Oakland Raiders X-Factors against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2
By Matt Holder
Offense
Kolton Miller
In back-to-back weeks, last year’s first round pick will be an x-factor on gameday. Miller turned in a impressive performance where didn’t allow a sack and only gave up one pressure, according to Pro Football Focus. Week one was probably the best performance of the young tackle’s career and the team will need him to replicate this effort.
Kansas City’s biggest offseason acquisition is defensive end Frank Clark. The former Seahawk got the best of Miller in their matchup last season, and Miller had the worst game of his young career. The former UCLA Bruin gets a shot at redemption on Sunday and Oakland needs him to perform.
Jordan Devey
The two best players on the Chiefs defense are both defensive lineman; the aforementioned Clark and defensive tackle Chris Jones. With 59 career sacks between of them, the duo can wreak havoc in the passing game and is a problem for opposing offensive lines. In order to solve that problem, the Raiders will need a strong performance from Devey.
With Richie Incognito serving the last game of his suspension, Oakland will call on the former Chief to keep his old teammates under wraps. Devey is known for his pass blocking abilities and last season Jones ranked third among defensive tackles with 74 quarterback pressures (minimum 114 pass rush attempts), so Devey will be tested on Sunday.
Hunter Renfrow
With such a prolific pass rush, quarterback Derek Carr could use a security blanket within the receiving core. As the team’s slot receiver, Renfrow can fill that role and the short to intermediate passing game is where he excelled in college. The game plan will probably include a lot of quick passes again and look for the rookie to see an increase in targets
Renfrow faces a tough matchup in week two as Kansas City has a very talented slot cornerback in Kendall Fuller. In the past two seasons the veteran defender has posted PFF coverage grades of 70.8 and 91.2, making him a potential problem for the Raiders offense. However, Fuller did struggle in week one, allowing completions on seven of eight targets for 94 yards, so this is certainly a winnable matchup for Renfrow.