INGLEWOOD, Calif. -- The Las Vegas Raiders have been competitive in a handful of games this season, despite their 2-10 record. They’ve also suffered their fair share of blowouts. Sunday’s 31-14 loss to the Chargers was the rare middle ground, where a hard-fought first half was spoiled by a poor performance in the second that ultimately killed any chances of earning their third win.
Following the game, Pete Carroll explained that the team entered halftime with confidence they’d be able to take control in the second half. As it would turn out, confidence wasn’t nearly enough to overcome an injured Justin Herbert and a supporting cast that has been surrounded by more questions than answers this season.
“At halftime, we felt like this was a game we were going to get after and take,” Carroll said. “Everybody felt really good about it, the things that we had done in the first half and all.
“We knew we were kicking the ball to them. We’ve got to get off the field and get going. And then there's the big toss play. We just screwed it up and I think we had three guys there that could make the play and it winds up being a 60-yard touchdown. That was a back-breaking play in the game.”
Carroll complimented his opponent’s ability to play with a lead while expressing regret about the Raiders’ own lack of success on third down, both offensively and defensively.
“We needed to respond and we didn’t have it to respond,” Carroll said. “So, they get out by a couple of scores and it falls into their hands. They know how to play with a lead like that, and they did a nice job. Third down was atrocious for us today on both sides of the football. We couldn’t convert and we couldn’t stop them to get out of there.”
Herbert, who suffered a hand injury in the first half and missed a portion of the second quarter, came back in the second and got involved in a dust up with Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby after Crosby shoved a mid-taunt Herbert to the ground after a big play for the Chargers.
Following the game, Herbert played off the interaction with Crosby and complimented the defensive stalwart and the Raiders organization as a whole.
“It’s an emotional game and I’ve got nothing but respect for him (Crosby) as a player and as a teammate. At the end of the day, I could have kept my cool a little bit better too.”
“(Crosby) is a true competitor. We know how good he is and the plays that he’s been able to make over the past several years. We know they’re a good opponent. They’re much better than their record indicates and so for us to be able to come away with a win today, I thought that was big for us.”