The Las Vegas Raiders absolutely smashed the Kansas City Chiefs last year. As a matter of fact, they almost did it twice, but the first time they played one another when the Raiders hosted, Las Vegas choked away a 14-point lead and ended up losing pretty badly.
But when Christmas Day came, and the Raiders were set to take on the the defending champions in Kansas City, the guys wearing silver and black did not hold back. They went in and stole Christmas, like the Grinch. Sure, the score may have read just a seven-point lead when it was all said and done, but the Raiders beat the Chiefs up physically all game.
And, that's what they wanted to do. That was the plan for Antonio Pierce. While the Chiefs players have since said that the loss fueled them to turn their season around, none of them have admitted the truth yet, until now.
"We got our a** beat by the f****** Raiders on Christmas. F****** ruined Christmas, motherf******," Travis Kelce said. "He [head coach Antonio Pierce] had those dudes ready to brawl out there on the field. One hundred percent man. And I love that s***. I was like, 'man if we play with that kind of edge, or that kind of toughness, that kind of like don't f*** with our mentality, we won't be stopped.'"
You hate that game was the one that made the Chiefs go on to win their second consecutive Super Bowl, but you love that the players on the other side can admit when they were matched, and the Raiders not only matched their intensity, they beat it. They made Patrick Mahomes force errors, and they took the crowd out of the game.
Fast-forward to the 2024 game, and the Raiders should have an even better defense, as they really didn't lose anyone too significant, but added a huge piece in Christian Wilkins. Maybe, just maybe, the Raiders can do that all over again. Let's hope this time that the offense holds their end of the bargain, and the quarterback at least completes a pass after the first quarter.
