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  Sunday, Dec. 5 4:15pm ET
Loss trims Seattle's lead to one game
 
  RECAP | BOX SCORE

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- As Oakland coach Jon Gruden ran toward the stands to slap hands with raucous Raiders fans, Seattle's Mike Holmgren was left wondering about a player's health and his team's ability to rebound from two sloppy losses.

Napoleon Kaufman
The Raiders' Napoleon Kaufman pushes his way past Chris Canty on a second-quarter run.
Overcoming a broken wrist and a strained thigh, Rich Gannon threw scoring passes of 14 and 5 yards to Tim Brown as the Raiders took a 17-point lead in the second quarter and held on for a 30-21 win over the Seahawks on Sunday.

The loss trimmed Seattle's lead in the AFC West to just one game over the Kansas City Chiefs, who won 16-10 at Denver and gained a game on the Seahawks for the second consecutive week.

Seattle (8-4) was undermined by turnovers for the second straight week. Ricky Watters fumbled twice and Jon Kitna, who had five interceptions and a fumble in a 16-3 loss to Tampa Bay last week, was picked off twice by the Raiders (6-6).

Just when they looked like a lock for a postseason spot, the Seahawks are beginning to resemble the woeful Seattle teams that have missed the playoffs an NFL-high 10 straight seasons.

"We have to eliminate the turnovers that have plagued us the last two weeks," Holmgren said. "We have to put a stop to that, or it's going to get pretty tight over the next couple of weeks."

Adding to Seattle's woes, cornerback Chris Canty was taken off the field on a cart late in the game. Canty was strapped to a stretcher, and his neck was wrapped with a brace as players on both teams prayed and watched anxiously from the sidelines. He was taken for X-rays to determine the extent of the injury.

"He had a concussion on the field," Holmgren said. "He had movement in his legs, movement in his fingers. He was out. He got knocked pretty good, but any time there's movement that's a good sign."

GAME NOTES
Seattle kick returner Ahman Green sat out the second half with a hamstring injury.
Raiders defensive tackle Grady Jackson was excused from the game to attend a family funeral.
Seattle fell to 4-2 on the road this season.
The Raiders have just three days to prepare for a Thursday night game at Tennessee.
Tim Brown reached the 1,000-yard mark on a 13-yard reception early in the first quarter. Cris Carter of the Minnesota Vikings needs six yards Monday night against Tampa Bay to join Alworth and Brown with seven straight 1,000-yard seasons.
Defensive tackle Sam Adams missed his third straight game for Seattle with a knee injury.

Gannon, who pedaled on a stationary bike between series to keep his thigh from tightening up, was 19-for-24 for 253 yards. Zack Crockett had a 1-yard scoring run, and Michael Husted, whose inconsistency led the Raiders to audition a couple of kickers this past week, added field goals of 41, 23 and 18 yards.

Oakland had blown a 14-point fourth-quarter lead last week in a loss to Kansas City, and has struggled at the end of several games.

"The turnovers killed them," Raiders fullback Jon Ritchie said. "And we played well. We actually held on."

Gruden, a former assistant to Holmgren in Green Bay, ran halfway down the field to celebrate with fans following the victory.

"It's always a thrill to win," Gruden said. "It's especially a thrill to beat Mike Holmgren, because he's been responsible for so much that's good in my life."

Watters had an 8-yard scoring run, Joey Galloway caught a 31-yard TD pass and Sean Dawkins caught a 3-yard scoring pass for Seattle.

Brown became the third player with 1,000 yards receiving in seven consecutive seasons. Brown, who had six catches for 75 yards Sunday, tied Lance Alworth with seven consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. Only Jerry Rice, with 11 straight, has more.

Gannon completed 12 of 13 passes in the first half, the only incompletion being a pass through tight end Rickey Dudley's hands that turned into an interception.

A fumble by Watters led to the first Oakland touchdown, a 14-yard pass that bounced off the hands of cornerback Shawn Springs and into the hands of Brown.

Kitna, who was 22-for-39 for 245 yards, was picked off five plays later. That set up a 35-yard drive resulting in Brown's second TD.

Seattle responded with a 16-play drive that lasted more than six minutes and was capped by Watters' scoring run to make it 17-7 at halftime.

The Seahawks cut their deficit to a field goal on the opening drive of the second half, which ended with Galloway's first scoring catch of the season.

But the Raiders made it 24-14 late in the third period on Crockett's fourth-down scoring run. Following Watters' second fumble, Husted kicked his 42-yard field goal.

"This team believes in me. They count on me, and I let them down twice today," Watters said. "I feel really, really bad about that. I had a big part to do with us losing the game. Maybe I was trying to do too much."

Seattle pulled within 27-21 on Dawkins' scoring catch with 10:55 left, but Husted added his 23-yard field goal with 1:53 remaining.

 


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