Raiders RB Darren McFadden scores the game-winning touchdown during the Raiders 2009 trip to Kansas City. Photo by Tony Gonzales.
The Oakland Raiders will begin the month of November with a visit from a long-time arch-rival, the Kansas City Chiefs. The rivalry stretches back to the 1960s and is considered to this day one of the fiercest amongst NFL teams. The hotly contested matchups have featured games with playoff, Super Bowl implications, memorable last-minute drives, and a fair share of skirmishes. The 2010 matchup will take place on November 7, marking the 102nd time the two teams have met each other throughout the course of the regular season.
1960s
The Raiders-Chiefs match-up, which began in 1960 in the AFL, sparked a rivalry that is ever-present to this day. The Silver and Black dominated the 1967 season going 13-1, including two big wins against Kansas City, as the rivalry reached a boiling point that has never stopped simmering. On December 22, 1968, in a playoff game that would decide who would advance to meet the New York Jets in the AFL Championship Game, the Raiders and Chiefs squared off in Oakland with identical 12-2 records. Oakland's home crowd bore witness to the Daryle Lamonica and Fred Biletnikoff show as the pair connected on three touchdown passes of 24, 44, and 54 yards. The Raiders outgained the Chiefs by 142 yards and ran away with a 41-6 victory. The 1969 regular season-finale between the two resulted in a Raider victory, 10-6, giving the Silver and Black a record-tying third straight AFL Western Division title.
1970s
As the Raiders entered the decade of the 1970s, the enmity between the Raiders and Chiefs was taken to the next level. In the first year of the AFL-NFL merger, the Silver and Black swept the Chiefs both meetings en route to becoming the first AFC club to ever capture four consecutive Western Division crowns with a Week 13 win of 20-6. The 1974 season the Silver and Black continued their dominance by taking both match-ups against the Chiefs with scores of 27-7, and 7-6 on their way to another AFC West Division title.
On October 3, 1977, one of the greatest matchups of the Raiders-Chiefs series occurred under the lights of Monday Night Football. As the Chiefs led heading into halftime the Raiders charged into the third quarter scoring 21 unanswered points to remain undefeated through the remainder of the regular season, vaulting into the postseason. The offensive showcase featured Raiders Mark van Eeghen and Clarence Davis exceeding the 100-yard rushing mark left the Silver and Black victorious in the end. The Raiders continued their decade-long dominance by once again sweeping the Chiefs during the 1978 season in convincing fashion, 28-6 and 20-10 to wrap up a 14th consecutive winning season.
1980s
On December 12, 1982, the Raiders downed the Chiefs in the final seconds of the fourth quarter with a Jim Plunkett 35-yard pass to connect with Calvin Muhammad making the Raiders triumphant, 21-16, while earning the 200th league win in the club's history. The 1984 season the Raiders traveled to Kansas City as the rivalry took center stage. The Raiders pulled out a hard-fought 22-20 victory in order to grant Head Coach Tom Flores his 50th league win since becoming head coach. The Raiders handled the Chiefs in convincing fashion, winning 35-17 later that season.
1990s-2000s
Continuing into the decade of the 90s, the rivalry between the Raiders and Chiefs was still boiling. The 1997 and 1998 match-ups marked two consecutive years the Raiders opened the home regular season schedule against the Chiefs. The 1999 season provided, once again, another close game between the two leaving the Silver and Black on top 41-38 as they closed out the regular season. On January 2, 2000, the Raiders spoiled any hopes the Chiefs had of making it to the post-season by sending the game into overtime and eventually coming away with a game winning field goal. During the 2000 season, the Raiders took both victories against the Chiefs leaving them once again on top of the AFC Western Division.
The year of 2002 provided a special year for the Silver and Black, as they blanked their long-time rival in the regular season finale 24-0 on their way to becoming the AFC Champions, and appearing in a fifth Super Bowl. Thanksgiving weekend of the 2007 season offered another exciting moment in Raiders-Chiefs history. The Silver and Black traveled to Kansas City and the Chiefs led 10-6 heading into halftime. RB Justin Fargas had a 14-yard rushing touchdown that gave the Raiders a 20-17 lead.
The 2009 16-10 Raider win was the third straight victory for the Silver and Black at Arrowhead Stadium.
