The rivalry between the Chiefs and Raiders is considered to be one of the NFL's most bitter rivalries.[9][10][11][12] Since theAmerican Football League (AFL) was established in1960, the Chiefs and Raiders have shared the same division, first being the AFL Western Conference, and since theAFL–NFL merger in1970, theAFC West.[13][14]
The Chiefs lead the overall series, 76–55–2. The two teams have met three times in theplayoffs, with the Chiefs holding a 2–1 record.[1]
History
The teams first met in1960 when the Chiefs were known as the Dallas Texans. The Texans defeated the Raiders 34–16 in the team's first game atOakland,[15][16][17] then the Raiders defeated the Texans 20–19 atDallas.[16][17]
The following year, in1969, the Raiders beat the Chiefs twice in the regular season[18][19] and went on to win the AFL Western Conference title. The teams met in the 1969 AFL Championship Game at Oakland and the underdog Chiefs won 17–7.[18][19] The Chiefs participated inSuper Bowl IV a week later and defeated the NFL'sheavily favoredMinnesota Vikings.[18] It was not until1976 that Oakland won theirfirst Super Bowl championship.[20]
In the first meeting between the teams during the1970 NFL season—both teams' first in the newly merged NFL—the Chiefs held a 17–14 lead late in the fourth quarter and appeared ready to run out the clock. Chiefs quarterback Len Dawson rolled right and gained enough yardage for a first down, and as he fell to the ground, Raiders defensive endBen Davidson dove into Dawson with his helmet; in retaliation, Davidson was attacked by Chiefs wide receiver Otis Taylor.[9][21] After a bench-clearing brawl, Davidson and Taylor were ejected, and the penalties that were called nullified the first down under the rules at the time. Kansas City was forced to punt. The Raiders took advantage, asGeorge Blanda made a 48-yard field goal with 8 seconds left to secure a 17–17 tie. The tie proved to be costly for the Chiefs, as Oakland clinched their first AFC West championship with a 20–6 victory in Oakland in Week 13. Due to this incident, the NFL changed the rules so that Davidson's personal foul would have been enforced at the end of the play, and Taylor's penalty would have been assessed only after the Chiefs had been awarded a first down.
The Chiefs defeated the Raiders 42–10 in the1975 season, prompting the Chiefs' livehorsemascotWarpaint to circle the field after each touchdown scored. After the game, Raiders coachJohn Madden said "We couldn't beat the Chiefs, but we damn near killed their horse." It was the first win for new Chiefs coachPaul Wiggin.[22]
The Raiders won two more Super Bowl titles in1980[23] and1983[24] while the Chiefs were considered to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. The Raiders won most of the games between the 1970s and 1980s.[25][26] Following their victory in Super Bowl IV, the Chiefs returned to the playoffs in1971, but lost in double overtime to theMiami Dolphins in the divisional round in the longest game in NFL history, the final game at Kansas City's Municipal Stadium. Following that loss, Kansas City did not return to the playoffs until 1986.[27]
In the final game of the1999 season, the Chiefs and Raiders faced off atKansas City. A win for the Chiefs would put them in the playoffs. A game plagued by special teams mistakes for the Chiefs, including three attempted kickoffs that ended up out of bounds by kickoff specialist Jon Baker, helped keep the Raiders in the game and stop the Chiefs from sealing the victory. The game went into overtime and, helped by favorable field position after the third and final kickoff out of bounds, former ChiefRich Gannon drove the Raiders into Chiefs territory, setting up the game-winning field goal and knocking the Chiefs out of the playoffs, their first win at Arrowhead since 1988.[28]
Kansas City at Oakland, 2002.
On October 21, 2007, the Chiefs defeated the Raiders for a record ninth straight victory. On November 25, 2007, the Raiders defeated the Chiefs in Arrowhead for Oakland's first victory over Kansas City since December 23, 2002.
On September 14, 2008, the Raiders defeated the Chiefs 23–8 for the second straight time in Kansas City. RookieDarren McFadden compiled 210 rushing yards and a touchdown.[29] On November 30, 2008, the Chiefs defeated the Raiders for the sixth straight time in Oakland.[30]
On September 20, 2009, the Raiders defeated the Chiefs 13–10, in Kansas City for the third straight time. The Chiefs became one of the few teams to lose to quarterbackJaMarcus Russell.[31]On November 15, 2009, the Chiefs defeated the Raiders 16–10 in Oakland Coliseum for the Chiefs' seventh straight victory in Oakland.
On November 7, 2010, the Raiders defeated the Chiefs in OT 23–20 in a match-up that revived the Chiefs–Raiders rivalry. It marked the 99th time these teams have met in the regular season and 102nd overall. On January 2, 2011, the Raiders defeated the Chiefs in Kansas City for the fourth straight time, 31–10, to finish a sweep of the AFC West.
On October 3, 2011, a Raiders fan filed a lawsuit against the Chiefs and two unidentified Chiefs fans, claiming that security did nothing as he was beaten during a brawl at Kansas City in 2009.[32]
The Chiefs broke Oakland's six-game winning streak in Kansas City on October 13, 2013, when they defeated the Raiders, 24–7, in a game where Kansas City set a then world record for the loudest open-air venue at over 137 dB.[33]
On November 20, 2014, the Raiders snapped a 16-game losing streak in Oakland against the Chiefs while Kansas City was in a four-game winning streak the week after the Chiefs defeated the defendingSuper Bowl champions, theSeattle Seahawks. The loss ended up costing Kansas City a playoff berth.
In 2015, the Kansas City Chiefs swept the season series between these two teams.
In 2016, both teams were at the top of the AFC for the entire season, with Oakland securing their first winning season and first playoff appearance since 2002. The Chiefs beat Oakland twice, 26–10 in Oakland and in Kansas City 21–13. Both teams ended the regular season with a 12–4 record and with the series sweep, Kansas City won the AFC West and a first round bye while Oakland was relegated to Wild Card status and the fifth seed in the AFC playoffs.
The Chiefs and Raiders met for a Thursday Night match-up on October 19, 2017, in Oakland, with the Chiefs at a 5–1 record and the Raiders at a 2–4 record. The Raiders won the game 31–30 with a touchdown pass at the very end of the game, which followed two Chiefs defensive penalties, also including a scuffle between the two teams that led to Raiders running backMarshawn Lynch getting ejected.[34] The game snapped a four-game losing streak for Oakland in the season, and also a five-game losing streak against the Chiefs in the rivalry.
In Week 5 of the2020 season, the rivalry between the two teams was renewed when the 2–2 Raiders went toArrowhead Stadium and upset the undefeated Chiefs 40–32, snapping a 5-game losing streak against the Chiefs dating back to 2017. It was the Raiders' first win in Arrowhead since 2012, withDerek Carr passing for 347 yards and three touchdowns, whilePatrick Mahomes had 340 yards and two touchdowns, but had a costly third-quarter interception that led to a critical Raiders touchdown. It was Mahomes' first loss to the Raiders, and first loss since losing to theTennessee Titans in Week 10 of the 2019 season.
Las Vegas at Kansas City, 2021.
On November 22, 2020, the two teams met in Las Vegas for the first time onSunday Night Football. With 1:07 left in the game, Derek Carr threw a touchdown pass toJason Witten to give the Raiders a 31–28 lead, but Patrick Mahomes lead a 75-yard drive culminating in a 23-yard touchdown pass toTravis Kelce with 28 seconds left that gave the Chiefs a 35–31 win, officially renewing a spark in the rivalry between the two teams. After, the Chiefs went on to finish the season 14–2, losing to theBuccaneers inSuper Bowl LV, while the Raiders, who were 6–3 leading up to this game, began a painful late-season collapse, as they would lose four of their last six games to end the season 8–8 and out of the playoffs.
On Christmas Day, the Raiders defense helped snap another 5-game losing streak against the Chiefs.
Season-by-season results
Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs vs. Oakland/Los Angeles/Las Vegas Raiders Season-by-Season Results[1]
Inaugural season for both franchises and theAmerican Football League (AFL). Both teams are placed in the Western Division, becoming divisional rivals. Texans record their first road win in franchise history.
First postseason meeting. AFL Western Division. Raiders get home field based on a coin flip. Raiders record their largest victory over the Chiefs with a 35-point differential. Raiders go on to lose1968 AFL Championship Game.
Second postseason meeting. AFL Championship Game. Chiefs become the first Super Bowl representative (and champion) not to win their respective division. Chiefs go on to winSuper Bowl IV.
As a result of theAFL–NFL merger, the Chiefs and Raiders are placed in theAFC West. In Kansas City, following a first down that appeared to secure a Chiefs' victory, a confrontation between Chiefs' WROtis Taylor and Raiders' DEBen Davidson escalated into a bench-clearing brawl, leading to offsetting penalties that negated the Chiefs' first down, compelling them to punt. The Raiders scored the game-tying field goal, marking the first tie between the two teams.
Chiefs' first road win against the Raiders for the first time since the1969 AFL Championship. Chiefs sweep the Raiders for the first time since the1964 season.
The game in Los Angeles was the Raiders' final game played as aLos Angeles-based team. Both teams finished with 9–7 records, but the Chiefs clinched the final playoff spot based on their head-to-head sweep, eliminating the Raiders from playoff contention.
In Oakland, Chiefs overcame a 34–20 fourth quarter deficit. In Kansas City, Raiders overcame a 17–0 deficit as their win eliminated the Chiefs from playoff contention. The 17-point blown lead tied a Chiefs franchise record for biggest blown lead (broken in2005).br />Game in Kansas City was also the last game for Chiefs' star linebackerDerrick Thomas, who died 37 days later from injuries suffered in an automobile accident.
In Oakland, the Raiders score their most points in a game against the Chiefs. Raiders sweep the Chiefs for the first time since the1988 season and the first in Oakland for the first time since the1978 season.
Chiefs win nine straight meetings (2003–2007). Chiefs win' was their last of the2007 season, as they ended the season on a 9-game losing streak. That losing streak extended to 12 games the following season. With their win, the Raiders snapped a 17-game losing streak against divisional opponents.
In Oakland, Chiefs score their most points in a game against the Raiders and clinch a playoff berth with their win. The game's final score is the highest-scoring game in the rivalry (87 points).
Raiders' win came after back-to-back holding calls against the Chiefs allowed 2 consecutive untimed downs. Following their loss, the Chiefs went on a 16 road-game division winning streak.
In Kansas City, the Chiefs clinch the AFC West, a first-round bye, and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs as the AFC's #1 seed with their win.
^Ehrlich, Matthew C. (August 15, 2019).Kansas City vs. Oakland: The Bitter Sports Rivalry That Defined an Era. University of Illinois Press.ISBN978-0-252-05150-0.OCLC1155496074.
