The Kansas City Chiefs (9-3) and Oakland Raiders (10-2) face off this Thursday night in what is setting up to be one of the most pivotal games of the year.
Raiders vs. Chiefs 2016 picks and predictions: Kansas City consensus on Thursday night
Arrowhead Stadium will be as cold as it is loud, giving the home team an edge.
The Chiefs are looking for a season sweep of their division rival, which would place them at the top of the AFC West. Having already lost to Kansas City in Oakland, the Raiders travel to Arrowhead Stadium, where the forecast is a brisk 17 degrees.
Oakland is on a six-game win streak with impressive victories over the Broncos, Panthers and Bills. In fact, the Raiders' last loss came against Kansas City, which has also been hot of late. The Chiefs have won seven of their last eight games and have relied largely on a defense that has created more turnovers (25) than any team in the league. The Raiders defense has also been stingy, forcing 21 turnovers.
Kickoff is at 8:25 p.m. ET on NBC and can be streamed here as well as on Twitter.
The cold should bother the Raiders in more ways than one, but specifically it could take a hit on their passing offense, which ranks as the fourth-best in the NFL with MVP candidate Derek Carr under center.
The Chiefs, meanwhile, have an offense that ranks in the bottom half of the league, yet they keep stealing wins. Just last week, they emerged victorious after Eric Berry picked off Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan on a two-point conversion late in the fourth quarter. That turned a one-point Atlanta lead into a one-point Kansas City lead, which ended up as the final score of the game.
Things should be a bit more decisive in Kansas City. Six of the eight CBS Sports writers have the Chiefs winning on Thursday, and the majority of the ESPN panel sided with KC as well.
At SB Nation, Kansas City gets the edge with six of the experts picking the Chiefs.
| Game | RVB | Stephen White | Thomas George | Jeanna Thomas | Adam Stites | Louis Bien | Joel Thorman | Fooch | OddsShark computer |
| OAK vs KC | OAK | KC | KC | KC | KC | OAK | KC | KC | OAK |
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