The first play from scrimmage was great, heck, you couldn't have drawn it up any better.
After Travis Kelce made an acrobatic grab on a pass from Patrick Mahohomes, **Tahir Whitehead forced the ball out** of his hands and rookie cornerback **Nick Nelson** alertly recovered the ball.
It was the recipe for success the Raiders would need to implore if they wanted to find success against the high-flying Chiefs offense – take advantage of any slip ups and put points on the board when the chances come.
But, alas, that proved to be one of the high points on what turned into a rough day at the office for the Silver and Black.
Following the turnover, the Raiders offense went three-and-out and after a short punt, the Chiefs had a short field to work with, and proceeded to go 65 yards in just two plays, putting up Kansas City's first points of the afternoon.
Headed into Sunday's matchup, we had heard all week about how dynamic the Kansas City offense, led by Mahomes was, and to be fair they had the stats to back it up, but we certainly didn't see the best version of Andy Reid's group Sunday afternoon.
Whether it was the long layoff following the bye, some timely plays by the Raiders defense, or a combination of the two, at the half, the Raiders had hung tough with the Chiefs and trailed just 19-7.
However, although the Raiders eventually cut the Chiefs lead to 10 in the third quarter, and even getting within a field goal midway through the fourth quarter, the Oakland defense just couldn't keep up with Kansas City, as they eventually fell 40-30, dropping their record to 2-10 in the process.
Offensively, while the Raiders did put up 30 points, the group just couldn't do enough to take advantage of their opportunities, and ultimately couldn't go score for score against the Chiefs.
Give credit to **Derek Carr** and Co., for marching 75 yards on the Kansas City defense in the second quarter to put up their first touchdown of the game, but unfortunately for Head Coach **Jon Gruden** and the rest of the Raiders, those moments of quality just didn't come often enough Sunday afternoon at the OACC.
Real quick though, I'd be remiss not to give some love to **Jared Cook**, who truthfully deserves a spot on the AFC roster's in next month's Pro Bowl, and he showed it yet again against the Chiefs.
In total, Cook finished with seven catches for 100 yards and a score, in what turned out to be another ultra-effective outing for No. 87.
In general, it was a good day to be a tight end, as Travis Kelce was an absolute machine for the Chiefs, catching 12 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns.
While the final score of Sunday's game didn't do them any favors, the group fought all afternoon, and hung tough with one of the premier teams in the AFC, and while I know moral victories aren't a thing, but there were indeed more than a few positives to take from the Week 13 outing.
The Raiders will get back to work Monday, and then begin preparation for their Week 14 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in earnest later in the week.
The game against the Steelers will be the team's final game at home before they hit the road once again, this time for a Week 15 clash with the Cincinnati Bengals.
