Oakland Raiders defeated their divisional rivals, LA Chargers, in a thigh contest, which was decided in the last minutes of the event. Jon Gruden’s guys made a decisive push in the final minute of the match.
At first, it was Josh Jacobs who rushed for 18 yards to score and give his team a 26-24 lead, and after that, the Raiders defense did their part of the job. They stopped Phillip Rivers and intercepted his pass 20 seconds before the end. It was a sign for the start of a big celebration at the Coliseum.
“We just found a way to win. That says so much about our team,” Carr said. “Some nights are just tougher than others. This was just one of those nights that was just tougher. You see our team with resilience. No one cared, No one flinched.”
The Raiders started this match very strong, and that especially refers to their defense. They intercepted Rivers twice, once that led to a field goal, and the second time to a touchdown.
Erik Harris picked Chargers’ QB pass and headed all the way back, posting a 56-yard return touchdown. It was a perfect way to open the match, as the Raiders had a 10-0 lead after the initial 15 minutes.
But the guests from LA didn’t want to go down that easy. This was a significant game for them, too, and the answer came early on in the second quarter. Rivers first found Hunter Henry for a touchdown and then prepared the position for Melvin Gordon, who rushed into the end zone.
Derek Carr stepped up afterward, finding a rookie fullback Alec Ingold for a 9-yard TD toss, which brought back Oakland on top. And not only that, but it gave the Raiders a momentum because it took place only 21 seconds before the break.
The third period was marked by defenses, which allowed one field goal on each side, and kept pounding hard. The same applied to the majority of the final sequence, with both sides not being able to make a push for at least a field goal.
That was the situation until 4:02, when Rivers connected with Austin Ekeler for a 6-yard pass that brought the Chargers up, 24-20. It was an 8-yard drive, lasting for more than 8 minutes. But it left too much time on the clock for a guy like Carr.
In exactly three minutes, Oakland reached a game-winning touchdown, delivered by Josh Jacobs, who ran for 18 yards, carrying the ball to the end zone. However, Daniel Carlson missed the extra-point conversion, and the Chargers still had a chance to win,
Yet, Rivers was stopped.
“You give a team 10 points at their place, and then you have the ball with a chance to win at the end, and you have eight snaps and go nowhere, it’s going to be tough to win,” he said after the game.
The Chargers (4-6) are going to Mexico City to face the AFC division leaders, Kansas City Chiefs.
Meanwhile, the Raiders are hosting the Cincinnati Bengals.
