Raiders Week 16 Slay and Bomb

This week 16 Slay and Bomb will be a story of “How the Raiders Stole Christmas.”

In week 16, the Raiders did the unthinkable. They went into Arrowhead Stadium on Christmas Day and snapped a 6 game losing streak against their hated rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs by a score of 20-14. But the game wasn’t close until the last couple of minutes.

It wasn’t the prettiest game by any means. Aidan O’Connell became the first Raiders quarterback since Jamarcus Russell in 2009 to have 10 straight incompletions in a single game and finished 9/21 for 66 yards on the day. He’s earned a place in this week 16 slay and bomb article.

The Raiders became the first team to win a game since 2000 where they didn’t complete a pass after the first quarter. But I think more importantly, they didn’t turn over the football.

Instead, the Raiders defense shined. They forced 2 turnovers that resulted in touchdowns in 7 seconds. One was another big man touchdown for the second consecutive week, this time by defensive lineman Bilal Nichols who recovered a fumble by Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes on a trick play. The next was a pick 6 by cornerback Jack Jones for the second consecutive week.

Jack Jones appeared to be the Grinch who stole Christmas when he stared down Mahomes as he walked into the endzone, and then faked like he was giving the football to a young Chiefs fan before taking the ball back. However, Jones fact-checked this on Twitter, pointing out that he was only pulling back the football away from a fan who was attempting to snatch the ball away from the kid.

The Raiders defense dominated all game long and everybody on that unit deserves praise for their performance on Christmas morning. They also did what Jack Jones said they needed to do and that was shut down the magician, aka Patrick Mahomes.

I predicted a Raiders upset for Christmas Day. The team went out and got the win. Nobody else thought they could get it done, but the Raiders believed and in the end, that’s what counts.

Let’s get into this week 16 slay and bomb article.

Slay

Malcolm Koonce

Malcolm Koonce has become half of the best pass-rushing duo the Raiders have had since they featured Bruce Irvin and Khalil Mack. He’s finally getting extensive playing time for the first time and has improved immensely. He struggled in the early part of the season but since then has exploded onto the scene. He earned his spot on this week 16 slay and bomb article.

Since week 8, Koonce has put up the following stats: 35 pressures, 7 sacks, 6 tackles for loss, 15 QB hits, 3 forced fumbles, 21 stops, and 2 forced interceptions. He’s been playing like a man possessed and has been matching Maxx Crosby’s energy on the field.

Crosby helps Koonce considering he’s drawing double and triple teams every single play, leaving Koonce one on one. But Koonce is making the most of the opportunities he’s given.

Monday’s game was another game in which Koonce dominated. Crosby was all over the field and seemed to be in on every tackle as well. But Koonce shined with 3 sacks and 8 pressures, both career highs. On top of that, 7 of his 8 pressures and all 3 sacks occurred in 1 on 1 matchups with Chiefs rookie left tackle Wanya Morris according to Next Gen Stats.

If he continues to prosper like this, he’ll require extra attention as well which will cause teams to have to choose whether they send multiple blockers towards Koonce or Crosby on a certain play. This could absolutely lead to future apperances after this apperance on the week 16 Slay and Bomb article.

Jack Jones

Jack Jones since coming to the Raiders has been absolutely on fire. He’s reunited with his high school coach Antonio Pierce and has been set loose on the league. He’s another player who has earned a spot on this week 16 slay and bomb article. Hopefully, he can continue to appear on future slay and bomb articles after his apperance on this week 16 Slay and Bomb article.

For the second straight week, Jones produced a pick 6. This time it wasn’t on a career backup like Easton Stick. This time it was on the man he referred to this week as “The Magician”, Patrick Mahomes.

Jones shut down the show just like he said the Raiders needed to. He’s loud, he’s proud, and he’s been a really good cornerback since coming to Las Vegas.

New England’s decision to release Jones has been beneficial to this Raiders secondary. After cutting Marcus Peters loose, Jones took his spot and has been part of a secondary that has helped turn around the Raiders defense. They currently have the 8th-ranked scoring defense, the Raiders best-scoring defense since 2002.

This was unfathomable even a season ago. It’s been decades since the Raiders defense was this good. Hopefully, Jones and the rest of the secondary can keep this up going forward for the last 2 weeks.

Zamir White

The Raiders had no choice but to trust in the power of “Zeus” on Monday morning. Josh Jacobs was questionable but was expected to play. The day of the game came and they decided to sit him down for an additional week. In came second-year running back Zamir White, better known by his nickname “Zeus.”

“Zeus” was the only person who was able to do anything on the Raiders offense on Monday. When the Raiders needed to finish off Kansas City late in the 4th quarter, White burst through the line of scrimmage and took off for a 43-yard run that helped seal the game.

He exploded for 145 yards against the Chiefs. Against the Raiders’ biggest rival on the road on Christmas Day, White came through when his team needed him most. Given how brutally the rest of the Raiders offense performed on Monday, without White’s contributions they wouldn’t have won.

Bomb

Raiders Passing Game

As I stated previously, “AOC” became the first Raiders quarterback since Jamarcus Russell in 2009 to have 10 straight incompletions in a single game. On top of that, the Raiders won the game without completing a pass after the 1st quarter since the year 2000.

It wasn’t a complete bomb performance in the sense that the team somehow won the game despite “AOC” going 9/21 passing. But it’s still a bomb performance that earns its place in this week 16 slay and bomb article because O’Connell did something negative that hadn’t been done since Jamarcus Russell in his final season as a starter.

The only positive aside from the win, is that he managed to have no interceptions and no fumbles. If he did, it would’ve crippled the team’s chance to win the game. At the end of the day, a win is a win. Luckily, the team didn’t need to rely on “AOC” to win the game.

The Raiders receivers also had numerous passes go off their hands. It didn’t help at all when O’Connell was able to make an accurate pass that it was still hitting the grass after hitting the receivers in the hands.

Unfortunately, the team was unable to get the passing game going at all. “AOC” was wild and inaccurate, and the drops were a serious problem. The team needs to clean it up if they want to win their next game.

Next up, the Raiders have their sights set on the Indianapolis Colts. The team needs to win out and get some help if they want to make the playoffs, but it’s very possible and very likely the team can accomplish their goal.