Tag: chargers raiders

Chargers WR Keenan Allen ruled out vs. Raiders

The Chargers will be without their top offensive weapon.

Wide receiver Keenan Allen has been ruled out for the Chargers’ Week 15 game against the Raiders on Thursday night.

Additionally, cornerback Deane Leonard (ankle/heel) has been ruled out.

Allen, who is dealing with a heel injury, was a non-participant throughout the week of practice.

The 31-year-old Allen is nearing career-high numbers, currently with a league-high 108 receptions, 1,243 receiving yards and seven touchdowns.

Los Angeles will be without Allen, but they return Joshua Palmer, who is returning from a knee injury.

As for the rest of the injury report, defensive tackle Otito Ogbonnia (knee), linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga (hamstring) and tight end Donald Parham Jr. (shoulder) are questionable.

5 keys to a Chargers victory over Raiders on Thursday night

Here’s how the Chargers can get back on track against the Raiders.

The Chargers will be looking for a win on Thursday night after a relatively dismal stretch since the bye. Los Angeles is 3-6 after they originally got back to .500 on the season. While playoff contention is out of the picture without Justin Herbert, jobs are still on the line. These last four games could still play a pivotal role in determining which players, coaches, and front-office members are back next year.

Here’s how the Chargers can get back on track against the Raiders.

The run game has to move for Easton Stick to execute

The Chargers had a better day on the ground against the Broncos compared to the production they had been getting. Austin Ekeler had 51 yards on 10 carries and a touchdown while Isaiah Spiller’s touches didn’t look too bad.

They’ll need to build on the positive momentum from the run game last week in this one. Given the circumstances for Easton Stick, a solid rushing attack is how they can slow down the game for him. More chances at calling RPOs to let Stick get into a rhythm seems like the way to go as opposed to dropping him back a lot vs. Maxx Crosby.

They don’t need amazing production from the running backs, but 80-100 yards would go a long way toward aiding the situation. Las Vegas is 25th in the league with 127.4 rush yards allowed per game.

Dealing with the Maxx Crosby issue better this time

The offensive line has been a bit of a mess without Corey Linsley as the season has gone on. LA has allowed the highest rate of unblocked pressures in the league since his absence.

The first game the Chargers played without Linsley was their first meeting with the Raiders in Week 4. Justin Herbert was sacked five times and took 15 pressures. Star edge defender Maxx Crosby had eight pressures himself with two sacks while also opening up opportunities for his teammates to get in unblocked.

Simply put, the Chargers have to find a way to deal with Crosby better than they historically have. I’m not expecting Trey Pipkins or Rashawn Slater to have their best reps against him given the state of the offensive line this season. But whether it’s chipping or getting extra help, the offensive line has to find some way to stabilize against Crosby for any chance at a salvageable offense.

Quentin Johnston, early and often

The Chargers will have Josh Palmer available to play tomorrow, but Brandon Staley has said he’s less than likely to play a full load. Keenan Allen has registered two DNPs on Monday and Tuesday on the injury report with a heel injury. His status seems less than certain.

Johnston had his first 90+ yard game in his rookie season and it feels like a big part of the Chargers’ offensive purpose over these last four games should be feeding him to work towards 2024. Assuming Mike Williams is not back next season and the wide receiver room looks different as a whole, Johnston will be relied on heavily.

Assuming Nate Hobbs works in the slot against either Allen or Palmer for a majority of the game, Johnston should at least be able to get some more favorable matchups outside.

DB’s turning over Aidan O’Connell

The Chargers were able to force Aidan O’Connell into some turnover-worthy plays in their last matchup. Asante Samuel Jr. had a pivotal pick given the point in the game.

O’Connell has four interceptions over his last three games, including a three INT effort against Miami. If there was a game for the secondary to make some turnovers, it’s this one.

This is not a game where you need to produce tons of Raiders’ turnovers to stop them defensively, but it’s important to set up Stick with at least a few chances at short fields. The fewer drives that he has to manufacture yardage himself, the better.

Hopefully, this is also a get-right game for Derwin James after his lowest graded game of the season vs. Denver last week.

Getting home on pressures

The Chargers totaled 25 pressures against Denver on Sunday. However it never really felt that way with how Russell Wilson generally stayed steady in the pocket with evasiveness. LA only brought down Wilson for two sacks.

The Raiders’ offensive line has not exactly stabilized since the last time the Chargers played them either. Since O’Connell’s return to the starting role, Las Vegas has given up 60 pressures in four games. O’Connell has been sacked ten times.

Khalil Mack had six sacks in the Chargers and Raiders’ last matchup. As he leads the NFL in sacks with 15.0, he’ll be looking to score some potentially easy ones again.

Getting pressure is obviously another way to force turnovers too. Mack had multiple strip sacks on O’Connell the last time the two teams met.

Chargers’ causes for concern vs. Raiders

Here are four reasons to be concerned about a Chargers loss.

The Chargers march on this Thursday, visiting the Raiders in Las Vegas in a battle of unproven quarterbacks.

Here are four reasons to be concerned about a Chargers loss.

Chargers injury report: Joshua Palmer estimated as full participant ahead of Week 15 vs. Raiders

Ahead of their Week 15 matchup against the Raiders, the Chargers released their first practice report.

Ahead of their Week 15 matchup against the Raiders, the Chargers released their first practice report of the week.

Los Angeles did not practice Monday, which means the report is simply an estimation of a player’s participation if they held a practice.

Joshua Palmer (knee) would have been in line for his first full practice since having his 21-day practice window opened. Palmer will need to be activated from injured reserve in order to play.

Keenan Allen (heel), Justin Herbert (right finger) and Deane Leonard (ankle/heel) were estimated as non participants.

Gerald Everett (hip), Zion Johnson (ankle), Sebastian Joseph-Day (ankle), Amen Ogbongbemiga (hamstring), Otito Ogbonnia (knee), Donald Parham (shoulder) and Nick Williams (shoulder) were estimated as limited participants.

Chargers QB Easton Stick set for first NFL start vs. Raiders

Brandon Staley has full confidence in Easton Stick as the Chargers’ starting quarterback.

There is a high probability that quarterback Easton Stick will start for the Chargers on Thursday night when they face the Raiders as Justin Herbert is unlikely to play due to a finger injury he sustained against the Broncos. 

It would be Stick’s first NFL start of his career. The 28-year-old has attempted just 25 passes throughout his career and all but one came on Sunday against Denver. 

Despite the limited playing time, head coach Brandon Staley believes Stick has grown tremendously “in all ways as a quarterback.”

Mechanically, throwing the football with accuracy, I think that he has really developed that sense of, ‘Hey, this is what my base needs to be, this is where my shoulders need to be.’ Consistency with his stroke. I think that you saw that last night. I thought that you saw him really drive the football — throw it with touch, really drive it on some of those in-breaks. There was a tight third-down throw to Keenan [Allen] in a bunch of traffic that I thought was really good. That fourth down to Keenan on the choice [route], he really ripped that, gave him a chance. I think that he has really improved mechanically.

Stick was a fifth-round pick out of North Dakota State in 2019 and he’s worn the powder blues since then. Not only does his coach have full confidence in him, but his teammates believe they still have a fighting chance with Stick under center. 

“I have nothing but full confidence in Easton Stick,” defensive tackle Sebastian Joseph-Day said, per the team’s official website. “The looks that he gives us week-in and week-out [on the scout team] are amazing. He’s confident, he’s poised, he knows the offense like the back of his hand. 

He’s honestly a great, great quarterback, and I believe he actually proved that with what the situation he was put in. A lot of quarterbacks put in that situation, they probably wouldn’t give you points.”

Stick’s best play of the game last Sunday was a 57-yard pass over the middle to Quentin Johnston. The next play Stick connected with Johnston again for a gain of 22 yards. Austin Ekeler was then able to score with a three-yard run. 

Stick completed 13 of his 24 attempts for 179 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

“To have a guy that is smart and that can move, it gives you a chance,” Staley said. “As I mentioned, I think that he can learn a lot from that tape and give our team confidence going into Thursday.”

With the Chargers essentially out of playoff contention, it’s possible they could roll with Stick for the remainder of the season instead of taking the risk of Herbert getting hurt again.

Statistical Breakdown: How the Chargers and Raiders stack up before Week 15 game

Here’s how the Chargers and Raiders stack up statistically ahead of the Week 15 matchup.

The Chargers and Raiders are set to square off this Thursday.

Here’s how Los Angeles and Las Vegas stack up statistically ahead of the Week 15 matchup:

Chargers final injury report: 2 doubtful, 3 questionable for Week 6 vs. Cowboys

The Chargers released their final injury report ahead of the Week 6 game against the Cowboys. 

The Chargers released their final injury report ahead of the Week 6 game against the Cowboys.

Austin Ekeler logged three full practices and will play for the first time since sustaining an ankle injury in the season opener against the Dolphins.

Justin Herbert (finger) is also off the injury report.

Alohi Gilman (heel) and Deane Leonard (hamstring) are doubtful.

With Gilman likely out, Los Angeles could resort to Dean Marlowe and Raheem Layne, who were the ones who got the start in place of Gilman and Derwin James in Week 4.

With Leonard sidelined, Essang Bassey will be the primary cornerback off the bench.

Joey Bosa (toe), Donald Parham (wrist) and Nick Williams (back) are questionable.

4 takeaways from Chargers’ 24-17 win over Raiders

Here’s what stood out from the Chargers’ Week 4 win over the Raiders.

The Chargers eked out a Week 4 victory to get back to .500 on Sunday, defeating the Raiders 24-17 in a game that should not have been that close.

With the bye week to follow, Los Angeles still has plenty to clean up, but there are also flashes of a great team showing. Here’s what to take away from their performance against Las Vegas.

Chargers’ Khalil Mack delivers career performance vs. Raiders: ‘He is still that guy’

Khalil Mack put together a rare performance against his former team.

Joey Bosa and Tuli Tuipulotu had been getting all the praise in weeks prior, as they had three and two sacks, respectively. All the while, Khalil Mack, who hadn’t recorded a sack entering Sunday, was gearing up for a monstrous performance of his own.

Mack posted six sacks in the Chargers’ 24-17 victory over the Raiders, two of which resulted in fumbles. His six sacks are a career-high for a single game and a franchise record. It’s also tied for the second-most sacks in a single game in NFL history.

Mack was one sack shy of tying the single-game sack record, which is held by Pro Football Hall of Famer Derrick Thomas, dating back to 1990.

Last season, Mack had a three-sack performance the first time the Bolts played the Raiders, the team that drafted him back in 2014 and where he spent the first four seasons of his professional career.

“You can say it’s something extra, but it is what it is,” Mack said about delivering big performances against his former team, per the team’s official website.

“I mean obviously you want to play good against your old team,” Mack later added. “But just knowing where you come from and knowing that organization and what it meant to me to get drafted to that organization. It’s a lot of respect, but it’s a lot of wanting to get back too… At the end of the day, it’s just another game.”

The offensive line was a strength of the Raiders coming into the game, as they allowed just four sacks through the first three games. But this was with Jimmy Garoppolo under center. Instead, rookie Aidan O’Connell started in place of the inactive Garoppolo.

With that came growing pains for O’Connell, who frequently held onto the ball for too long, resulting in an easier path for Mack to get to him. Plus, Mack wasn’t double teamed as much as other opposing teams would. He was double teamed on just two pass rushes.

Despite being 32, Mack showed on the field that he can still play at a high level.

“He had been [pass] rushing at a high level for three games,” Brandon Staley said postgame. “We do this thing — he taught me back in Chicago, — close, he had been close the whole year, to having three monster games. He was close.

“Today, he put it all together,” Staley added. “This guy is one of the best edge players of a generation and he is still that guy, he is still that guy — he just showed everybody, ‘I’m still that guy.’ He’s one of our leaders.”

Mack will look to keep the pressure on two Sundays from now when the Chargers take on the Cowboys in Week 6.

Everything to know about Chargers’ victory over Raiders

To recap the Chargers’ win over the Raiders, here is everything you need to know.

The Chargers picked up their second consecutive win of the season, defeating the Raiders in a game that had fans of both teams on the edge of their seats.

To recap Week 4, here is everything you need to know: