Winners and losers for the Raiders-Chiefs: Malcolm Koonce keeps up his winning ways
The aroma of the winning cigars drifted beneath Arrowhead Stadium, from the jubilant visiting locker room of the Las Vegas Raiders to the dejected Kansas City Chiefs home locker room.
In addition to denying their longtime rival in the AFC West another division title, the Raiders managed to hold off the Chiefs 20-14 on Monday by riding an aggressive mindset who shut down Patrick Mahomes as well as the rest of the Kansas City offense and capitalizing on two defensive touchdowns for the second straight week.
That meant that 7 seconds later, huge defensive tackle Bilal Nichols recovered an 8-yard fumble for a touchdown, and 7 seconds later, Jack Jones took an interception 33 yards for another touchdown.
This meant that, unlike Mahomes, Aidan O’Connell would never complete a pass after the opening quarter and would never commit the same errors that Kansas City’s quarterback did on a rainy Christmas Day.
Coach Andy Reid of the Chiefs, whose club has dropped three of four, stated, “They played an improved game than we did today.”
The Raiders (7-8) defeated the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium minus scoring an offensive touchdown, making history as the first NFL club to do so since 2000. They were also only the sixth team to do so.
“This was undoubtedly a big game. It’s a competition game,” O’Connell remarked. “We play them twice a year, every year, so it’s really great to win a game like this at Arrowhead Stadium.” It holds great significance for our guys.”
Kansas City (9-6) did little to improve its situation: in addition to giving up the two defensive touchdowns, Harrison Butker failed a chip-shot from goal, penalties and intercepted passes continued to be an issue, and twice in the second half, they were unable to convert on fourth down.
“We had trouble scoring. It’s my job to make sure the guys are in the best possible positions to make plays, and that didn’t go as planned. I accept full responsibility for our offensive play that day.”
In Week 15, Malcolm Koonce had a career-best performance against the Chargers. On Easton Stick, he recorded a pair of bags and numerous pressures.
While Koonce’s third-year season with the Raiders has been outstanding, nobody anticipated the kind of game he played on Christmas Day.
Koonce finished the 16th game with three sacks, four tackles for a loss, and four quarterback hits.
He played a part in a defense that gave Patrick Mahomes & the Kansas City Chiefs just 13 points in a game that KC had to win.
The Raiders limited Mahomes just 23 passing yards in the opening quarter of the game. Yes, you read correctly. 23 yards of passing. With 49 dropbacks, the Chiefs gained 223 yards by the end of the game.
Despite not throwing a single pass in the last three quarters, the Raiders were able to win the game in large part because of their persistent pressure on Mahomes.
For years, the Raiders have been looking for someone to take Maxx Crosby’s place on the field. And it seems like they’ve at last discovered a running companion.
Even though Koonce currently has seven sacks for the season, that doesn’t fully explain the situation. In the second part of the season, he has been among their top players.
For the second straight week, the Raiders’ defense scored two touchdowns, one of which came from a pick-6 from the failing Patrick Mahomes, and Las Vegas managed to hold off the hapless Chiefs 20-14 on Monday to maintain their slender postseason aspirations.
The Raiders (7-8) broke a six-game losing streak to the Chiefs when big defensive end Bilal Nichols recovered a fumble 8 yards for a touchdown and Jack Jones caught an interception 33 yards for another score 7 seconds later.
This season’s five defensive touchdowns by the Raiders mark a record high since 2005. With one of their poorest games of the Mahomes era, Kansas City (9-6) lost a chance to win the AFC West for the seventh time in a row.