Recapping AFC West 2020 Week 12: Kansas City moves to 9-1
By Nick Bailey
The AFC West belongs to the Kansas City Chiefs entering Week 12, as they were able to defeat the Las Vegas Raiders on the road Sunday night.
Here is a recap of the action in the AFC West in Week 11, and a look at the current standings entering Week 12:
Las Vegas Raiders & Kansas City Chiefs
The Las Vegas Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs battled to the bitter end on Sunday Night Football, with the Chiefs narrowly pulling out the win, essentially winning the AFC West, and avoiding the season sweep with a score of 35-31. Both quarterbacks had terrific games, as the defenses struggled once again to stop or contain anybody.
Without a few key drops by receivers, the Raiders could’ve easily won this game, but those are the plays that end up costing teams, and unfortunately the Chiefs made one more play than the Raiders did. The Raiders should be proud of they way they competed, as the defending Super Bowl champions with a chip on their shoulder due to a Week 5 loss, and a ensuing bus ride came to town to prove a point.
With a couple of fixes on the defensive side, the Raiders could be a dangerous team the rest of the regular season, and if they get into the playoffs.
Derek Carr once again dominated a team that has haunted him in the past. Carr threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns and one interception, which was a heave down the field with :28 seconds left in the game. He would’ve had an even better game without two drops each by Nelson Agholor, and Alec Ingold.
The Raiders struggled running the ball in this game, as Josh Jacobs only ran for 55 yards on 17 carries, and Booker ran for 16. The Chiefs, meanwhile, pulled another trick out of their bag and played smash mouth football against the Raiders to control the clock and keep the offense off the field and won for the most part.
Patrick Mahomes was Patrick Mahomes, and threw for 348 yards two touchdowns and one interception. The Raiders are the only team to pick off Mahomes so far this season. Mahomes threw a touchdown to a wide open Travis Kelce after a blown coverage by Johnathan Abram with about 30 seconds left after Carr drove the Raiders down the field to take a 31-28 lead and threw a touchdown to Jason Witten.