What an insane game this was. Four days earlier, the Raiders were shut out 3-0 by the Vikings. Then they come out in this one and not only score a touchdown on their opening drive, not only score 21 points in the first quarter, not only go up 42-0 in the first half, not only scored 49 points before the Chargers scored for the first time, but scored a franchise record 63 points in a 63-21 trouncing of the Chargers.
That was one heck of a run-on sentence.
So, you might just see a heavy dose of Ballers this week. I wasn’t even sure there’d be a Buster, but in the end I found one. But just one.
Top Baller: DE Malcolm Koonce
Koonce has been getting better and better as the season has gone along. And this week, in a massive defensive effort, he came out atop them all.
After the Raiders went up 7-0 on their first drive, Koonce stopped the Chargers and got the Raiders the ball back. He came screaming into the backfield to make the strip sack, giving the Raiders possession at the LA 42. They used that field position to score a second time.
Up 21-0 in the second quarter, Koonce got pressure on third down to force an incompletion and a punt.
Later in the second quarter, up 28-0, Koonce got pressure again on third down to again force an incompletion and a punt. Then he made the final tackle on a short run to send the two teams to the locker room with a 42-0 Raiders lead.
Top (only) Buster: CB Amik Robertson
The Chargers didn’t do much right. But much of the limited success they had went through Robertson. After the Raiders took a 7-0 lead on their opening drive, Robertson gave up a 14-yard catch to begin the Chargers ensuing drive. The drive would get to midfield before Koonce’s strip sack stopped it.
As the first quarter was nearing a close and the Raiders were up 21-0, the Chargers had just two first downs — one on the 14-yard catch Robertson gave up. They would get a third when Robertson got planted by a Gerald Everett stiff arm.
The second quarter would see Robertson surrender a 17-yard catch and later have a pass breakup wiped away by a taunting penalty. I don’t think it’s necessary to stand over an opposing player talking trash when you’re up 35-0. It’s second only to taunting when down 35-0.
The Chargers would get their first touchdown of the game when Josh Palmer got way behind Robertson for a 79-yard score. In the fourth quarter they would get their second TD from 13 yards out and again it was Robertson who gave it up. Not that any scoring really mattered at that point, but still.
Baller: QB Aidan O'Connell
The rook was dealing in this one. Night and day from his performance against the Vikings last Sunday.
He led the Raiders on an opening drive touchdown which included a 23-yard connection with Davante Adams and a 12-yard pass to Michael Mayer on third and ten to put the Raiders in first and goal at the one. They scored on the next play.
The next drive he dropped in a perfect pass to Tre Tucker from 30 yards out to put the Raiders up 14-0. Then he threw another perfect ball to Jakobi Meyers for a 21-yard touchdown to go up 21-0.
The second quarter had three more touchdown drives. One featured a 24-yard hookup with Davante on third and two. The final TD was O’Connell finding Tucker again from 20 yards out.
O’Connell went 20 of 34 for 248 yards and four touchdowns with no turnovers and a 120.7 passer rating.
Baller: CB Jack Jones
Jones had one of the most masterful interceptions you’ll see. There’s so much to analyze. He read the play perfectly and timed it perfectly. So perfectly, in fact, that the pass was actually *behind* him. He leapt in the air, reached back, snagged the pass at point blank range with ONE HAND, then twisted back toward the end zone mid air and came down in stride for the pick six. Unreal play.
The read. The jump. The pick. The record.#RaiderNation pic.twitter.com/AOVDA9L1R8
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) December 16, 2023
That pick six was the final TD of the day for the game which set a new franchise record. But it wasn’t the first big play of the game for Jones.
He made a tackle for no gain on a run play in the second quarter on third and one. Then the Chargers went for it on fourth and one and couldn’t pick it up. And in the third quarter, Jones again made the tackle short of the sticks on third down to force a punt.
Baller: DE Maxx Crosby
Down 28-0 in the second quarter, the Chargers needed to get something — anything — going to have a chance in this game. But Maxx Crosby wasn’t going to let that happen. He blew up a pitch play to make a tackle for loss on first down and then was held on second down. That’s backing up 12 yards to start a possession. They couldn’t get it back.
The next Chargers drive Crosby had a run stuff on first down, then filled the gap on third and one to assist with another run stuff for no gain.
Two drives in the third quarter ended with Crosby pressures. The first led to a stop on third down and the second set up Koonce for his second strip sack and Crosby was there to give John Jenkins an escort to the end zone on the scoop and score.
Baller: TE Michael Mayer
The opening drive had Mayer’s fingerprints all over it. He had key blocks on the first run for eight yards, a four-yard run on third and two, a five-yard run on third and two, and then made the 12-yard catch on third and 10, fighting for the last few yards to put the Raiders in first and goal at the one.
The second TD drive Mayer made a ten-yard catch on third and eight and they scored on the next play. The fourth touchdown of the game was Mayer himself making the catch and scoring from 11 yards out.
Baller: CB Marcus Epps
The first drive ended with Epps breaking up the pass on third and three. Later in the first quarter, with a 14-0 lead, Epps ripped the ball out of Josh Kelley’s arms to give the Raiders the ball at the LA 31-yard-line. Three plays later they scored their third TD of the game.
Ballers: WR Jakobi Meyers, WR Davante Adams, WR Tre Tucker
The longest play on the opening drive for the Raiders went to Davante for 23 yards.
The second TD was a 30-yard bomb to Tucker. He bobbled it and it was very questionable whether he regained possession in time to get both feet inbounds, but the ruling on the field was a TD and it held up after review.
The third TD was a diving grab by Meyers from 21 yards out. Meyers not only laid out to make the catch, but in the process he dove over the goal line for the score.
For their fifth touchdown drive of the game, Davante made a 24-yard catch on third and two, followed by a nine-yard catch. Two plays later, Brandon Bolden took a direct snap and with the help of blocks from Meyers and Tucker, he took it 26 yards to the house.
Their sixth touchdown came late in the second quarter. It was led out with a nine-yard catch by Davante and ended with a 20-yard touchdown to Tucker.
Davante would get on the board to begin the third quarter with Meyers throwing his second pass of the game for the score from four yards out. Davante also had an 18-yard catch on that drive. That made this a 49-0 game. That was plenty methinks.
Baller: LT Thayer Munford
Started at left tackle in place of the injured Kolton Miller…and didn’t give up a sack. This while often facing off against Khalil Mack who lit up the Raiders with six sacks when these two teams met up earlier this season.
Munford not only gave O’Connell plenty of time to work, but he was way down field as part of that blocking convoy Brandon Bolden used to go 26 yards to pay dirt.
Baller: LB Divine Deablo
There were a lot of turnovers in this one. Even a turnover on downs. And it was Deablo who made the stop on fourth and one. With the Raiders getting the ball back near midfield, they drove for one more touchdown before half to make it a 42-0 lead.
Deablo finished with a team-leading 12 combined tackles. In fact, he had more solo tackles (seven) than any other Raiders player had in combined tackles.
Baller: DT Jerry Tillery
Tillery always gets up to face his former team.
He teamed up with Deablo to make a run stuff for no gain on the play just prior to the Koonce forced fumble which was the Raiders’ first takeaway. The next takeaway was the Epps forced fumble, and it was Tillery who recovered it. The next possession ended with Tillery flying into the backfield for the sack on third down.
Baller: ST DJ Turner
The Raiders were already destroying the Chargers on offense and defense, so why not special teams too? Leading 21-0 in the second quarter, the Chargers stopped the Raiders to force a punt. Turner got down the field as the gunner — as he often does — to make the stop. But as he went for the tackle, he ripped the ball out and then fell on it to give the Raiders the ball at the 14-yard-line. They scored two plays later to take a 28-0 lead.
In the third quarter, he got down field again off of a 68-yard AJ Cole punt to make the stop on the return after just three yards to give Cole a net 65 yards on the punt.
