Oakland Raiders: 5 Key matchups vs. Chiefs in Week 7
By Nick Sparrow
4. Sean Smith vs. Tyreek Hill
Sean Smith will certainly be looking to improve his season against a Kansas City team for whom he played three seasons before joining Oakland. Unfortunately, the matchup couldn’t be worse for Smith, who has proven to struggle against receivers who have great speed.
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In Smith’s very first game with the Raiders, Week 1 in 2016, Smith allowed receiver Brandin Cooks to have a 98-yard touchdown. Smith’s struggles have only become more pronounced over the last year. In Week 5, Smith was tasked with covering Mike Wallace, another very fast receiver. Wallace finished the game with three receptions for 133 yards, averaging over 44 yards per reception.
Kansas City’s Tyreek Hill is one of the fastest receivers in the league and will be lined up against Smith for most of the game. In two career games against the Raiders, Hill is averaging 43 yards per game on only four receptions. Hill is also being used much more in the Kansas City offense this season than he was last year. In 2016, Hill caught 61 passes on 83 targets.
Through just six weeks this season, Hill has already caught 30 balls on 41 targets. Additionally, Hill is averaging 13 yards per reception this season, compared to 9.7 yards per reception last year.