Chiefs vs. Raiders score, takeaways: Las Vegas plays Grinch role, spoils Kansas City's Christmas

Raiders come up with two defensive TDs to hand Patrick Mahomes his first career division loss in the months of November or December

In a shocking upset, the Las Vegas Raiders kept their playoff hopes alive with a 20-14 road victory over the division rival Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day.

Antonio Pierce's defense dealt Patrick Mahomes his first career division loss in the months of November or December, holding the Chiefs to just 4.2 yards per play and forcing two turnovers along the way -- each of which turned into a touchdown. The Raiders held on for the victory despite rookie quarterback Aidan O'Connell not completing a single pass in the final three quarters of the game.

They did so thanks to a defense that yielded only two touchdowns on 11 Kansas City drives, and came up with a pair of massive fourth-down stops in the second half along the way. The win keeps the Raiders afloat in both the AFC playoff race and the AFC West race, setting up an enormous stretch run for each of these teams.

Here are a few more things to know about the game.

Why the Raiders won

Their defensive line dominated the proceedings from start to finish, and they came up with the two most important plays of the contest when it mattered most. Maxx Crosby, Malcolm Koonce, and Co. totaled four sacks and seven tackles for loss, and had Mahomes on the run all game long. The Chiefs running game was non-existent, and the pass-catchers were only scarcely open throughout the afternoon. It was, simply, one of the best defensive performances of the season. And that's even before accounting for the two defensive scores. Oh, and Zamir White did a beautiful job filling in for for Josh Jacobs, totaling 145 yards on 22 carries.

Why the Chiefs lost

Their offense was totally inept for the significant majority of the afternoon. As previously mentioned, they got dominated up front, they could not run the ball, and they yielded two defensive touchdowns. Mahomes ended the game averaging a mere 5.3 yards per attempt with one touchdown and one interception, and the Chiefs broke just four plays longer than 13 yards all afternoon. This is a unit that was thoroughly dominated, and it showed in the final score.

Turning point

Late in the first half, the Chiefs held a 7-3 lead despite having looked mostly awful on offense throughout the game. They totaled -10 yards on 11 plays through their first three possessions, but managed to take a lead with a 10-play, 74-yard drive in the second quarter. And they had a chance to add to their lead after receiving the ball at their own 13-yard line with 5 minutes left in the second quarter.

But then disaster struck. On back-to-back snaps, the Chiefs turned the ball over, and the Raiders took it to the house for a touchdown. The first of those two plays was a scoop-and-score fumble recovery by Bilal Nichols.

That was the second straight trick play the Chiefs tried, after their previous drive ended with Isiah Pacheco faking a pitch back to Mahomes and taking off around the edge to scoot in for a touchdown. Alas, the sequel was not so successful. 

That was bad enough, but then...

Highlight play

...Jack Jones turned in his second pick-six in two weeks, jumping in front of a curl route intended for Justin Watson on the right sideline. Mahomes did not put nearly enough on the throw, and Jones easily beat the receiver to the ball and zoomed up the sideline and into the end zone.

Just like that, within a mere SEVEN seconds of game time, the Raiders went from trailing 7-3 to leading 17-7. And they would never relinquish that lead the rest of the way.

What's next

The Raiders are 7-8 after the victory and are technically still alive in both the playoff race and, amazingly, the AFC West. If they win out and the Chiefs lose out, they will win the division. Vegas' two remaining games are at Indianapolis and home against Denver.

The Chiefs are 9-6 with the loss and are no longer alive for the No. 1 seed in the AFC. They can still win the West with just one more victory, but it's highly likely that if they want to get to the Super Bowl, they will have to win a road playoff game for the first time in the Mahomes era. They host the Bengals next week and visit the Chargers for the regular-season finale.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 4:00 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Now the Raiders can kneel it out, I believe. What a win for Vegas.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:59 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Wow. There goes Zamir White. That is ENORMOUS. Even if the Chiefs get a stop here now, the Raiders can kick a field goal and make it a two-possession game, and there will barely be enough time left for a drive anyway.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:58 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

They just showed an on-screen graphic that O'Connell has 10 straight incompletions, which is the longest streak for a Raiders QB since JaMarcus Russell. He's not gonna need to throw here, but that's pretty incredible.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:56 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

So, the Chiefs have two timeouts and the two-minute warning remaining here. Raiders need a first down, if not two of them.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:54 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

I was about to say that Trevon Moehrig made a great play to knock the ball away from Noah Gray there, but Gray actually dropped it. And then Mahomes made up for it by finding Watson for a score on the next snap. Enormous score for the Chiefs.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:53 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Let's see if KC can capitalize on this goal-to-go situation. No idea why the Chiefs are wasting so much time here. They need two scoring drives and a stop in between.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:52 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Nice job by Mahomes getting the first down on the scramble. Very weird that the Chiefs do not have Rashee Rice on the field here, though.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:40 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Big stat here from CBS Sports NFL Insider Jonathan Jones. Mahomes has been on the run all day long.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:39 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Nate Hobbs makes a play on the ball and breaks up the potential TD pass to Rashee Rice. Not a very good throw by Mahomes, who left the ball way too far inside. Massive missed opportunity for the Chiefs, who are quickly running out of time.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:37 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Wow, KC just got bailed out of a false start by a Raiders timeout.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:36 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Jack Jones was all over that screen to Kelce. Almost picked it off and almost rocked Kelce at the catch point.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:35 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Second week in a row that CEH has made a huge play on a screen pass. This time it's a broken tackle to rip off a massive catch-and-run. Chiefs desperately needed that.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:34 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Even on a play where the Chiefs barely eke out a few yards, they can't help but shoot themselves in the foot. Pretty obvious hold on Wanya Morris.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:32 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Oh wow, they overturned it. From the back angle it does appear that the ball hit the ground. Chiefs catch a massive break.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:29 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

That seems like a pretty clear interception to me. Certainly doesn't seem like the kind of play that can be overturned, at least.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:29 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Patrick WHAT ARE YOU DOING???

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:27 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Short passes to Rice or Kelce for YAC opportunities are literally the only thing that has worked for the KC offense today. The Chiefs should just keep going to that.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:24 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Unsurprisingly, Isiah Pacheco is in the locker room being evaluated for a head injury. He banged the back of his head on a lineman's knee after his helmet fell off on a run earlier in the third quarter.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:21 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

O'Connell still has not completed a pass since the first quarter. Still, the Raiders are in position to add to their lead here.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:20 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

14 carries for 70 yards for Zamir White. Averaging 5 yards per carry.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:13 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Horrendous punt from Townsend and the Raiders will get the ball in KC territory. Chiefs entering the danger zone here.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:10 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Crosby, Koonce, and the rest of the Raiders DL are DOMINATING this game up front. Chiefs OL has zero answers.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:03 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Massive call. Sure looked like Rice was interfered with at the catch point, but instead they call OPI on Kelce earlier in the route and the Chiefs turn it over. Raiders in business and set up to potentially add to their lead.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 3:01 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

The Chiefs should be going for this again. Why go for it previously if you're just gonna punt it here?

[Dec 25, 2023 at 2:59 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

There is just nobody open for the Chiefs right now and Mahomes is taking off whenever possible. His 35 rushing yards are already his most in a game in more than a month.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 2:57 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Taking that timeout is massive. Especially in a game where you're losing. Have to be more assertive in your decision-making so that doesn't happen. Really bad game management by Reid and Mahomes.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 2:56 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Down by 10 points and struggling to get anything going, the Chiefs should be going for this. And it seems like they will.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 2:54 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

That is a VERY iffy holding call on third-and-long. Chiefs catch a huge break.

[Dec 25, 2023 at 2:48 pm ET · Jared Dubin]

Good one-on-one coverage from Jaylen Watson on Jakobi Meyers, who *almost* Mossed him over the top. Big stop by the KC defense to get this ball back quickly.