KC Chiefs vs Raiders: Analyzing Oakland's Play Direction Tendencies

Some people are saying that the Oakland Raiders have finally found what it takes to get the win.  They have always had talent, they say, but never had enough cohesion amongst the parts to complete the deal consistently.

Fittingly, as the Raiders are trying to find their way back to the top of the AFC West who should be standing in their way...the Kansas City Chiefs. 

Every team in the NFL has strengths and weaknesses, tendencies, and go-to guys.  They have plays they like to call during tight situations or directions they like to run when in the middle of the football field.

Let's check out those tendencies.

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Raiders Rushing Offense

Raiders Rushing Notes:

• Taking a look at the numbers tells us that the Raiders like to run the ball.  They are 2nd in the NFL in attempts directly at the center.  When running at the tackles, Oakland is 4th in the NFL in attempts going right and 3rd in the NFL going left.
• Just like in the previous weeks, Chiefs opponents attack the belly of the defense most frequently.  82 times the opponents have run the ball directly at the offensive center, which is 3rd in the NFL.  So far the results have been pedestrian with a 3.9 yard per carry average which is ranked 16th in the NFL.
• If you study the average gain rankings, above, you might notice that the Raiders rank 7th, 4th, and 2nd in a couple of areas.  That's pretty good because those areas are spread out over the left, middle, and right sides of the offensive line.
• Look for the Raiders to try and run the ball on the Chiefs.  Why not?  That is what got the Raiders to this point in the season.  The old Raider silver and black philosophy might even peak its head out if Jason Campbell starts.  That would be run, run, run, run, pass it deep...touchdown!
• Oakland is second in the NFL in yards per game rushing with 168.5.  That is pretty good no matter who you are playing.  But, just who have they played to get all those yards?
  

Raiders Rushing Yards Per Team vs Defensive Rushing Rank

• You can make your own judgments about the numbers above.  How good are the Raiders at running the ball?  As a comparison for Chiefs fans...the Chiefs have recorded these rushing yards (in order of games):  135, 140, *207*, 113, *228*, 236, 274. 
  
• Against the Houston Texans the Raiders rushed for 118 yards (4.7 yards per carry) and the Chiefs rushed for 228 yards (6.0yards per carry).  In the San Francisco game the Raiders rushed for 110 yards (3.7 yards per carry) and the Chiefs rushed for 207 (5.3 per carry).  The San Diego Chargers gave up 111 yards rushing (3.7 yards per carry) to the Raiders and 135 yards (5.2 yards per carry) to Kansas City.
  

Raiders Passing Offense

Raiders Passing Notes:

• The Raiders don't really rank high in attempts at any of the zones.  The highest zone rank based on attempts would be passing the ball to the deep middle of the field:  Tight end?
  
• One statistic of note would be that Oakland is 2nd in the NFL in production when throwing the ball short left with 7.43 yards per reception.  The Raiders are also 1st in production when throwing the ball to the short middle with 10.25 yards per reception.
• Nothing has changed with the Chiefs.  Opponents are still attacking the Chiefs by throwing the ball toward Flowers, or deep right (4th in NFL in attempts) and short right (2nd in the NFL in attempts).  Those high numbers are still a result of the Chiefs rotating coverages and leaving Flowers in more man coverage.  After team see this they tend to challenge Flowers and the right side of the offense as opposed to attacking the areas with rotated coverage.  The disappointing thing for the opponents is...the Chiefs are still 9th in the NFL at defending the short right (based on yards per reception) and 7th in the NFL at defending the deep right pass.
• Look for the Raiders, regardless of their passing tenancies, to attack the man coverage.  It just looks to good.

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