The Las Vegas Raiders had their best performance of the season in Week 6, as they beat the Tennessee Titans 20-10. The defense showed up in a major way as, in addition to holding their opponents to ten points, they allowed just 225 total yards while recording six sacks and three takeaways.
They were facing one of the league's worst teams, however, as the Titans rank 31st in scoring offense and 26th in scoring defense. Tennessee's front office made it clear that they were not happy with losing to the Raiders in such fashion, as they fired head coach Brian Callahan following the game.
Las Vegas will face a much tougher challenge in Week 7 when it travels to Arrowhead Stadium to face the Kansas City Chiefs. While taking down their division rivals on the road is already a tall task, it is not just Kansas City that the Raiders will have to defeat.
Raiders will have to overcome the Chiefs and the refs in Week 7
The Raiders have long been viewed as the black sheep of the NFL due to Al Davis' longstanding feud with the league. Meanwhile, the Chiefs are widely known to be league darlings, with the AFC Championship Game trophy being renamed the Lamar Hunt Trophy after Kansas City's owner in 1984.
Prior to becoming NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell served as Hunt's assistant. Patrick Mahomes' ascension to superstardom has only led to more claims that the Chiefs receive favoritism from the officials.
Their treatment by the league's referees was put under a spotlight in Week 6 when they faced the Detroit Lions on Sunday Night Football. There were multiple blown calls during that game, and Kansas City wound up not having a single accepted penalty in the contest.
Just a few days prior, a study from a search team at the University of Texas - El Paso claimed that the Chiefs have benefited from officiating. KTSM's Dave Burge noted that penalties called against their opponents "were significantly more likely to result in first downs, cover more yardage and fall into subjective categories such as roughing the passer or pass interference."
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Raiders head coach Pete Carroll discussed Kansas City finishing without a single accepted penalty in Week 6 against the Detroit Lions in front of a national audience on Sunday Night Football.
"I would challenge some of those reaching and grabbing, too," Carroll said. "That's giving them a lot of -- Andy (Reid's) got something going on with the officials right now, but we'll make them well aware of that as we go through the game. Try not to let that be the factor."
The Raiders will have their hands full in Week 7, as Kansas City ranks ninth in scoring offense and 11th in scoring defense. The officiating is also something to keep an eye on in the matchup, as, despite the Chiefs' talented roster, it is clear that their status as league darlings has led to games against them being called differently.
Plus, the Chiefs are fortunate enough to get star wide receiver Rashee Rice back from suspension in Week 7, which is yet another advantage for Kansas City. Hopefully, the criticism that the league's referees have received over the past week will lead to an unbiased game.