Weather delay (indoors) can’t stop Chargers
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Justin Herbert threw for three touchdowns, Austin Ekeler rushed for 117 yards and scored twice and the Los Angeles Chargers knocked the Las Vegas Raiders from the unbeaten ranks with a 28-14 victory Monday night.
Los Angeles is 3-1 for the first time since 2014 and part of a threeway tie atop the AFC West with Las Vegas and Denver. The Raiders’ loss means the Arizona Cardinals are the NFL’s lone undefeated team after four weeks.
The Chargers Hollywood Park home has a roof over it, but the start of the game was delayed 35 minutes due to lightning strikes in the area. SoFi Stadium is classified as openair due to the north side being open on the upper deck. Torrential rain hit the Los Angeles area nearly an hour before kickoff.
Herbert, who completed 25 of 38 passes for 222 yards, accounted for all of his TDs in the first half as the Chargers built a 21-0 halftime lead. The Raiders scored on their first two possessions of the second half to draw within a touchdown, but Ekeler gave Los Angeles some breathing room with an 11-yard run off left guard. Herbert had the key play of the drive with a 13-yard completion to Jared Cook on fourth-and-2 from midfield.
Ekeler, who had 145 total yards, also had a touchdown reception in the second quarter.
Derek Carr was 21 of 34 for 196 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. The Raiders could manage only 48 yards rushing against a Chargers defense that was last in the league in run defense.
The Chargers took the opening kickoff and went 75 yards in 12 plays. Herbert completed all six of his passes on the drive, including a 4 yard bullet to tight end Donald Parham in the back of the end zone to put them on top 7-0.
MEYER SORRY AFTER VIRAL VIDEO
Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer apologized to his family, his team and owner Shad Khan for actions he called “just stupid.”
A video surfaced Saturday night showing a woman dancing close to Meyer’s lap, a clip that quickly went viral and made headlines across the country. Another video appears to show Meyer touching the woman’s behind.
Meyer called a team meeting Monday and vowed to “own it,” the motto he uses daily and has plastered all around the Jaguars facility.
“I just apologized to the team and staff for being a distraction,” Meyer told reporters afterward. “Just stupid and so I explained everything that happened and owned it. Just stupid. Should not have put myself in that kind of position.”
Meyer didn’t fly back with his winless team following Jacksonville’s 2421 loss at Cincinnati on Thursday night. The threetime collegiate national championship-winning coach remained in his home state of Ohio to see family members and went to dinner Friday at his restaurant/bar in Columbus, Urban Meyer’s Pint House.
“I stayed to see the grandkids and we all went to the dinner that night,” he said. “There was a big group next to our restaurant and they wanted me to come over and take pictures, and I did. They were trying to pull me out on the dance floor, screwing around, and I should have left.”
The 9-second video showed a young blond woman dancing between the 57-year-old Meyer’s legs as he was sitting on a bar stool.
“The team, I spoke to a bunch of leaders one on one, spoke to all the players,” Meyer said. “They’re good. They’re focused on Tennessee. I apologized again for being a distraction. A coach should not be a distraction.”
Meyer said he also apologized to his family.
“Yeah, yeah, of course I did,” he said. “That’s not me. Oh, yeah, they’re upset.”
The Jaguars (0-4) have lost 19 consecutive games, seven shy of tying the NFL record set by Tampa Bay in 1977.