The last time the Raiders visited Arrowhead Stadium was almost exactly 11 months ago, when Las Vegas stunned the Chiefs 20-14 on Christmas Day, dropping the defending Super Bowl champions to 9-6 on the season.
The two teams have been on opposite trajectories since then.
Kansas City is 16-1 since that Christmas upset. The Chiefs won their final two regular season games and then ran the table in the playoffs, becoming the first repeat Super Bowl winners in nearly 20 years. They then started the 2024 season 9-0, and after a close loss to the Bills in Buffalo, the Chiefs entered this week tied with the Detroit Lions for the NFL’s best record at 10-1.
It’s been much less smooth for the Raiders since then. The win over the Chiefs helped then-interim head coach Antonio Pierce land the full-time role in the offseason, but Las Vegas is just 2-9 this year, has one of the NFL’s worst offenses and traded star wide receiver Davante Adams after he asked out in October. Anything can happen, but another upset in Arrowhead today may be even more shocking than last year’s.