Raiders-Chiefs recap: What do we make of Alex Smith, Kansas City moving forward?

The Oakland Raiders won a wild one over the Kansas City Chiefs Thursday evening, scoring a game-winning touchdown on the last play of the game after back-to-back defensive holding calls. The Raiders won 31-30 in what was one of the most entertaining finishes to a game in recent memory.

The Raiders crazy win overshadowed what was another big performance from Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith. Smith completed 69.4 percent of his passes for 342 yards and three touchdowns. For the season, he has 1,979 yards with 15 touchdowns and zero turnovers. With nine games remaining, Smith is on pace for career highs in yards (4,523) and touchdowns (34). He also is building on is record for most touchdown passes to start a season without an interception.

Entering the game, Smith had climbed into the second best MVP odds at Bovada. Carson Wentz led the way at 7/4, with Smith right behind him at 2/1. They were followed by Tom Brady (4/1), DeShaun Watson (10/1), Russell Wilson (12/1), and Kirk Cousins (16/1). Although “QB wins” isn’t a real statistic, it would not surprise me to see Smith’s MVP odds get worse following the Chiefs last second loss.

After starting the season with five straight wins, the Chiefs have dropped two straight. They host the Denver Broncos next week, and then travel to face the Dallas Cowboys before heading into their bye week. Both the Broncos and Cowboys have been incredibly inconsistent this season, but one or two losses in those games is not exactly out of the realm of the possible.

What exactly, do you make of the Chiefs at this point? Are they team that had some dominating wins, or the team that has stumbled the past two weeks. The Steelers and Raiders are not bad teams to lose to, but where exactly do the Chiefs fit on the spectrum of contenders? Are they still the best team in the conference?