Once again, the Las Vegas Raiders will open a regular season taking on the Los Angeles Chargers. This is their most common week one opponent.
It has not gone the Raiders way in recent times when they’ve had to play the Chargers in week one. While the “Silver and Black” own a 5-4 record in week one matchup, they’ve lost the last four week one showdowns with the Chargers. This includes a frustrating defeat in 2022.
Harbaugh vs. Pierce
The Los Angeles Chargers come into this game with a new Head Coach Jim Harbaugh. The former 49ers and Michigan Head Coach has been successful at every single place he’s ever coached. The Las Vegas Raiders enter this game with Antonio Pierce, who helped rally a broken team to a 5-4 record last season as an interim head coach.
“Raider Nation” was divided on who they wanted more, until Pierce ultimately won the job. Both teams had successful offseasons, but this duel of new Head Coaches will be an interesting one since both seem to have some similarities in philosophies. Both Head Coaches would love nothing more than an extremely physical showdown that ends in a win for their team.
Las Vegas Raiders Are Under New Leadership
The Las Vegas Raiders are looking to continue their quest to return to glory. Gardner Minshew is now the starting quarterback of the Raiders. They are hoping that he will be able to hold onto the football while making just enough plays for them to win.
The defense is returning Defensive Player of the Year finalist Maxx Crosby but added superstar defensive tackle Christian Wilkins. Patrick Graham’s defense was ranked ninth last season, which was their best ranking since 2006. It was also the Las Vegas Raiders’ first top-10 defense since 2002, as they’ve had bottom-four defenses more often than not in the last 22 seasons.
Unstoppable Force vs Unmovable Object
Given who the Chargers hired as Head Coach in addition to their offseason moves, expect a heavy running game plan. Harbaugh loves physical, grind-it-out football and the Chargers drafted Joe Alt to help with that at tackle. They’re going to try and bully the Raiders defense from the start.
The Las Vegas Raiders will also be short-handed on their defensive line. On Friday, the Las Vegas Raiders announced that starting defensive end Malcolm Koonce will miss the game with a non-contact knee injury. As a result, expect new Chargers running backs JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards to get a steady diet consisting of dozens of carries each.
Davante Adams Has A Vendetta
Davante Adams has torched the Chargers in each of their matchups. The star also now has a massive axe to grind with the team after being mocked by their social media team. Calling the opposing team’s future Hall of Fame wide receiver who’s averaged 100+ yards and multiple scores against your team “garbage flavored Pop Tarts” is not a good idea.
As a result, Adams has vowed to get revenge on the Chargers. He will be matched up against Asante Samuel Jr, the Chargers star cornerback who sealed a win last season against the Raiders. Adams will also want to have a big game to further silence the reporters who constantly seem to hope he wants a trade out of Las Vegas despite his repeated denials.
Prediction: Bolt Down
Despite the loss of Koonce to the defensive line, I think this game will be an ugly victory for the “Silver and Black.” The addition of Wilkins to the Las Vegas Raiders will allow them to put pressure on the Chargers’ offense. While Harbaugh’s offense is dependent on running the ball, the Chargers also don’t have the same great weapons for quarterback Justin Herbert to throw to anymore when they need to.
AFC West games tend to be close. While the Chargers are highly motivated to avenge their 63-21 beatdown from last season, there is such a thing as coming into a game too emotional. It might be “Raider Week” for the Chargers, but it’s also time for the Raiders to win in front of their former home fans.
Final Score: Raiders 17 Chargers 14
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