The Las Vegas Raiders are off to a terrible start to their 2024 campaign after losing to the Los Angeles Chargers, 22-10, in Week 1.
The loss is bad enough in and of itself, but the fact that the offense could only muster up one touchdown only made it worse. Gardner Minshew wasn't terrible, but he was not good, either, the offensive line was poor, the offense as a whole coughed the ball up three times, and even the normally reliable Daniel Carlson missed a field goal.
As if all that wasn't enough, the defense was a sieve against the run and head coach Antonio Pierce made a pair of questionable decisions on fourth-and-1s. His decision to punt it away in Chargers territory in the fourth quarter was the worst one.
As you'd expect, Sporting News' Vinnie Iyer wasn't kind to the Raiders in his Week 2 NFL power rankings, as he placed Las Vegas at No. 30, two spots lower than where they entered the season. Only the Carolina Panthers (No. 32) and New York Giants (No. 31) were lower.
Here's what Iyer said about Las Vegas:
"The Raiders showed some swag with Gardner Minshew early before wilting against the run and also breaking down up front offensively vs. the relentless, new-look Chargers. The Ravens will not let up on the run against them in Week 2."
As if a matchup with a very good Baltimore Ravens team that has the ability to torch the Raiders lackluster run defense wasn't bad enough, the Ravens are looking to get their own season on track after a Week 1 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Based on what we saw on Sunday, it's likely the Raiders will start out the season 0-2, and they may fall even further in Iyer's power rankings as a result.
