The Chargers are 0-2 after another disappointing 26-14 loss to the Raiders.
Here's what to take away from the game.
Offensive miscues continue
Los Angeles fumbled the ball a whopping six times on Sunday, the most in franchise history since 1987. Even though they only lost one of those fumbles - a crunch-time one from running back Omarion Hampton - it was evident all day that the Chargers not being able to hang on to the ball would cause problems eventually. Combine that with three drops - one from Brenen Thompson to open the game, one from tight end David Njoku that led to an interception, and one from Quentin Johnston on a tight-window throw by Herbert - and it begins to feel like a minor miracle that the Chargers' loss wasn't worse on Sunday. Operational issues continued
to plague LA as well, as one of their fumbles came on a miscommunicated snap when Jake Slaughter snapped the ball into Tre' Harris' leg. The Chargers also struggled to get lined up and were often frantically trying to get the snap off before the play clock expired on Sunday.
Joe Alt's worst day
At first glance, Alt allowing 2 pressures per Pro Football Focus' live charting doesn't seem like that bad of a day considering he was up against Raiders edge rusher Maxx Crosby for most of the game. But the third-year tackle committed three false start penalties, two of which came on back-to-back reps, and held Crosby in the end zone to gift the Raiders two more points at the end of the game. It was part of an overall forgettable day from the offensive line, which also platooned Cole Strange and Trevor Penning at right guard until left guard Kayode Awosika left the game early due to injury. (Awosika platooned with Trey Pipkins III, who missed the game with a knee injury, at left guard last week.)
Blown coverages
Defensively, the Chargers were up and down in the secondary without Elijah Molden due to injury, especially during the portion of Sunday when Derwin James Jr. was out with a hand injury. Young safeties RJ Mickens and Genesis Smith miscommunicated on a deep Tre Tucker touchdown where Smith should have continued running with Tucker on a post route. The Chargers blew another coverage on Cody White's second touchdown of the game when linebacker Troy Dye bit hard on a play fake on 3rd & 5 in the red zone. They also blew a third coverage early in the fourth quarter but got lucky that Kirk Cousins placed the ball well behind Malik Benson, who was wide open and would have only needed to beat one Chargers defender to the end zone.
Justin Herbert struggles
It's hard to say without reviewing the All-22 copy of the game film, but it seemed like Chargers receivers struggled to get open consistently on Sunday. Even so, it was far below Herbert's normal bar of performance to play the way he individually did against the Raiders. Herbert has not looked comfortable firing the ball out quickly in Mike McDaniel's timing-based offense, which has caused some plays to break down quickly. When they have, Herbert has also been looser with the ball than he has been to this point in his career: 3 of LA's 6 fumbles were attributed to him, and he also forced an interception late while targeting Derius Davis for the second consecutive week. Chargers fans will have to hope that his issues are merely growing pains, but with a gauntlet coming up on the schedule, it's hard to believe it will get much better from here.
Reasons for optimism
Again, it's probably a fool's errand to point out some positives from a second consecutive disappointing loss, but the Chargers had a few bright spots during an otherwise frustrating day. Slater did not allow a pressure in 32 snaps, which fans have come to expect of him when healthy, but Strange and Awosika also pitched clean sheets in 30 and 23 pass-blocking snaps, respectively, according to PFF's live charting. Tight end Charlie Kolar popped as a run blocker on Sunday, and Hampton was on track to have arguably his best day as a pro before that fourth-quarter fumble. The Chargers hit Cousins 8 times and rookie Akheem Mesidor led the team with 4 pressures based on live charting numbers. Linebackers Del'Shawn Phillips and Troy Dye had their moments, even if the Chargers hope they'll be depth pieces in a few weeks when Denzel Perryman comes off injured reserve. It was even a pretty good game from punter JK Scott, who averaged 51.8 yards per punt on 5 attempts and allowed only 1 return for 16 yards.
This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: Chargers vs. Raiders: 5 takeaways from LA's loss
