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Rest of the AFC West Takeaways: Week 6

By Prather Silverthorn

DENVER, CO - OCTOBER 01: Head coach Jack Del Rio of the Oakland Raiders watches from the sidelines as his team plays the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on October 1, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - OCTOBER 01: Head coach Jack Del Rio of the Oakland Raiders watches from the sidelines as his team plays the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on October 1, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /
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OAKLAND, CA – OCTOBER 15: Melvin Gordon
OAKLAND, CA – OCTOBER 15: Melvin Gordon /

The Kansas City Chiefs maintain the lead in the AFC West lead despite their loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

The Kansas City Chiefs fall to a 5-1 record after losing at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Denver Broncos suffered an ugly loss at home against the New York Giants and are now 3-2. The Los Angeles Chargers were the lone AFC West team to grab a victory with their victory over the Oakland Raiders. The Chargers and Raiders are both 2-4, with the Chargers owning the tie breaker. This puts the Oakland Raiders in last place. Here are the takeaways from the rest of the AFC West in week 6.

Los Angeles Chargers 17, Oakland Raiders 16

Chargers do just enough to win

The Los Angeles Chargers were not overly impressive on Sunday, but got the job done against the Raiders. Running back Melvin Gordon saw a heavy workload and was very productive. He carried the ball 25 times and had 9 receptions for a total of 150 yards and 2 touchdowns. His production was needed, as the Chargers receivers were shut down for a large portion of the game. Keenan Allen made a couple of nice plays late in the first half on a touchdown drive, but ended the day with 5 catches for only 45 yards. Tyrell Williams caught only 3 passes for 27 yards and also had a fumble. Deep threat Travis Benjamin was held without a catch. Despite this, Philip Rivers was able to have a successful day, completing 25 of 36 passes for 268 yards and a touchdown. Tight End Hunter Henry had a big game with 90 yards on 5 receptions.

The Chargers run defense remains a liability. Marshawn Lynch had his best outing since week 1, carrying the ball 13 times for 63 yards. Wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson scored a long touchdown run off of a jet sweep. The Chargers may have struggled against the run, but played very well against the pass. The Chargers defense held Derek Carr to only 171 yards passing and forced 2 interceptions. The pass rushers were only able to sack Carr once, but it was a nice play by Joey Bosa to force a fumble on 3rd down and kill the drive.

Despite winning the turnover battle, gaining more yards, having fewer penalties, and having more time of possession than the Raiders, the Chargers needed to put together a 78 yard drive to attempt a last second field goal. Thankfully Nick Novak was able to convert the attempt, but with the kicking woes the Chargers have experienced this season, it would be nice if It didn’t get to that point at all. Out of the Chargers’ 10 possessions, 6 of them lasted 5 or fewer plays. The offense is still having issues sustaining drives. This is in large part because of their lack of running game. The Chargers as a team rushed for only 80 yards on 28 carries, an average of less than 3 yards per attempt. The inefficient running game leads to many unfavorable 3rd down scenarios. The Chargers offense will have to improve as they host the Denver Broncos next week.

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