Loss Not End Game For Chiefs – Emporia Gazette

It was hideous. Really hideous. Not even Picasso’s finest brush could pretty up the Kansas City Chiefs’ 31-10 loss to the Oakland Raiders Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium.

But thankfully for the Chiefs, the season didn’t end in Week 17. But, if the Chiefs (10-6) don’t erase the memory of Sunday’s loss quick, their grand finale will likely be this Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens (12-4).

Yes, the Oakland game was a trainwreck from start to end. In the first half, the Chiefs looked like they were more concerned with getting Thomas Jones his sixth consecutive 1,000-yard rushing season than getting Jamaal Charles the NFL rushing title or even winning the game.

Outside of a 47-yard run by Charles in the second half, the offense sputtered and never got on track all game. But it is hard to get on track when you drop passes, give up seven sacks and throw two costly interceptions — one of which was returned for a touchdown.

The defense didn’t do much better. The Chiefs couldn’t stop backup running back Michael Bush, who ran for 137 yards and a touchdown while filling in for Darren McFadden, who was out with turf toe. The Raiders cut the Chiefs for more than 200 yards on the ground.

The loss, though, shouldn’t really come as a big surprise, considering the Raiders defeated the Chiefs 23-20 back in November and the Raiders had won their previous three games on Kansas City’s home field. So simply place: the Raiders have had the Chiefs’ number in recent years and Sunday’s debacle was no different as the Raiders claimed victory for the fourth straight time at Arrowhead.

And so the storybook ending of the Chiefs defeating the Raiders being followed by a joyous reception in the locker room afterward to celebrate their victory against their despised rivals and AFC West title and bring a burst of momentum into the playoffs did not happen.

But the main goal of the season of winning the AFC West division title was achieved. Even though Oakland became the first team since the league’s merger to go undefeated in its division and miss the playoffs, Kansas City proved it was the best team in the division over the course of the 16 game-regular season.

And by doing so, the Chiefs have been granted a mulligan and can not only make up for the dreadful performance against the Raiders, they can also put an end to the far too long winless playoff drought.

Coaches don’t often like to admit it, but sometimes a tough loss can really help a team because it then makes the team refocus and reiterate that no team is perfect and winning is never a given.

The Chiefs have not won a playoff game since Joe Montana was the quarterback. The Chiefs have lost their last six playoff games, and limping into the playoffs is not ideal.

But the team that played on Sunday isn’t the real Chiefs team. The Chiefs have proven this season that they are much better than that. And the Chiefs are in the tournament. Let’s just hope the team that took the field against the Raiders isn’t.