Raiders-Chargers: Oakland Impresses in Debut, but Lets San Diego Slip Away

The Raiders displayed an intensity and moxie in their season-opening game against the San Diego Chargers on Monday night that has been unseen in Oakland in recent years.

The running game was dominant in the first half, as the Raiders' offensive line imposed its will on the Chargers' defensive front.

JaMarcus Russell, who couldn't hit a receiver for much of the game, came back from a brief stint on the sidelines after hyper-extending his knee to lead the offense to a late scoring drive capped off by a huge 4th-and-15, 57-yard touchdown strike to rookie wide receiver Louis Murphy.

The defensive front provided adequate pressure despite rushing only four defenders for most of the game, the secondary had a number of pass break-ups despite being tested in exclusive man-to-man coverage, and the coaching staff's play calling showed that they've got enormous confidence in their young team.

But despite all of that, the Raiders fell yet again in a season opener, 24-20.

For 57 minutes and 37 seconds, the Raiders were the aggressors.

For 57 minutes and 37 seconds, the Raiders had the game won.

For 57 minutes and 37 seconds, it looked like the Raiders would begin the season with a victory and avoid the same fate of the Buffalo Bills, who in their bid to upset the New England Patriots in the preceding Monday night game, faltered in the waning minutes.

But for all of their effort in the first 57 minutes and 37 seconds, the Raiders folded under pressure and looked more like the team of the past six seasons in the last two minutes and 23 seconds.

It's a painfully amusing reminder of how quickly fortunes can change in the NFL. With one heroic last drive led by Philip Rivers and Darren Sproles, the Chargers showed why they are the team to beat in the AFC West, driving 89 yards on nine plays to lead their team to victory and shatter the early hopes of Raider Nation.

Give the Chargers credit: These are the types of games that teams of their caliber must win. Despite being outplayed for most of the game, the Chargers kept it close and gave themselves a shot to win.

It's the type of performance the young Raiders can learn a lesson from and take with them into the next week. Veteran teams can stave off impending doom by making timely plays in dramatic fashion.

Young teams like the Raiders learn these lessons in time. And like what happened on Monday night, the NFL's school of hard knocks is often a painful education in the necessity to play from start to finish.

Of the last nine plays on the Chargers' game-winning drive, five were completed in the middle of the field for an average of 11.8 yards.

As Raiders rookie head coach Tom Cable expressed in Tuesday's media conference, "It's almost like we got into prevent mode rather than just continuing to play defense."

What is it that they say about prevent defenses? Prevent defenses don't prevent anything but winning.

The Raiders stopped being aggressive when it mattered most and let a win slip away. The play-calling was certainly questionable given the circumstances: a three-point lead with less than 2:30 to play and a defense on the field that had shut down the Chargers' potent offense for much of the game.

So why defensive coordinator John Marshall opted to drop his linebackers in prevent is beyond logical convention. ESPN highlighted the open middle zone on a 2nd-and-10 pass play to Sproles that went for nine yards. The secondary did its part in covering the outside and deep zones, but the entire middle of the field was left open for Rivers to play pitch-and-catch with his receivers.

Cable went on to say that his staff had definitely learned something from that last drive, commenting, "If we learned anything as coaches, there's a better mix (of defensive play-calling) than being one-dimensional."

For many Raider fans, the postgame conversations and debates might best be summarized as "would've, should've, could've."

The Raiders would've, should've, and could've won had it not been for the officials taking back Murphy's second quarter touchdown catch. On the play, Russell threw a high strike to Murphy, who came down with the ball, but officials ruled he didn't have possession when he fell to the ground.

A questionable call that might have some cynical Raider fans thinking this was a way officials were trying to make it up to the Chargers for last year's Ed Hochuli debacle and another example of the league sticking it to its most dysfunctional organization.

Regardless, "would've, should've, could've" doesn't equate to 1-0, and when it comes down to it, the Raiders had the lead late in the game, but couldn't seal the deal in the final two minutes and 23 seconds.

As encouraging as the Raiders played, Monday night's loss was a stinging reminder of how much further this team has to go in returning to championship form. Any team can compete for 58 minutes (just ask the Bills).

But when the game is on the line and situations call for players to step up, it's the truly great players and teams (Peyton Manning in Indianapolis and Tom Brady in New England) that are able to pull through and define themselves as winners.

Russell and Oakland might have a ways to go, but considering the tumult of the past six seasons, Monday night's debut was an encouraging sign of a renewed and invigorated Raiders squad.

Russell was inconsistent, but showed toughness in coming back from an injury (albeit minor) and was unfazed when facing a critical 4th-and-15 situation.

Darren McFadden was his shifty self, but displayed impressive power en route to 68 yards on 17 carries.

Michael Bush played well in a backup role (12 carries for 55 yards), Murphy was impressive in his NFL debut, and Zach Miller showed why he should be considered one of the NFL's top tight ends.

Although the defense let down when it mattered most, for 57 minutes and 37 seconds, they played an inspired brand of football.

For the first time since 2002, the Raiders were praised more than ridiculed on a nationally televised broadcast. Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback and current ESPN analyst Steve Young said of the Raiders' pass defense, "I can't begin to tell you how impressed I am with the Raiders' coverage."

Fellow personality Mike Golic remarked, "Oakland is dominating this game. They're playing inspired."

Pretty high praise for a team that lost the game.

But the one thing these Raiders can't afford to do is let up. Coach Cable was happy with how his team played, but made it known that no matter how good the Raiders looked in defeat, any result other than a win isn't going to cut it.

The Raiders face the Kansas City Chiefs in Week Two and have a chance to show the nation that their debut performance wasn't a fluke. Hopefully, this time around, the team will come to play from start to finish.