Aidan O'Connell throws four touchdown passes while John Jenkins returns a fumble and Jack Jones scores a pick-six as the Las Vegas Raiders beat the Los Angeles Chargers 63-21 on Thursday night; the Chargers did not pass the 50-yard line until Joshua Palmer's touchdown in the third quarter
Friday 15 December 2023 09:59, UK
The Las Vegas Raiders scored 42 points by half-time before posting a franchise-record tally as they embarrassed the Los Angeles Chargers 63-21 on Thursday night.
Four days on from losing 3-0 to the Minnesota Vikings, the Raiders set a team scoring record to top their previous best of 59-14 over the Denver Broncos on October 24, 2010.
The hosts led 42-0 at the break - just three points shy of the NFL record for half-time margin that was set in 2009 when New England led Tennessee 45-0 - in what marked the Chargers' largest-ever deficit after two quarters.
Aidan O'Connell threw all four of his touchdown passes in the first half as he finished with 248 yards passing, while Davante Adams caught eight passes for 101 yards and a touchdown, his first 100-yard game since Week Three against Pittsburgh.
Las Vegas' defense scored second-half touchdowns on a John Jenkins fumble recovery and Jack Jones interception, the first time the Raiders logged two defensive scores since 2006.
The Chargers had been without starting quarterback Justin Herbert after he was ruled out for the rest of the season having undergone surgery to repair a broken finger. Star wide receiver Keenan Allen, who has 1,243 yards and seven touchdowns on the year, was also absent due to a heel issue.
Los Angeles Chargers
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles quarterback Easton Stick, making his first start in place of the injured Herbert, completed 23 of 32 passes for 257 yards, with three touchdowns and an interception.
The result increases the pressure on Chargers coach Brandon Staley, following up Sunday's defeat to the Denver Broncos in leaving his side 5-9, bottom of the AFC West and with just one win in their last six.
Such was their commanding lead the Raiders ran three straight gadget plays during the second quarter: wide receiver Jakobi Meyers completed a pass to Davante Adams, receiver Tre Tucker was given the ball on a running play and then Brandon Bolden scored on a 26-yard run out of the wildcat formation.
To open the second half, Meyers hooked up with Adams again, this time on a three-yard touchdown strike for a 49-0 lead.
Los Angeles finally broke through on its next possession when Stick found Joshua Palmer for a 79-yard touchdown, marking the first time the Chargers had made it past the 50.
Chargers running back Austin Ekeler: "We got our (butts) kicked. That's all I got for you."
Chargers head coach Brandon Staley: "We just didn't have a good game tonight. We didn't have it from the beginning to the end. It's just one of those games where nothing went right for us. We got a good group of guys, but it was just one of those games where all three phases, the worst thing happened to us tonight. It's a reflection of all of us."
Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams: "It shows the resilience we have as a group. You can easily let something like that (the team's 3-0 loss to the Vikings) get in your head and throw off the rest of the season. To bounce back in just a short amount of time in front of you, that's the type of response we're going to need."
Raiders interim head coach Antonio Pierce: "We knew at halftime what the record was. We want to be aggressive regardless of what the score was. If we had 21 or 10, we were going to be aggressive. That was our mindset."
The Chargers play host to the playoff-chasing Buffalo Bills (7-6) on December 23, while the Raiders are on the road against their AFC West rival Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day.
Make sure you tune in to Sky Sports NFL every Sunday at 6pm for the first game of our triple-header of live action. The evening's entertainment also includes NFL Redzone action as hosted by Scott Hanson, as well as Sunday Night Football to round off the night.
Sky Sports will broadcast two exclusive live games every Sunday throughout the regular season in the 6pm and 9pm slots, while also showing every Thursday Night, Sunday Night and Monday Night match-up as well as every Christmas Day fixture.
Fans can also watch every minute of the playoffs across January, followed by Super Bowl LVIII at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on February 11.
