The Los Angeles Chargers fell to the Oakland Raiders by the score of 24-17 on Sunday afternoon.
Here are three observations from the Week 16 loss:
Not bad, but not outstanding
In what could have been his final home game with the Chargers, quarterback Philip Rivers delivered a decent performance that didn’t give much to offer in terms of whether or not he should be back for Year 17.
Rivers, who dealt with a hand injury, started off cold and he didn’t benefit from a slew of dropped passes. But he slowly started producing positive yardage as the game went on, where he flourished in the short to intermediate parts of the field.
As a result, Rivers finished 27-of-39 passing for 279 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. He managed to go without an interception Sunday for only the sixth time this season.
Following the game, Rivers was asked many questions regarding his future. He said that he feels like he could still play, but he’s going to take some time to discuss his future with his family following the season. It’s also up to the franchise to decide if they even want to bring him back for another stint.
Where was the run game?
Remember when the Chargers failed to record 40 rushing yards in a single month throughout the month of October? Yesterday brought us all back to that.
The Chargers were forced to resort to the passing game for the majority of the afternoon because running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler could not get anything going all afternoon, totaling just 19 yards on the ground (1.2 yards per carry).
In their first meeting, Oakland could not stop the rushing attack, but this time they were consistently man-handling the offensive line, getting into the backfield with ease and clogging up holes to allow other members of the front seven to make plays.
Ekeler still managed to be a threat in the passing game, amassing 58 yards receiving on five receptions. He passed Ronnie Harmon for the second-most in a single season by a Chargers running back (950), as well as moving to No. 8 on the franchise’s all-time receptions list at his position.
One of the worst defensive outings of the season
Prior to the matchup, one of our keys to victory was getting pressure on quarterback Derek Carr. They did just that, posting three sacks in the first half. But the pass rush fell apart in the second half, failing to acquire another one the rest of the game.
As a result, Carr had a field day, where he carved up the defense underneath. He finished 26-of-30 passing for 291 yards and a touchdown. Now, that doesn’t all fall on the lack of pass rush. The back end of the defense played a role in that, allowing too many big plays due to poor coverage, miscommunication or missed tackles in the open field.
Oakland’s offensive line also handled Los Angeles’ defensive line for the most part, creating big holes for running back DeAndre Washington. The biggest contributor on the defensive side of the ball, you ask? By no surprise, it was safety Derwin James, who led the team in total tackles for the second game in a row with eight, including one for a loss.
