KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- All Sebastian Janikowski needed to break his string of "wide left" field goals was a wild snap. Raiders snapper Adam True delivered.

True sent a low third-quarter snap to holder Shane Lechler that bounced on the ground, causing the fastest foot in the West to hesitate. Janikowski then followed with a 47-yard field goal that gave him the confidence to make the game-winning kick in Sunday's 20-17 Raiders victory over the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.

	Sebastian Janikowski, left, celebrates his winning kick with holder Shane Lechler.

"I think he's been getting to the ball too early," Lechler said. "The first one he made was a bad snap that caused him to hesitate a bit, which was good. It kept him from rushing it. If he rushed it there, there's no telling what would have happened."

Most kickers get off their attempts in 1.31 seconds. Janikowski does his in 1.15 seconds, which is one of the reasons he's had seven misses in seven games, including two in the first half on Sunday. Sometimes, his speed kills him.

During Wednesday's practice, Janikowski kicked Lechler's hand instead of the ball as he slipped on the practice field grass. "He got it pretty good," Lechler said of the hit on his hand.

Still, no one knew what to expect when Janikowski lined up for his 43-yard attempt with 30 seconds left. Last week against the 49ers, he blew two potential game-winning field goals. He entered the second half of Sunday's game 6-for-13 for the season.

"I was thinking about the San Francisco kick," Janikowski said. "I was down on myself all week for the San Francisco misses."

His hope was to get the kick off in between 1.25 and 1.28 seconds. Coaches may have to go back to the tapes, but those stunned Chiefs fans didn't care about the clock. The kick was good, and the Raiders left with their second straight victory at Arrowhead.

Janikowski had his first victory.

"This is a tough arena to kick in," Raiders coach Jon Gruden said. "This is a great start for him."

Gruden and Janikowski met two times this week to discuss his struggles. Talking was all that could be done because the Raiders couldn't release him or threaten his job by holding kicking tryouts. He has a five-year contract with a $2 million signing bonus in the bank.

Capwise, they've got to live or die with Janikowski.

	“	The media put too much pressure on me. I'm a quiet guy. I know what I'm doing wrong. My timing was off. ”
		— Sebastian Janikowski, Raiders rookie kicker

"It was an R-rated conversation," Gruden said. "We basically cleared the air. I let him know that we're going to keep sending him out there. He tried a 59-yarder before the end of the half. Our confidence in him will not waiver."

Naturally, the 59-yarder veered wide left. Most of his misses were to the left.

"Tiger Woods has walked off the green with a three-putt," Gruden continued. "I've seen some of the best pros miss chip shots and not hit the curve ball, but they keep swinging and keep concentrating and the great players come out of it. I think he's going to be a heck of a prospect and a great kicker for a long time."

His teammates are still apparently behind him. Receiver Tim Brown predicts that one day Janikowski will set an NFL record with a 70-yard field goal.

"The guy will break the NFL records," Brown said. "It's all about rhythm. He has the leg to kick a 70-yarder. I told him that he just needs to get into a rhythm."

Janikowski understands that, but it's still tough slowing himself down when he kicks. "I think he's trying to get there too early," Lechler said.

For weeks, though, Janikowski has been avoiding the media. After his success, he decided to talk.

"The media put too much pressure on me," Janikowski said. "I'm a quiet guy. I know what I'm doing wrong. My timing was off."

For him to correct his timing against the Chiefs was huge. The Raiders now lead the AFC West by a game-and-a-half.

"It was a big relief," Janikowski said of his field goal.

Not just to him but the Raiders organization that used a first-round draft choice on him.

St. Louis next stop for Stoyanovich?
Don't be surprised if the Rams bring former Chiefs kicker Pete Stoyanovich to Arrowhead next week.

Stoyanovich was cut by the Chiefs last week after going 2-for-4 on field goals. He was replaced by Todd Peterson, who missed a 44-yard field goal but made a 27-yarder against the Raiders Sunday.

The Rams lost kicker Jeff Wilkins indefinitely because of a quad injury suffered during a kickoff return.

John Clayton is the senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.