The Raiders may be 5-3, but they sure don’t make it easy. A missed field goal by the Chargers kept the game scoreless in the early going. And the Raiders responded with a touchdown drive to go up 7-0 at the end of the first quarter.
That lead didn’t last as the Chargers drove right back to tie it up. The two teams each scored again in the second quarter and it looked like they would go into the half tied up 14-14. But a strip-sack on Derek Carr in the waning seconds allowed the Chargers to kick a field goal and go up 17-14.
Come the third quarter, the Raiders’ offense opened up, seemingly looking to right the mistake at the end of the second quarter. Two touchdown drives made it a 28-17 Raiders lead. But the Chargers weren’t going away.
They made it a one-score game with a field goal at the end of the third quarter, then followed that up with a touchdown drive. A failed two-point conversion kept it a Raiders’ lead.
A two-point lead is nothing to feel great about, especially with the way the Chargers were moving the ball on them. The Raiders needed to add to that lead. Then they went three-and-out and had to punt.
The punt was muffed and the Raiders recovered. They were able to get a field goal out of it to make it a 5-point lead. That meant the Chargers couldn’t just drive for a field goal to win it. They would need a touchdown. And they nearly got it, driving to the Las Vegas 4-yard-line. That’s where we pick up the Ballers.