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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.
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.
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.
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:
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.
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.
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.
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:
The Chargers have a lengthy final injury report.
The Chargers will be without several key players when they face the Raiders this Sunday.
Corey Linsley (illness) and JT Woods (illness) have all been officially ruled out for the Week 4 game.
With Linsley out, Will Clapp will be the starting center this weekend.
Additionally, they are likely going to be without Austin Ekeler (ankle), Derwin James (hamstring) and Deane Leonard (hamstring/toe), who are listed as doubtful.
This marks the third straight game that Ekeler will miss. Joshua Kelley will resume the role as the primary running back, with Isaiah Spiller and Elijah Dotson serving as the complementary backs.
Without Woods and James, the safety room is thin. Alohi Gilman is questionable with a heel injury. Dean Marlowe and AJ Finley will likely be promoted from the practice squad.
Joey Bosa (hamstring/toe) is also listed as questionable. Rookie Tuli Tuipulotu should see an uptick in snaps.
Justin Herbert did all he could.
The magic ran out on Sunday in the Chargers’ loss to the Raiders, as Justin Herbert and company could not produce any in the final minutes, like they did the week before in their victory over the Cardinals.
Herbert found little time to operate in the pocket, getting swarmed by the Raiders’ defensive front all game. He was sacked five times, hit 14 times and pressured 22 times.
“Yeah, they were getting after us today,” running back Austin Ekeler said. “We were trying to adjust, change some things up. We were able to give ourselves a chance at the end. But we knew it was going to be a battle and it was.”
L.A. was missing three starters from its offensive line, including Corey Linsley, Rashawn Slater, and Trey Pipkins, all dealing with injuries. This left Herbert vulnerable, and Las Vegas took advantage.
“I thought they did a great job of battling,” Herbert said. “It’s never easy going up against a front seven like that. I think they’re very talented, very well coached on that side of the ball. It was a tough day for us, but those guys stepped up, battled and I really respect that from them.”
Despite the constant pressure he faced, Herbert still performed well, throwing for 335 yards and a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. However, his coaches and supporting cast failed to help him in the must-win game.
The nightmare of a game has further complicated the Bolts’ playoff hopes, as Los Angeles is now 6-6 and has a 33.3% chance of making the postseason, down from 50.8% heading into Week 13.
