Raiders snap 16-game skid with 24-20 win vs. KC
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Sio Moore sacked Alex Smith and started to celebrate in the Kansas City backfield with Oakland Raiders teammate Khalil Mack.
The elaborate dance could be forgiven if the game had actually been over considering the Raiders hadn't won a game in more than a year. The only problem was the game was still going and the Chiefs were at the line trying to run a fourth-down play.
The Raiders were forced to call a timeout to stop the clock and then got one last stop, snapping a 16-game losing streak with a 24-20 victory over the Chiefs on Thursday night.
''I don't need any more of that,'' safety Charles Woodson said. ''I couldn't believe it. I told them that was the first time I had ever seen somebody celebrate for a whole 40-second clock. That was ridiculous, and they know it. I told Sio he's lucky we got the win because we really probably would've had to fight.''
The Raiders (1-10) were able to laugh about it because Justin Tuck alertly called timeout to prevent the Chiefs (7-4) from getting a free play off against a nine-man defense.
But Moore knows it could have been a costly mistake.
''I was so caught up in the moment, man,'' Moore said. ''That was an error I've got to make sure I clean up, because in another situation - in all seriousness - that can make it the difference and I've got to understand that.''
After Smith threw an incomplete pass on fourth down, Derek Carr took a knee and the Raiders celebrated their first win in 368 days since beating Houston last Nov. 17.
Carr threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to James Jones with 1:42 remaining to give the Raiders the long-awaited win.
''Hopefully there's many more to come because I like this feeling better than the other one, that's for sure,'' Carr said.
Here are some other takeaways from the Raiders' win:
BIG PLAY MURRAY: Third-string running back Latavius Murray got a chance early in the game and made the most of it. He scored on an 11-yard run on second drive of the game and went 90 yards for a score on his next carry for the longest run by a Raiders running back since Bo Jackson had a 92-yarder against Cincinnati in 1989. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor had a 93-yard TD run last season against Pittsburgh. Murray's 112 yards rushing on four carries were the most by any player since at least 1960 with five or fewer carries. Murray left the game with a concussion.
RUN OVER: The Chiefs came into the game having not allowed a rushing touchdown all season. Murray got them twice in the first half and Oakland ran for 179 yards overall on a wet day not suited to passing.
''When you line up and it's raining, the weather's no good and they can't throw the ball, you just line up and run the football,'' Chiefs linebacker Tamba Hali said. ''We weren't playing our gaps and it's like a high school football game.''
RELIABLE REECE: Raiders fullback Marcel Reece has been underutilized all season, carrying the ball just six times in Oakland's first 10 games. But with the game on the line, Reece got seven carries for 34 yards and added an 8-yard reception on the winning drive.
''Anytime I've ever used him that way or seen him used that way, he can push the pile a little bit,'' Sparano said. ''I felt like we were moving him pretty good a little bit there. He did a heck of a job. He really did.''
SLOW START: The Chiefs punted on their first five drives and got their only first-half score when Denarius Moore muffed a punt at the 11. Even then Kansas City settled for a field goal. The offense then found its groove by scoring two touchdowns and a field goal on consecutive drives in the second half to take the lead. But it wasn't enough.
''It's easy to say - you love to start fast,'' Smith said. ''We talk about that all the time, but it's a matter of going out there and doing it. I think we'll look back, especially those first two series before it started coming down, about lack of execution.''
LONG WAIT: No one waited longer for this win than Raiders defensive lineman Antonio Smith. He lost the final 14 games with Houston last year and his personal 24-game losing streak was the third longest for any player since 1980.
''Like heaven,'' Smith said. ''It feels good, man. It's awesome. That's it, that's the word. Long-time coming. Such a relief.''
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