Heading into the Oakland Raiders' Week 17 showdown with the Kansas City Chiefs, Raiders.com highlighted three matchups that would be critical in how the game played out.
The Raiders fell to the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium 23-17, finishing their first season under Head Coach Jack Del Rio with a 7-9 record, so before we officially shift our attention to the offseason, let's take a look back and see how those matchups played out.
Wide Receiver Amari Cooper vs. Cornerback Marcus Peters
The second installment of the battle between the two former-first rounders from the 2015 NFL Draft was relatively quiet.
Cooper finished the day with two catches for 20 yards, but on the other side of the football, Peters recorded just one tackle, one tackle for loss and one pass defensed in the Kansas City win.
Peters did not spend the day tailing Cooper exclusively – he also got a look at Michael Crabtree, who took exception with the rookie's trash talk and then proceeded to burn him for a 31-yard touchdown.
"I was just tired of the No. 22 [Marcus Peters] talking noise like he was that great," Crabtree explained. "So, we just went deep on him for six. He was mad after that. He's a good football player – competition."
While the Cooper/Peters battle was rather quiet Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium, Cooper's two receptions gave him 72 on the season, which gave him the most receptions in NFL history by a wide receiver 21-years-old or younger.
Linebacker Malcolm Smith vs. Tight End Travis Kelce
One thing that the Raiders defense can take solace in is the fact that Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith didn't beat them with his arm.
Smith finished the game 14 of 24 for 156 yards, and while he did throw two touchdowns, he countered that with two interceptions as well.
Kelce, the ever-versatile tight end, hauled in just one pass for 10 yards Sunday afternoon and proved to be non-factor in the Week 17 clash.
Defensively, Smith turned in yet another consistent effort, once again playing every defensive snap and finishing the game with five total tackles.
The Raiders lost their regular season finale against the Chiefs, but the production of Travis Kelce was not the reason.
Defensive End Khalil Mack vs. Left Tackle Eric Fisher
Per usual, Mack was active along the defensive line for the Raiders Sunday afternoon.
At game's end, he led the team with 10 tackles, also adding two tackles for loss and one quarterback hit in the process.
However, Mack was unable to secure a sack, meaning he finished the season with 15, one shy of the franchise's single-season record.
His 15 sacks also ranked second in the NFL this year, after Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt turned in an impressive performance that resulted in him ending the regular season with 17.5 sacks.
Mack's sack numbers made a huge jump this season, but make no mistake about it; he remains a dominant defensive star even when he doesn't bring down the quarterback.
