Herbert sneaks Chargers past Carrless Raiders
LAS VEGAS — Justin Herbert scored on 1yard plunge to give the Los Angeles Chargers a 3027 overtime victory over the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday night.
The Chargers ( 59) snapped a ninegame losing streak against their AFC West counterparts. The Raiders ( 77) lost quarterback Derek Carr to a left groin injury in the first quarter. They have lost four of five, all but killing their playoff chances.
Moments after Daniel Carlson’s 23yard field goal on the Raiders’ first possession put Las Vegas ahead 2724, Herbert found wideout Jalen Guyton streaking by cornerback Keisean Nixon for a 53yard reception to set up the winning score.
Los Angeles, which improved to 12 in overtime games, has seen all four of its games against division foes come down to the final play.
Herbert, who targeted nine receivers and completed at least one pass to seven, was 22for32 with 314 yards an two touchdowns. He set an NFL rookie record with his eighth 300yard game.
For the Raiders, the story line quickly changed from mustwin to stay alive in the playoff hunt, to, howto win with backup Marcus Mariota seeing his first action as a Raider.
Just four days after firing their defensive coordinator Paul Guenther, plus missing four starters on defense, and having their offensive coordinator Greg Olson sidelined after testing positive for the coronavirus, the Raiders lost Carr when he came up lame on a thirddown scramble near the goal line in the first quarter. Carr immediately went to the locker room and did not return.
Mariota, the No. 2 overall pick in 2015 by Tennessee, hadn’t appeared in a game since he stepped into the Titans’ playoff game in Kansas City on Jan. 19. The sixthyear pro was in for one snap in each of the Titans’ three playoff games last season and hadn’t thrown a touchdown pass since Sept. 29, 2019.
He was poised in his return from the first snap. n his first drive, he was 3for3 for 70 yards and a perfectly placed overthetop pass to Darren Waller. Mariota also scrambled for 11 yards for a first down.
But the Chargers made quick work of their final possession in the first half, and took a 1710 lead into the locker room after Herbert picked apart Las Vegas’ decimated secondary with identical consecutive plays. After connecting with KJ Hill for 26 yards on third down, Herbert found Tyron Johnson for a 26yard TD strike. It was Herbert’s 27th touchdown pass, tying him with Baker Mayfield for most by a rookie in NFL history.
Mariota carried his magic into the second half, leading the Raiders down field on their first drive of the third quarter. Josh Jacobs dove head first over the pile and into the end zone to tie it.
Mariota finished 17for28 for 226 yards with one TD and one interception. He also rushed for 88 yards and a touchdown on nine carries. Mariota became just the third Raider to pass for 150 yards, rush for 50 yards, throw one TD pass and rush for another score in the same game, joining Rich Gannon ( 2000) and Vince Evans ( 1987).