NFL Kansas City ChiefsOakland Raiders

Derek Carr Is Key To Oakland Raiders Week 12 Win

Fresh Videos

By @bradberreman24

Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders, NFL Week 12

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

The Oakland Raiders are the only winless team right now in the NFL, with an 0-10 mark, and now they will take on the 7-3 Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night. On the surface another loss looks virtually certain, but a short week can change things and the Raiders will welcome the Chiefs to town with AFC West pride on the line.

The Raiders have the league’s worst rushing offense, averaging an even 63 yards per game, which has prompted speculation that Latavius Murray will finally overtake Darren McFadden and Maurice Jones-Drew on the running back depth chart. But I think someone else on the offensive side of the ball is the key to Oakland ending their losing streak in Week 12.

Rookie quarterback Derek Carr has had some good moments this season, with four mutiple-touchdown games, but he has now failed to top 200 yards through the air in four of the last five games. The Chiefs enter the week as the league’s top pass defense (201.6 yards per game), and they also rank highly in sacks (30; tied for third-most in the league). But it is worth noting that Kansas City has only intercepted four passes all season, including two in one game and none in their last three games.

Carr may not find a lot of success from a yardage perspective on Thursday night, but he may not have to since the Chiefs don’t have the type of prolific offense to make the game one-sided early on without some help. If Carr can avoid Kansas City’s pass rush on a regular basis, and more importantly take care of the ball, the Raiders should stay in the game much longer than anyone expects while maintaining a chance to pull an upset deep into the fourth quarter.

Brad Berreman is a Columnist at Rant Sports.com. Connect with him on Twitter or Google +.

Share Tweet
Trending Now on