Raiders’ quick slants: Chargers edition

Las Vegas left thunderstruck as Los Angeles plays style of football Antonio Pierce wants from his team

Antonio Pierce got to see exactly the style of football he so much prefers.

Unfortunately for the Las Vegas Raiders head coach, it came from Jim Harbaugh’s football team.

When it mattered most, it was Harbaugh’s Los Angeles Chargers who embodied the ill intent, physical, and violent mantra Pierce has preached his football team would display — boisterously so, even. Exuding that style was how the Bolts zapped the Raiders 22-10 on Sunday and leaving the Silver & Black thunderstruck in the regular season opener in SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

“The style of play … our identity … did not show up today,” Pierce plainly said in the post game press conference.

“The run game was poor, the passing game was off and you can’t have three turnovers on the road and expect to win,” Pierce added. “We had talked about winning the line of scrimmage, which we didn’t do on either side of the ball.”

That lack of control at the line of scrimmage loomed large in Pierce’s decision making. Faced with 4th-and-1 on the Chargers’ 43-yard line and trailing 16-10 with 7:15 left to play, the Raiders head coach sent out the punt group instead of going for it. While punter AJ Cole did pin Los Angeles at the eight yard line, the choice deflated the pro-Las Vegas crowd.

Pierce noted he considered going for it but decided to give his defense the opportunity to stonewall the Chargers. Instead, an electrifying run by J.K. Dobbins pierced the Raiders defense and the Silver & Black’s collective hearts on a 61-yard gallop that set up a 10-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Justin Herbert to rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey. It was a catch and juke by McConkey that made a mockery of a tired Las Vegas defense.

“We let some leaky things in the run game pop off late — it’s about playing consistent for four quarters and we didn’t do that,” Raiders’ edge rusher Maxx Crosby said after the game. “We’ll see them again.”

Which makes Pierce’s decision to pin the Chargers deep instead of trying to convert the 4th-and-1 all the more curious. In theory, pinning a team deep and relying on the defense to get the stop and get the ball back is sound. But if Pierce was adamant his offense couldn’t gain a single yard, how was he confident his team could drive even further to get into the end zone?

The conservatism from a coach that has long preached aggressiveness and imposing your will is bewildering.

Fortunately for Pierce and his Raiders, there’s 16 games to right the ship. Their next game, however, will be a doozy as they head to Maryland to face a seething Baltimore Ravens squad that came within a toe of potentially beating the AFC West dominating Kansas City Chiefs this past Thursday.

If Pierce and his Raiders aren’t on point, the Silver & Black could have back-to-back Ls bestowed upon it by the Brothers Harbaugh, as John helms the Ravens.

Let’s hit the quick slants as fast as Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers made Pierce pay for his decision to punt on 4th-and-1 in the fourth quarter:

—Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew put forth an efficient looking 25 of 33 for 257 yards with one touchdown and one interception stat line. But the starting signal caller left plenty to be desired including scrambling right into sacks. He absorbed four, by the way.

—Wide receiver Jakobi Myers paced Las Vegas’ aerial attack with 61 yards on three catches. Davante Adams followed with five grabs for 59 yards while rookie tight end Brock Bowers hauled in six passes for 58 yards.

—But it was Raiders running back Alexander Mattison who hauled in the touchdown pass out of the flat as he evaded two Chargers defenders with leap and scampered in from 31 yards out for Las Vegas’ lone end zone vision. Mattison finished with four catches for 43 yards and five carries for 19 yards.

—Linebacker Robert Spillane led the Raiders defense with 10 total tackles (seven solo). Defensive tackles Christian Wilkins and John Jenkins, safety Marcus Epp, and Crosby each finished with five total tackles. Las Vegas’ defense played fiercely and was stout, but whittled at the worst time.

—Raiders punter AJ Cole was his usual booming self as he averaged a healthy 53 yards per boot on his five punts (265) yards. Three of them dropped inside the Chargers’ 20-yard line (one touchback) and his longest punt was 62 yards. His special teams tag team partner Daniel Carlson made one field goal and missed another going 1 for 2 on the day.

—Despite only getting sacked once, Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert didn’t look comfortable in the pocket going 17 of 26 for 144 yards and the one touchdown. It appears the Chargers lack big-time play makers but it all came together nicely on Dobbins’ 61-yard burst.

—Speaking of, Dobbins finished with 135 yards on 10 carries and a touchdown. That number is bolstered by his long run, of course, but the tailback made the proper decision to bounce to the left on that big play and that allowed the Bolts to gash the Raiders big time.

Quote of Note:

“We’ve got to do a better job (of keeping our) composure. “I mean, what happened at the end of the game is inexcusable. It’s not going to be tolerated. And, at the end of the day, we can’t be selfish. … It was undisciplined. … They kicked our ass, and they scored. Let it go.” —Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce on the fight after the Los Angeles Chargers failed two-point conversion