Put the Chiefs and Raiders side-by-side and you get a stark comparison.
Kansas City has a top 10 offense — both in terms of scoring and yards gained (ninth and eighth, respectively) — and is just outside the top 10 defensively — 11th in points allowed, 12th in yards yielded). Las Vegas, meanwhile, has one the worst offenses (29th in scoring, 23rd in yards gained) and topsy turvy defense (23rd in points allowed, 11th in yards yielded).
The Chiefs boast a franchise quarterback Patrick Mahomes and accomplished head coach Andy Reid — both of whom are headed to Canton when their done. The Raiders trot out a helter skelter signal caller in Geno Smith with a cosmopolitan coach in Pete Carroll — the latter likely a hall of famer when he’s done.
Heck, Kansas City allegedly has the advantage regarding favorable officiating, a UTEP study found.
Despite the differences between the Chiefs (3-3 overall) and Raiders (2-4), there’s a eerie similarity between the two: The kicking game.
Can I Kick It?
Harrison Butker, who has been the Chiefs place kicker since 2017, and Daniel Carlson, the Raiders kicker since 2018, are identical in terms of field goal makes and attempts through six games: 11 made, 14 attempted. The pair of 30-year-old kickers sport twin 78.6 percent conversion rates which puts both under the league average of 83.8 percent.
Butker is perfect from distances of 20 to 39 yards with his misses coming from 40 to 50-plus yards out. In comparison, Carlson is equally perfect from the 20 to 39 yard distances but also 40 to 49. His misses stem from 50-plus yards out (one of them a blocked field goal attempt).
The difference between the two AFC West place kickers lies in extra points. Butker has attempted way more at 17, but his 14 makes gives him a 82.4 percent conversion rate. The league average rate is 95.8 percent. Carlson, for example, has attempted less than half of Butker’s number at eight, but he’s made all of them for a 100 percent rate.
It may seem miniscule and irrelevant — largely due to the Chiefs scoring points in droves — but if Butker made all of his extra points and field goals, Kansas City’s point total would read 170 which would vault the team to the fourth-most points ahead of the Buffalo Bills’ 167 sum.
Flip it to the punters, and there’s similarities between the Raiders’ AJ Cole III and the Chiefs’ Matt Araiza.
Cole has punted the ball 18 times for 884 yards while Araiza has booted the ball to the other team 15 times for 680 yards. Cole has the edge in terms of average yards per punt at 49.1 to Ariaza’s 45.3, but in other categories, Kansas City’s punter has the advantage. Opponent’s have only generated 30 return yards due to Araiza’s hang time and ability to pin nine punts inside the opposition’s 20-yard line. That gives him a 43.3 net yard average per boot.
Returners against Las Vegas have compiled 169 return yards (including a touchdown) scuttling Cole’s net average per boot to a paltry 35.5 number. Oh, he’s also had one of his attempts blocked, alongside only five of his punts either being fair caught or going out of bounds inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Granted, Raiders head coach Pete Carroll said Cole is dealing with a sprained ankle, which can affect hangtime and distance.
“Yeah, let’s give a moment here, too, special teams played great yesterday, and it’s been a problem for us. We have not played the way we need to play, and we’ve been giving up too many explosive plays and all,” Carroll said during his Monday media session. “And so, yesterday, they did their part throughout. Just to have a little burst a couple times on the punt returns was great. Remember, AJ has a sprained ankle. His ankle’s still sprained, but he got a couple kicks in on Friday, showed that he could do it, went out there, and did a great job.
“And we had in this game, a part of the game that I love, we had a couple opportunities to sink him back in there, and we did it, and we factored into how he played. And so, it really felt like a complete game for us, and with all kinds of areas to play better.”
If Las Vegas’ offense struggles in Arrowhead against Kansas City this Sunday, expect Cole to get plenty of opportunities to punt.
Early Returns
Both Kansas City and Las Vegas struggle in the return game — be it kick off or punt.
Rookie running back Brashard Smith paces the Chiefs’ kick return group with 12 returns for 322 yards (a long of 37). Wide receiver Nikko Remigio has 11 returns for 292 yards (long of 47). The wideout is also the primary punt return man with nine returns for 91 yards (long of 25).
Running back Dylan Laube leads the Raiders kick return squad with 13 for 358 yards (a long of 38). Running backs Zamir White (six returns for 149 yards; long of 31) and Raheem Mostert (five returns for 119 yards; long of 27) have pitched in there.
Wide receivers Tre Tucker and Alex Bachman have pitched in for punt return duties as Tucker has five returns for 45 yards (long of 15) and Bachman posted four returns for 55 yards (long of 25).
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