Los Angeles Chargers at Oakland Raiders: 3 things to keep an eye on

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 09: Derek Carr #4 of the Oakland Raiders passes the ball in the second quarter against the Denver Broncos at RingCentral Coliseum on September 09, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 09: Derek Carr #4 of the Oakland Raiders passes the ball in the second quarter against the Denver Broncos at RingCentral Coliseum on September 09, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /
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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – OCTOBER 27: Joey Bosa #97 of the Los Angeles Chargers celebrates with Isaac Rochell #98 after sacking Mitchell Trubisky #10 of the Chicago Bears during the first quarter of a game at Soldier Field on October 27, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – OCTOBER 27: Joey Bosa #97 of the Los Angeles Chargers celebrates with Isaac Rochell #98 after sacking Mitchell Trubisky #10 of the Chicago Bears during the first quarter of a game at Soldier Field on October 27, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

Chargers peaking on defense

All of a sudden, the Los Angeles Chargers defense is playing up to their potential, and they are doing it without star safety Derwin James. The Chargers lost James for the season prior to the year kicking off, and his loss hurt this team early on, but not so much lately.

In fact, after holding the Chicago Bears to 16 points two games ago, they completely stifled Aaron Rodgers and company in Week 9, holding them to just a fourth quarter touchdown. If they play like that on Thursday night against the Raiders, it will be hard for the Silver and Black to move the ball on them on a consistent basis.

The good thing is, the Raiders offense has been downright elite in recent weeks, as Carr is playing some of the best football he has played in his career. They have found an absolute superstar in Josh Jacobs, and even with the Chargers defense playing at a high level, the Raiders should be able to put enough points on the board to win this on Thursday night.