NFL Week 5 grades: Raiders get an ‘A+’ for upsetting Chiefs, flailing Falcons get a ‘D’ as they fall to 0-5

Not many teams in the NFL can go toe-to-toe with the Kansas Chiefs in a shootout, but that’s exactly what the Las Vegas Raiders did on Sunday. In one of the biggest upsets of the season, the Raiders beat the Chiefs at their own game in a surprising 40-32 win for Las Vegas. The reason the Raiders’ win was a surprise is because this isn’t a team that’s known for winning shootouts. Since Derek Carr was drafted in 2014, the Raiders had only topped the 40-point mark a total of two times before Sunday, and a big reason for that is because Carr generally seems to be afraid to take shots downfield. 

Well, if that was his biggest weakness then the rest of the NFL might be in trouble, because Carr seems to have overcome his fear of throwing deep. Not only did the Raiders quarterback outgun Patrick Mahomes, but he did it in spectacular fashion. 

With the Raiders trailing 14-3 in the second quarter, they needed a big play, and they got it because Carr was willing to throw deep. 

What you see there is a 59-yard touchdown pass from Carr to Nelson Agholor that seemed to spark the Raiders offense. 

Not only did Carr make the pass, but he actually one-upped himself later in the quarter when he threw a perfect strike to Henry Ruggs for a 72-yard touchdown. This time around, the score gave the Raiders the lead just before halftime. 

Carr’s willingness to throw deep probably caught the Chiefs off-guard, and that’s because he had never really tried to do it all season. Through the first four weeks of the year, the Raiders only had one play of 40 or more yards. In their win on Sunday, the Raiders had four such plays. Carr, who threw for 347 yards and three touchdowns, absolutely outplayed Mahomes, who threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns.

Of course, Carr wasn’t the only reason the Raiders won. Vegas also was able to pull off the upset because of a brilliant performance by the team’s defense in the second half. After surrendering 24 points in the first half, the Raiders buckled down and only gave up eight points in the second half. 

The Chiefs had the ball a total of five times in the second half and they only came away with one touchdown, which happened in garbage time. The Raiders’ secret to slowing down Mahomes was pretty simple: They were able to put pressure on the Chiefs quarterback (who got sacked three times), which made nearly every throw tough for Mahomes. The Raiders secondary also did a fantastic job of sticking with Kansas City’s receivers, even on plays where Mahomes tried to turn things into backyard football. 

That interception right there came in the fourth quarter and was Mahomes’ first one of the season. 

With the win, the Raiders just kicked the door open on the AFC West race. Instead of Kansas City running away with the division, Vegas has to now like its odds of winning.  

Alright, let’s get to the grades for every game from Week 5. If you’re looking for a deeper dive on the Buccaneers-Bears game that was played on Thursday, be sure to click here.  

Las Vegas 40-32 over Kansas City 

Raiders-Chiefs grades by Tyler Sullivan (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Houston 30-14 over Jacksonville Carolina 23-16 over Atlanta L.A. Rams 30-10 over Washington Arizona 30-10 over N.Y. Jets Pittsburgh 38-29 over Philadelphia

Eagles-Steelers grades by Bryan DeArdo (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Baltimore 27-3 over Baltimore

Bengals-Ravens grades by Jeff Kerr (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)