It wasn’t an enjoyable night for birthday boy Pete Carroll and his Las Vegas Raiders on “Monday Night Football” against the division rival Los Angeles Chargers. Nothing went right for the 74-year-old head coach in a 20-9 defeat. Carroll is now the first NFL head coach to coach a game at the age of 74. Longtime nemesis and Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh evened the head-to-head record between the two at the NFL level to 5-5 with the victory. 

Raiders quarterback Geno Smith threw an interception on his very first throw of the night. Smith didn’t see Chargers safety Alohi Gilman lurking in zone coverage when he attempted to rifle a throw to wide receiver Tre Tucker, and Los Angeles capitalized on that error. Gilman batted the football into the air, and Chargers linebacker Daiyan Henley made the interception. 

Smith threw a second interception at the tail end of the first half, clearly losing patience. He chucked a deep ball into double coverage, and Los Angeles safety Tony Jefferson easily undercut the throw to intercept it on the Chargers’ 1-yard line. 

He tried to squeeze the football to the end zone once again with under six minutes left to play. However, he made the mistake of trying to whistle the football past four-time Pro Bowl safety Derwin James. James knocked the football away from the outstretched hands of Jakobi Meyers and into the waiting arms of Chargers cornerback Donte Jackson. Smith, who now has a 4-13 prime-time record, continued to wilt under the bright lights, throwing for 180 yards and three interceptions on 24 of 43 passing. Smith was sacked three times. 

Tight end Brock Bowers played after being questionable with a knee injury, but he didn’t look 100%. He totaled just 38 yards on five catches.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert picked up right where he left off with 2023 first-round wide receiver Quentin Johnston. Johnston broke out for five catches for 79 yards and two touchdowns to grab a 27-21 Week 1 win against the Kansas City Chiefs in Brazil. 

Herbert connected with him on a 60-yard bomb for the quarterback’s second touchdown of the night to extend the lead to 17-6 with 1:51 left in the half. Johnston’s three receiving touchdowns in two games are tied for the most in the NFL this season along with Amon-Ra St. Brown, Rome Odunze and Emeka Egbuka. Wiley veteran Keenan Allen accounted for the other touchdown with a toe drag in the back right corner of the end zone in the first quarter. Herbert finished the night with 242 yards passing and two touchdowns on 19 of 27 passing. 

Check out our takeaways from the game below:

Why the Chargers won

Los Angeles played a much cleaner game. Herbert was on point early, completing 9 of his first 14 passes and 19 of 27 overall. Their defense also created havoc from the opening whistle with the interception of Smith. On many of Smith’s key dropbacks on key third and fourth downs, he simply didn’t have open receivers to throw to. It seemed like Los Angeles had 12 men on the field with how suffocating its defense was. 

Why the Raiders lost

Losing the turnover battle three to one certainly ended up leading to a home-opening defeat. They also didn’t feature 2025 sixth overall pick running back Ashton Jeanty much despite Bowers not being 100%. Jeanty totaled only 43 yards on 11 carries, but it would have likely helped keep the Chargers’ pass rush at bay. 

Turning point

Herbert’s 60-yard touchdown pass to Johnston. On a night when the Raiders’ offense couldn’t find any room to operate, a multi-score lead felt insurmountable, and that ended up being the case. 

Highlight play(s)

Herbert’s first touchdown pass to Allen featured a slick toe drag for the game’s first score. The way he mirrored Herbert’s movements as his quarterback rolled out of the pocket allowed him to be available exactly where Herbert needed him to be.

James being able to turn his head while in coverage with Tucker in the middle of the end zone essentially snuffed out Las Vegas’ final shot to make this a ballgame in the fourth quarter. Not many players would have been able to get their head around and tip the ball up into the air to a teammate’s awaiting arms in the tight spot James was in. Truly a spectacular play. 

What’s next

The Chargers are now 2-0 for the second time in as many seasons under Harbaugh, while the Raiders fall to 1-1. The visiting Chargers will return home to host the 1-1 Denver Broncos in Week 3, while Las Vegas will make a cross-country trip to the Washington Commanders in Week 3.