Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr recently addressed the lack of experience within his offensive line in terms of dealing with Kansas City Chiefs fans at Arrowhead Stadium with their Week 5 clash coming up.
Following the Raiders’ win over the Denver Broncos, center Andre James was asked about Sunday’s crowd. The Broncos fans made their presence known. In fact, James mentioned that the offense had to go with a silent count due to the raucous crowd. Social media has been ablaze all week, with many wondering if Allegiant Stadium can truly be considered a home field advantage given the transient nature of Las Vegas. However, one location that is anything but transient is Arrowhead. Carr is fairly familiar with it; his legacy has been tied to his lack of success at the Chiefs’ home. The question of whether his offensive line is up to the task was recently posed to No. 4.
Is Derek Carr and the Raiders’ O-line ready for Arrowhead?
Arrowhead is largely known as one of the loudest NFL stadiums. It has historically provided a huge advantage for the home team. “Yeah, it’s a hostile environment. It’s one of the loudest in the whole NFL. But it’s a division game, it’s going to be tough, it’s going to be a physical game. They have great coaches and great players. Since I’ve been here, they’ve had really good football teams. So, this is just a new team, a new year. Both teams are different, but I’m looking forward to going out there and competing. But it’s always a hostile environment,” says Carr.
Can the Raiders simulate what they’re facing on Monday Night?
Back to James’s original point, if the unit had to occasionally use silent counts at Allegiant, they’ll likely have to do so for most of Monday night.
The question is, can this young offensive line overcome this? Obviously, Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels is doing his due diligence in trying to simulate the hostile environment in Kansas City. Carr shared some insight into that, but also mentioned that he hopes that the team’s 20022 road games have prepared them as well. “Yeah, you would hope that you can simulate some things in practice. But also, you’d hope that the game experience that they’ve had on the road helps. So far, they’ve handled the noise. I thought they’ve done a great job, and they’ll definitely have to do it this week in Kansas City. Like I said, it’s one of the loudest places in all of sports. It’s always a hostile environment, but it’s an environment that I’ve always enjoyed playing in that place—the history, the rivalry, all that kind of stuff. It’s fun.”
Monday Night Football at Kansas City is going to be a daunting task for this Raiders squad. Coming off a win over an underwhelming Broncos team that required a complete team effort, the Chiefs’ game could quickly get out of hand if the noise gets to the young group protecting Carr.
*Top Photo: USA Today