Disappointing? Yes. Surprising? Hardly.
The Chargers were downed by the Raiders 24-17 in the AFC West first place battle last night.
Similar to last week, the Bolts got off to a good start. The Raiders received the opening kickoff but were held to a three and out. Then, on the punt, the Chargers used a little trickery to get a big return. Patrick Crayton received the punt, but instead of running he threw it across the field to Marcus Gilchrist. Gilchrist took the ball all the way to Oakland’s 40 yard line and the Chargers began their drive. They were marching to the end zone, but were held on third and one. Nick Novak came out to put the Bolts up 3-0.
The next drive saw Michael Bush gash the Charger defense for 44 yards on the opening play. He would finish the night with 157 rushing yards, 85 receiving yards, and a rushing touchdown. The Raiders could not pick up another first down, but they had a little trickery of their own. They were inside Sebastian Janikowski’s field goal range, but Shane Lechler came out in punt formation. Instead of punting, he threw the ball deep to Jacoby Ford. Quentin Jammer looked to have committed pass interference, but referee Ed Hochuli explained that there is no pass interference when a team is in punt formation.
The Chargers had an opportunity to make it a two score game, but went three and out again. The three and out was only part of the bad news as left tackle Marcus McNeill was injured on the play and would not return. Brandyn Dombrowski filled in and struggled mightily all night.
The Raiders then put together the first sustained drive of the game. Michael Bush added on 25 more yards as the Raiders went 80 yards in 11 plays. Bush capped it with a two yard touchdown run.
The game had clearly become a battle, and the Chargers needed to respond quickly. They went three and out instead.
Oakland began to march down the field again and looked like they would have their second touchdown of the night. Taiwan Jones rushed the ball for 19 yards on the possession, but the Raiders stalled on the five yard line and settled for a field goal.
Once more, the Chargers would go three and out. Initially they downed the Raiders at the ten yard line, but a penalty forced a redo of the punt and it went for a touchback.
The Raiders made some progress on the resulting possession, but were held up by two penalties and punted back to the Bolts.
Do I need to say what the Bolts did? Three and out.
The Raiders punished the Chargers quickly this time with passes of 23 and 33 yards for a Denarius Moore touchdown.
The Chargers got the ball back and actually managed one first down before punting back. Oakland kneeled to end the half.
The Chargers got off to a fast start in the second half. They went 80 yards on eight plays, and Vincent Brown caught his first NFL touchdown to bring the score to 17-10. The Bolts were back in the game. Unfortunately, right guard Louis Vasquez had been injured during the drive. He was the second offensive lineman to go down and it caused problems for the offense.
The Raiders took only five plays to make it a two score game again. Michael Bush took a Carson Palmer pass 55 yards, and Denarius Moore finished it off with his second touchdown reception. He finished with 123 yards and two touchdowns on five catches.
Phillip Rivers looked to strike back out of the shotgun, but the drive was stalled and Nick Novak lined up for a 46 yard field goal. He missed for the first time this season at Qualcomm.
The next Raider possession saw them turn the ball over for the first time. Carson Palmer was hit as he was running and the ball came loose. Corey Liuget recovered for the Bolts. Just before the interception, Antonio Garay was forced to exit the game with an injury.
Rivers went back to the shotgun and took the Bolts down the field. Vincent Brown looked to have his second touchdown of the night, but it was overruled. Brown got possession of the ball and never went out of bounds, but cornerback Lito Sheppard had a hand on the ball when it was loose. Since Sheppard touched the loose ball while out of bounds, the catch was ruled out of bounds. The Chargers would not be denied, however, and three plays later Jacob Hester found the end zone on a pass from Rivers.
With the score at 24-17, it was shaping up to be an exciting fourth quarter. Neither team would score though.
The Raiders were driving down the field, but Carson Palmer was picked off for his second turnover of the night.
The Chargers were then held to a punt, but a penalty on the Raiders gave them another chance. They could not take advantage and punted back to Oakland.
Oakland was held to a three and out, and the Chargers had another chance to tie the game.
They began moving down the field, and Rivers looked for Vincent Jackson deep. It was a risky throw with two defenders on Jackson, but Jackson seemed to give up on the play and the ball was intercepted.
The Chargers made one more defensive stand, and had a last chance to win the game. The injury bug had frustratingly bitten again with Antwan Barnes going out injured.
Pressure on Phillip Rivers was simply overwhelming on the final possession, and the game ended on an uninspiring fumble. Rivers was sacked six times on the night.
At this point, most Charger fans are concluding that the season is over. It very well could be. With Kris Dielman already out, the offensive line lost two more starters. Rivers had two turnovers, although the interception was more on Jackson than him. Most of all, they seem to play just below the level of their competition. If you lose by one score to the Packers, logic would dictate you could do better against the Raiders. They may lose the majority of the games remaining, but they have a knack for doing just enough to make it suspenseful but not enough to get it done.
I will conclude with a simple request. If you have season tickets, GO TO THE GAMES! If I can stomach the frustration, so can anyone else. Isn’t it more pleasant to be surrounded by your own fans regardless of outcome? Going to home games for the opponent in your own stadium is a frustration no fan should have to deal with.