The Chiefs have won three games in a row since losing to the Chargers 20-17 in San Diego.  The Chargers took one on the chin last weekend in New Jersey, losing to the Jets 27-21.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Chiefs have the ball:  The Chiefs are going to feed the ball to Jackie Battle, Thomas Jones and Dexter McCluster in an effort to control the clock and keep San Diego’s offense off the field.  The Chargers are giving up 121.7 yards rushing per game and 4.7 yards per carry, so the Chiefs should have success with that game plan.  The Chargers only have 10 sacks so far this year, so Matt Cassel should have time to throw the ball.  WRs Dwayne Bowe, Steve Breaston and rookie Jonathan Baldwin are going to get a lot of work this Monday Night.

When the Chargers have the ball:  The Chargers are likely going to come out throwing the ball against the Chiefs.  The Chiefs are giving up 235.8 yards passing per game, but they also have 11 interceptions already this year.  Philip Rivers has thrown more INTs (9) than TD passes (7) so far this year, so he has been mistake prone.  The Chiefs are going to have to give safety help over the top to the corners as they will be dealing with tall WRs in Vincent Jackson and Malcom Floyd.  The Chargers will be without Mike Tolbert (due to injury), so the front seven will have to concern themselves with stopping Ryan Mathews.

PREDICTION:  CHIEFS 20, CHARGERS 17

The Chiefs thought they were in good shape coming into this season at WR.  But the results have not been what the Chiefs were expecting so far this year.  Dwayne Bowe is leading the way for the Chiefs so far this year with 29 grabs for 496 yards (17.1 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Steve Breaston is just recently stepping up for the Chiefs.  He has now caught 19 passes for 293 yards (15.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs so far this year.  Jon Baldwin has only caught 1 pass for 14 yards so far this year.  That’s because he started the year late after getting in a fist fight in the locker room with RB Thomas Jones, in which he broke one of his thumbs.  The Chiefs have high hopes for Baldwin, who they took in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft last April.  Keary Colbert (7 rec, 65 yards), Terrance Copper (1 rec, 9 yards) and Jerheme Urban (1 rec, 6 yards) have all been big disappointments for the Chiefs so far this year.  The Chiefs need more production out of this group.

The Kansas City Chiefs were all business yesterday, especially on defense!  LB Derrick Johnson led the way on D for the Chiefs with 13 tackles.  Safeties Jon McGraw (6 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) and Kendrick Lewis (5 tackles, 1 pass defensed and a interception that he returned 59 yards for a TD) also had big games at the back end of the D for the Chiefs yesterday.  CB Brandon Flowers (3 tackles, 3 passes defensed and 2 interceptions (one of which he returned 55 yards for a TD)), Brandon Carr (interception) and Travis Daniels (interception) also made big plays for the Chiefs yesterday.  The Raiders finished up with 155 yards rushing on 27 carries (5.7 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 35 passes (42.9%) for 167 yards in this game.

The Chiefs were so-so at best offensively in this game.  Matt Cassel didn’t help much as he completed 15 of 30 passes for 161 yards with 0 TD passes and 2 INTs.  Jackie Battle led the way for the Chiefs yesterday with 76 yards rushing on 16 carries (4.8 ypc).  Dexter McCluster (10 carries for 38 yards) and Thomas Jones (9 carries for 19 yards) also pitched in for the Chiefs in the running game.  CB Javier Arenas only carried the ball 1 time (in the Wildcat Formation) and he ran in a 7 yard TD.  Fullback Le’Ron McClain pitched in with 1 carry for 1 yard which ended up being a TD.  WRs Dwayne Bowe (6 rec, 76 yards) and Steve Breaston (5 rec, 64 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Chiefs yesterday.  The Chiefs finished up with 139 yards rushing on 39 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 30 passes (50%) for 161 yards as they had possession of the ball for 33:37.  The Chiefs are now 3-3 on the year.

Both of these teams are hot right now as they have each won two games in a row.  The Chiefs are coming off a bye week, so they have had two weeks to get ready for the Raiders.  The Raiders have won 10 games in a row against AFC West teams.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Chiefs have the ball:  The Chiefs are going to try to stay really balanced offensively in this game.  They will probably come out trying to run the ball with Jackie Battle against a Raiders’ D that is giving up 113.2 yards rushing per game but only 3.9 yards per carry.  QB Matt Cassel is going to have to get rid of the ball quickly to negate the Raiders’ pretty solid pass rush.  Dwayne Bowe and Steve Breaston could have huge games against a Raiders’ secondary that is allowing 283.5 yards passing per game.

When the Raiders have the ball:  The Raiders are starting Kyle Boller at QB this week, as Carson Palmer isn’t quite ready yet.  The Raiders are going to be very run heavy in this game with Darren McFadden and Michael Bush pounding away at the Chiefs’ D.  The Chiefs are giving up 119.6 yards rushing per game, but only 3.8 yards per carry so far this year.  The Chiefs only have five sacks this year and Tamba Hali has four of them.  That means that Kyle Boller will have time to throw the ball, but that doesn’t mean he will take advantage of it.

PREDICTION:  RAIDERS 20, CHIEFS 19

The Kansas City Chiefs lost Jamaal Charles early this year to injury, but some of the other RBs on the roster are stepping up lately.  Jackie Battle suddenly finds himself as the main man in the running game for the Chiefs.  Battle has played in five games for the Chiefs so far this year and he has carried the ball 29 times for 156 yards (5.4 ypc).  He has also caught 4 passes for 23 yards (5.8 avg) so far this year.  It will be interesting to see if Battle can handle the heavy workload coming his way.  Thomas Jones has played in five games for the Chiefs so far this year and he has carried the ball 49 times for 166 yards (3.4 ypc).  He has also caught 3 passes for 9 yards (3.0 avg) this year.  It looks like Jones is starting to run on fumes for the Chiefs.  Dexter McCluster is a nice change of pace back for the Chiefs because of his speed and playstation type moves.  He has played in five games for the Chiefs so far this year and he has carried the ball 32 times for 172 yards (5.4 ypc).  McCluster has also caught 18 passes for 62 yards (3.4 avg) so far this year.  Le’Ron McClain is listed as a fullback, but he proved in the past with the Ravens that he’s a good runner.  McClain has played in five games for the Chiefs this year and he has carried the ball 7 times for 15 yards (2.1 ypc).  He has also caught 3 passes for 19 yards (6.3 avg) this year.  The Chiefs need to continue running the ball well to give the offense nice balance.

29-year old QB Matt Cassel has had at least a 100.0 QB Rating in each of his last three games, two of which were won by the Chiefs.  Cassel has played in all five games for the Chiefs so far this year and he has completed 93 of 140 passes (66.4%) for 945 yards with 8 TD passes and 5 INTs (89.7 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 10 times for 33 yards (3.3 ypc) so far this year.  The Chiefs need Cassel to keep up the good work, because the Chiefs don’t have a great defense by any means, and they are going to have to score a lot of points to win games going forward.

The Chiefs were down 24-14 heading into the 4th quarter and they dominated the final stanza to snatch a nice road win.  Matt Cassel was incredible today as he completed 21 of 29 passes for 257 yards with 4 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Jackie Battle had by far the best game of his NFL career today as he rushed for 119 yards on 19 carries (6.3 ypc).  He also caught 3 passes for 21 yards (7.0 avg) today.  Thomas Jones pitched in with 55 yards rushing on 10 carries (5.5 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 7 yards (3.5 avg).  WRs Dwayne Bowe (7 rec, 128 yards, 2 TD grabs) and Steve Breaston (4 rec, 50 yards, 2 TD grabs) led the way for the Chiefs in the passing game today.  The Chiefs finished up with 194 yards rushing on 38 carries (5.1 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 29 passes (72.4%) for 242 yards as they had possession of the ball for 33:07.

The defense really stood up in the 4th quarter for the Chiefs today after having some issues stopping the pass earlier in the game.  LB Derrick Johnson (8 tackles), DE Tyson Jackson (5 tackles) and DE Glenn Dorsey (5 tackles) led the way for the Chiefs on D today.  The Colts finished up with 78 yards rushing on 27 carries (2.9 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 27 passes (55.6%) for 277 yards.  The Chiefs are now 2-3 on the year.

The Chiefs broke the seal last week in getting their first win of the season against the Vikings last weekend.  The Colts have also played better as of late, but they have not won a game yet in 2011.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Chiefs have the ball:  The Kansas City Chiefs will likely come out trying to run the ball a little bit with Dexter McCluster, Thomas Jones and Jackie Battle against a Colts’ D that is allowing 133.0 yards rushing per game but only 3.8 yards per carry.  McCluster will give the Colts’ D problems due to his speed on the edges.  The Chiefs might be getting rookie WR Jonathan Baldwin back from a broken thumb this weekend, which would give QB Matt Cassel another solid target in the passing game along with Dwayne Bowe and Steve Breaston.  If the Chiefs’ O-Line can keep DEs Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis out of the backfield, Cassel should have a good game throwing the ball as the Colts are giving up 257.3 yards passing per game so far this year.

When the Colts have the ball:  The Colts will be without two starters on the O-Line, including their left tackle, so the Chiefs should be blitzing as soon as they get off the team bus on Sunday.  OLB Tamba Hali is likely going to have a huge game for the Chiefs this weekend.  Colts’ QBs have been sacked 10 times already this year, and they have already lost 5 fumbles in 2011.  Colts’ QB Curtis Painter doesn’t have a lot of experience, so the Chiefs could force him into making some big mistakes with the ball.  Painter threw two long TD passes for Pierre Garcon last weekend so the Chiefs will have to pay special attention to him.  WR Reggie Wayne, WR Austin Collie and TE Dallas Clark give Painter even more weapons to throw to if he has the time to do so.  Joseph Addai and Delone Carter are solid RBs, so the defense is going to have to play honest for the Chiefs.

PREDICTION:  CHIEFS 17, COLTS 13

28-year old WR Steve Breaston started showing signs of life for the Chiefs last week against the Vikings when he caught 4 passes for 91 yards (22.8 avg).  The Chiefs hope that Breaston can keep up the good work going forward, because the passing game needs him to be successful badly.  Breaston has played in all 4 games for the Chiefs so far this year and he has caught 10 passes for 179 yards (17.9 avg).

The Kansas City Chiefs played their best offensive game of the year and it carried them to their first win of the year.  Matt Cassel was solid in this game as he completed 18 of 29 passes for 260 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 20 yards (5.0 ypc) today.  Thomas Jones led the way on the ground for the Chiefs in this game with 37 yards rushing on 11 carries (3.4 ypc).  Dexter McCluster pitched in with 26 yards rushing on 7 carries (3.7 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 12 yards (4.0 avg).  WRs Dwayne Bowe (5 rec, 107 yards, TD) and Steve Breaston (4 rec, 91 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Chiefs today.  The Chiefs finished up with 103 yards rushing on 28 carries (3.7 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 29 passes (62.1%) for 247 yards as they had possession of the ball for 27:50.

The defense bent a lot without breaking in this game for the Chiefs.  OLB Tamba Hali was a beast in this game as he led the way for the Chiefs with 7 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks and 5 QB hits.  LBs Jovan Belcher (7 tackles) and Derrick Johnson (7 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss) were also very busy for the Chiefs yesterday.  CB Brandon Carr pitched in with a pickoff.  The Vikings finished up with 151 yards rushing on 30 carries (5.0 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 30 passes (60%) for 190 yards.  The Chiefs are now 1-3 on the year.