Grading the Raiders: Not the prettiest debut for McDaniels, offense

How the Raiders performed in a 24-19 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California:

Offense: C-minus

It’s almost impossible to win in the NFL when your quarterback throws three interceptions and the other guys are credited with six sacks. Derek Carr will see better days than 22 of 37 for 295 yards with two scores and those three big miscues. The offensive line wasn’t near stout enough, and the Raiders got little via the ground. Josh Jacobs had 132 yards rushing against the Chargers in January. He had 57 on Sunday. One bright spot: In his first game as a Raider, wide receiver Davante Adams had 10 catches for 141 yards and a touchdown. Hunter Renfrow wasn’t targeted until midway through the third quarter and finished with three catches for 21 yards. Darren Waller, the tight end fresh off signing a contract extension, had four receptions for 79 yards.

Defense: B

You will take allowing 24 points, especially because the Chargers ran nine more plays. Halftime adjustments were on point, holding the hosts to seven points after intermission, including zero in the fourth quarter. Injuries began to mount as the game wore on — ones to linebacker Denzel Perryman (ankle), safety Tre’Von Moehrig (hip) and cornerback Anthony Averett (thumb). The Raiders managed no sacks against Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, and nobody reached double digits in tackles. Johnathan Abram led the team with nine, followed by Maxx Crosby’s eight. In his Raiders debut, Chandler Jones was largely a nonfactor (two tackles, one for loss and a quarterback hit).

Special teams: A-minus

Daniel Carlson made both field-goal attempts — from 23 and 55 yards —and AJ Cole averaged 53 yards on two punts. Neither side did much of anything in the return game.

Coaching: C

It wasn’t the prettiest of debuts for Josh McDaniels as coach of the Raiders, but his team (incredibly) still had a chance to drive for a game-winning score in the final minutes. The defense deserves credit for slowing a Chargers team in the final 30 minutes that all but took its foot off the gas and nearly paid for it. McDaniels has now lost eight of his past nine games as a head coach dating to his time in Denver.

Ed Graney Las Vegas Review-Journal