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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Raiders and Chiefs are such bitter foes that not even a late-season game between losing teams with no hope of a division title or playoff berth would take away the importance of a matchup.Now, consider the stakes when they meet Thursday night.The Raiders are 10-2 and leading the AFC West, one of the surprise teams in the NFL, while the Chiefs are 9-3, with a win over Oakland already in their pocket. The winner of their prime-time matchup at frosty Arrowhead Stadium will have the inside track on ending a lengthy division title drought, not to mention the potential for a first-round playoff bye and a home game in the second round.We know the type of game it is, big game, Chiefs wide receiver Albert Wilson said. The Chiefs and Raiders have a long history against each other. You understand the importance and what youre playing for, but you have to treat it like any other game.Good luck with that.The Raiders are trying to win their seventh straight for the first time since 1976, when they later beat the Vikings in the Super Bowl. And theyre trying to reach the 11-win plateau for the first time since 2002, a season that also ended in the Super Bowl with a loss to the Buccaneers.The Chiefs have won seven of their last eight, a stretch that began with a 26-10 win in Oakland on Oct. 16, and have won four straight against their old AFL rivals. And while the Raiders are chasing their first division title since 2002 , the Chiefs are trying for their first since 2010 .Significant stakes, to be sure. Just like in the 1960s, when the Raiders and Chiefs were often in contention.We always have old players come in and talk to us and tell us how violent the games used to be, and how physical they used to be, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr said , and obviously, they talk about how the games changed and things like that, as all past players do. Thats really the main thing that sticks out -- how violent and physical the games were. They would always talk about that.Theres a good chance Thursday nights game looks similar.First, the Chiefs have ferocious linebacker Justin Houston back from the knee injury that sidelined him for the first matchup. And the Raiders counter with a defense led by Khalil Mack that shut out Buffalo for most of the second half last week, allowing Oakland to rally for a 38-24 victory.Then, consider the weather: The forecast calls for temperatures in the teens at kickoff, with a wind chill that could dip into the single digits by the fourth quarter.It should make for an old-school matchup with stakes that couldnt be much higher .You have to get ready for the team. You cant worry about all that, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. You spend all your energy studying the team and getting yourself to know the game plan. Anything short of that I think youre short-changing yourself, if youre worried about magnitudes and all that stuff.As the Raiders and Chiefs prepare to meet for the 116th time, here are some key story lines:MACLIN IN THE SADDLE: Chiefs wide receiver Jeremy Maclin has missed four games with a groin injury, but hes been practicing the past couple of weeks and theres optimism hell be available. If thats the case, itll be an awesome addition, Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith said. Jeremy is a special player.SERIES DOMINANCE: The Chiefs have won six of the last seven in the series, Raiders coach Jack Del Rio is winless against Kansas City in three tries with the silver and black, and Smith is 8-1 against the Raiders in his career. I dont know if you can lump them together, Smith said. You try to play the chess game here in the rematch: what is different, what can we change?GIMMICKY? SURE: Del Rio took some heat from Chiefs fans for calling Smiths play gimmicky after their first meeting, but he intended it as a compliment. The constant shifts, unorthodox lineups and fake handoffs kept getting Oakland out of position. Those are effective plays. You can call it what you want, Del Rio said. If the word is something they dont like, too bad.DOUBLE TROUBLE: While Mack gets the attention on Oaklands defense with sacks in seven straight games, and back-to-back games with strip-sacks and recoveries, linebacker Bruce Irvin also must be feared. He has sacks in three straight games. We feed off each others energy, Mack said.SHOTGUN SNAPS: After hurting his pinkie two weeks ago while taking a snap, Carr has not gone under center. He worked exclusively out of the shotgun against Carolina, then the shotgun and pistol formations against Buffalo. We worked a lot on it in the offseason, Carr said of the pistol. Its cool to actually take it out there and use it.TAY TRAIN: After missing the first meeting with Kansas City with turf toe, Latavius Murray will be counted on to give the Raiders a big boost. He has six touchdowns in the past four games. Any way I can be a threat, he said, any way I can get the ball in my hands, he added, I want it.---AP Sports Writer Josh Dubow in Oakland, California, contributed to this report.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Zach Randolph Grizzlies Jersey . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. Lorenzen Wright Jersey . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. http://www.grizzliesbasketballpro.info/Allen-Iverson-Grizzlies-Jersey/ . The visitors took a deserved lead in the 16th minute with midfielder Yohan Cabaye curling the ball beyond Adrian from inside the penalty area. Allen Iverson Grizzlies Jersey . -- San Francisco 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks was fined $15,570 by the NFL on Wednesday for his hit on Saints quarterback Drew Brees last Sunday. Mike Bibby Grizzlies Jersey . Rinne played two periods in his first game since left hip surgery in early May. Gabriel Bourque scored 3:07 into the second period and Austin Watson tallied 5:15 later for Nashville. NEW ORLEANS -- The New Orleans Pelicans were a MASH unit last season, so riddled with injuries that their players missed a combined total of 351 games, forcing coach Alvin Gentry to use 42 starting lineup combinations.Now that the calendar has flipped to the 2016-17 season -- with the home opener Wednesday night against the Denver Nuggets at Smoothie King Center -- Gentry wouldnt be blamed if he enlisted the aid of a French Quarter voodoo priestess as a way of ensuring the good health of his players, especially All-Star forward Anthony Davis.Davis, the first overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, never missed a game in his 40-game, NCAA championship, freshman season at Kentucky. But, in four NBA seasons, the Pelicans franchise player has missed 68 games with injuries. A medical flow chart indicates he has injured 13 body parts.Davis porcelain reputation can be explained in part by his pedal-to-the-metal style and his penchant for throwing his body into the expensive seats chasing down loose balls. But after Davis season-ending knee injury last March, which required arthroscopic surgery, forced him to withdraw from the U.S. Olympic team, he spent the summer fully rehabbing and continuing to add muscle to his athletic frame.Then, with the Pelicans playing in China on Oct. 12, Davis stepped on the foot of Houston Nenes foot and suffered a Grade 2 ankle sprain. But Davis returned for the preseason finale on Friday and is scheduled to start Wednesday.It doesnt concern me, Davis, who averaged 24.3 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks last year, said about his recent injury history. Its basketball. Injuries are part of basketball.It just seems that the Pelicans have more than most other teams. General manager Dell Demps said Tuesday he does not expect guard Tyreke Evans (knee) to hit the floor until December. Forward Quincy Pondexter (knee), who haas not played since April 2015, has had a few setbacks in his recovery and is probably going to take a little bit longer.ddddddddddddn addition, starting point guard Jrue Holiday is healthy but is caring for wife Lauren, who last month gave birth and then underwent surgery to remove a brain tumor. The Pelicans have placed no timetable on when Holiday will return to the team.Evans injury and Holidays unavailability contribute to the Pelicans decision to keep guard-forward Lance Stephenson, releasing Alonzo Gee even though Gee had a $1.2 million guaranteed contract.With the injuries to Tyreke and Jrue not being with the team, we felt we needed a little more playmaking, Demps said. (Lance) can go out and create and make plays for others.Anybody would be disappointed, but its just a part of it, Gentry said. You hope that everybody gets better.While much of the NBA seems to be enamored with small ball, the Nuggets appear to be getting bigger. Coach Mike Malone paired big men Jusuf Nurkic (7-0) and Nikola Jokic (6-11) during the preseason and appears ready to give it a try for real.Nurkic has shown the ability to draw fouls as the Nuggets work their offense through him, and he is strong on the offensive glass and finishing near the basket. Jokic has been a cog in the Nuggets high-post offense and has shown the ability to pick and pop. Both are considered capable passers.Theres definitely some Balkan buddy ball going on with those two guys, Malone said. They do look for each other, which is great. Theyre so skilled, and the great thing about Nikola is that he can space the floor, so its not like we have two guys that are stuck on the block, which takes away driving lanes from our perimeter players. The floor is open. ' ' '