Justin Herbert’s Strong First Half Lead Chargers to Win
In Week 3, the Los Angeles Chargers made a statement across the NFL when they took down the Kansas City Chiefs, who were coming off a loss, winning 30-24. This week, for many teams, would be a trap game, no matter who the opponent was. Instead, the Chargers won their second straight division game, beating the Las Vegas Raiders 28-14. The Chargers made another statement in this game, so let us dive into how they got it done.
Game Details
In a winning effort, QB Justin Herbert played clean football, going 25/38 with 222 yards and 3 touchdowns in the victory. Those three touchdowns went to TE Jared Cook, HB Austin Ekeler, and TE Donald Parham, showing the versatility and depth the Chargers have. Cook led the way with 70 yards as well, while WR Keenan Allen had a team-high seven catches, totaling 36 yards. For the first time this season, WR Mike Williams had an off day, catching one ball for 11 yards on four targets. Williams and Herbert missed a connection on what would have been a long touchdown, but the Chargers prevailed. HB Austin Ekeler also had himself his best game of the season, totaling 135 yards and two touchdowns, including 7.8 YPC. Defensively, the stars showed out for the Chargers, with DE Joey Bosa forcing a fumble and S Derwin James grabbing an interception in the victory. Bosa also had a sack on the day.
In their first loss of the season, the Raiders came back to earth a little in the loss. QB Derek Carr had his worst game of the season, going 21/34 with 196 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Despite this, Carr is still off to a really good start, leading the league in passing yards (1,399), while also throwing eight touchdowns to three interceptions. Henry Ruggs led the team in receiving yards with 60, including a 51-yard catch in the loss. TE Darren Waller and WR Hunter Renfrow scored one touchdown each as well. HB Josh Jacobs struggled in the loss as he continues to fight through injury. His final line was 13/40/0 but also had five catches. While it was a rough first half, the Raiders defense played well in the second half, giving up just seven points in the final two quarters, forcing three punts on four drives by the Chargers. DT Darius Philon had two sacks, while LB Denzel Perryman led the team in tackles with 12.
The Running Game
So far in 2021, the Chargers have been known as a pass-first team, and while it will probably stay that way, Los Angeles offered more of a balanced attack in Week 4 on Monday Night Football. HB Austin Ekeler carried the rock 15 times for 117 yards and a touchdown in the victory. Larry Rountree III also added 11 carries, giving Ekeler a breather when needed and giving the Chargers a change of pace for the offense. For Ekeler, it is his best performance of the season, after totaling 166 rushing yards through the first three games. On the season, he now has 424 total yards with four total touchdowns, showing his dual-threat ability that is so crucial for the Chargers.
Strong First Half for the Bolts
Any good team knows it is so important to play a complete game in the NFL and that includes getting off to a hot start. For the Chargers, they came out of the gates firing, and ultimately it made the difference in their win. In the first half, the Chargers possessed the ball for 19:11 game time, seven possessions, and three touchdowns. In that same half, the Chargers forced a punt or turnover on downs on all six possessions in the first half. Herbert threw all three of his touchdowns in the first half as well, as they managed the second half and made just enough plays to earn the victory.
Defense Wins Championships
Along with the run game in this affair, the Chargers are extremely strong on the defensive side of the ball and do not get enough credit. Led by Joey Bosa and Derwin James, as well as a defensive-minded head coach in Brandon Staley, the Chargers are among the top ten in Yards Per Game (332) and Points Per Game (18.5) on the season. In this game, they held the Raiders to a season-low in total yards (213) and total points (14). An impressive victory to say the least, and one to definitely build off of.
Looking Ahead
In Week 5, the Las Vegas Raiders will look to bounce back at home against the Chicago Bears (2-2), who are coming off a victory over the Detroit Lions. The victory was QB Justin Fields first career win as well. For the Chargers, they will look to continue their winning streak at home against the Cleveland Browns (3-1), who have won three straight games since losing Week 1 to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Stats from profootballreference.com
Schedule from nfl.com
-By: Richie Dordas