Instant reactions to Raiders loss at Chargers

When a team puts together as poor of a performance as the Las Vegas Raiders did on Sunday, it's hard to pinpoint exactly what went wrong.

Week 1's game against the Los Angeles Chargers exemplified everything that is wrong with this Raiders team in its current state. It proved right what everyone said about the team all offseason, but winning this game was entirely in the Raiders' hands. The Raiders beat themselves.

There are 16 more games to be played, but there is a lot to figure out if this team wants to be competitive. Here's where the Silver and Black went wrong:

Offensive line struggles

The offensive line was manhandled today by the Chargers front seven. Gardner Minshew was under duress all day, being sacked four times, and the team failed to establish the run.

There is a learning curve when a team transitions to a new blocking scheme under a new coach, but the Raiders had all offseason to iron things out before they hit the field Sunday.

Kolton Miller was pushed back constantly throughout the day and the Raiders' interior line provided no resistance either. Thayer Munford Jr. had a quiet day, which is a good thing as a tackle. He was a surprising bright spot.

The offense failed to run the ball effectively all day, collecting 71 yards on 22 carries. This averages out to 3.2 yards per carry, with the longest rush of the day being 12 yards.

On 3rd or 4th and 1, the team went 0/3 trying to convert. The line got no push, and it affected the team greatly.

Turnovers

Antonio Pierce said all offseason that he needed his quarterbacks to be game managers, taking care of the ball first and foremost. Gardner Minshew failed at that task on Sunday.

In the first half, Minshew seemingly bobbled a snap and still tried to get the ball out quickly. Unfortunately, he never got a handle on it, and the ball sailed backward toward the sideline. The Chargers recovered the fumble in their territory and turned it into points.

Zamir White finally got going with a rush of 12 yards, but Joey Bosa punched the ball out before White hit the ground. That was the story of the day for the Silver and Black: nothing good could last.

Finally, to add insult to injury, Minshew threw an interception on the final possession of the game after his pass was deflected at the line of scrimmage. The game was already out of reach at that point, but it was a discouraging way to end the game.

The offense already made the defense's job difficult by not sustaining long drives or giving them a breather. But forcing them to make stop after stop on a short field is impossible, and the team does not have a shot of winning games if they go -3 in the turnover department.

Raiders run defense woes continue

The preseason was defined by poor defense against the run. The first half saw an improvement in this realm, as the Raiders' defense bottled up the Chargers' running backs repeatedly.

The second half was a completely different story.

J.K. Dobbins came alive for the Chargers, ripping off runs of 46 and 61 yards to position Los Angeles for scores. They finished with 27 carries for 176 yards, good for 6.5 yards per carry, and a touchdown.

Las Vegas' defense was clearly tired in the second half after bailing out the offense all game, but instead of bending and not breaking as they did in the first half, they finally broke in the second half.

Poor coaching decisions

Much has been made about Antonio Pierce's decision to punt toward the end of Sunday's game, and for good reason.

I understand trusting your defense, and I get that the team was 0/3 on conversion attempts from one yard. But this is an NFL offense and in Week 1 of the season, you have to trust your unit to get a single yard.

Josh Dubow summed it up perfectly:

The Raiders' chances of winning shot down dramatically after that decision, and the rest is history as they say.

Pierce is still a young coach who I have a ton of faith in, but this decision is baffling. Why make the defense get a stop and then force the offense to drive all the way back down the field to score when you could run a single play for one yard?

Regardless, this decision showed little faith in the offense. A can of worms opened up after this decision...

Staying level headed

I appreciate the passion and intensity that this team plays with.

The Raiders were absolutely juiced coming out of the gates, especially the defense. Every guy was flying around, jawing, throwing little bumps and hits in to establish their physicality.

But that energy was not sustained throughout the game as the defense lost their edge in the second half.

After a touchdown that made the game 22-10 in the Chargers' favor, a fight broke out between the two units.

It is unclear who or what started the fight, but on TV it appeared that Marcus Epps and Joshua Palmer were in the middle of it.

I love that Jack Jones, Nate Hobbs, Maxx Crosby, and Christian Wilkins stepped in to defend and help their teammate. But they need to strike a balance where they can stick up for each other without drawing penalties and potentially facing punishment from the league.

The frustration was obvious, as the game was slipping away from them, but we need all of these guys next week in Baltimore. Winning a fight in a game that's already over does not help the team win next week.

The Raiders have always been the team that the league makes an example of, and I will be holding my breath until I hear that these players are in the clear to play in Week 2. Several of them will be subject to fines, I am sure.

All hope is not lost, but it's hard to justify an uninspiring performance. Pierce has shown that he can lead the team through rough stretches, as evidenced by their turnaround last year from a 3-0 loss to a 63-21 win.

Week 2 will be important for the Raiders, as they have a chance to right the ship against one of the best teams in the league. They've gotta leave this performance in Los Angeles.

All eyes on the Ravens.