,” Gruden said. “We lost Jacobs for a little bit. Tyrell went to the locker room to get shot up for a hip.”
Carr added, “Yeah, obviously different things are called. Different game plan when two starters go down. … Anytime anybody’s out, it’s next man up. That’s football. No one cares why. It’s next man up, but at the same time, let’s be real. Things did change on us.”
The Chiefs, meanwhile, scored four touchdowns in 14:15 without their best wide receiver, injured Tyreek Hill.
Carr’s first interception came in the third quarter when he audibled to a fade in the end zone for Williams, who never got the signal and looked confused when Chiefs cornerback Bashaud Breeland caught the lob for an interception. The second one came later in the third when Carr threw to a spot but Grant got knocked over in traffic and never got there.
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Gruden said he liked his team’s effort late, but it sure seemed like the offense kind of rolled over in the second half. There wasn’t a lot of urgency or deep attempts for a team down 18 points. Then right tackle Trent Brown came out with a sore knee and the Raiders gave up two quick sacks.
Maybe the Raiders taking chances offensively would have only spurred the Chiefs to try and score again.
Bottom line: The Raiders are not close to the Chiefs, even after all the offseason moves. The quarterback matchup is definitely part of that, and that’s no slight on Carr — even if he does struggle in this matchup. In 11 career games against the Chiefs, Carr has 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
Mahomes, in his three games (all wins) against the Raiders, has 10 touchdowns and one interception.
And while some people might mistakenly point to rookie safety Johnathan Abram’s absence as being a big factor, remember he is an enforcer who was going to have to work out some kinks in the passing game. And the Raiders held the Chiefs to 31 yards rushing on 22 attempts Sunday.
“They literally put their entire offense into his hands,” Morrow said of Mahomes. “He is most dangerous when he is not in the pocket and is throwing off rhythm. That’s when the deep ball comes alive, and the comebacks to the tight end come alive.
“They have a lot of motions and keep you guessing. And then Mahomes makes the reads and makes the throws.”
AFC West speed chess. And the Raiders are still playing checkers.
— Reported from Oakland
(Photo: Ben Margot/AP)