A divisional road victory to open the season is huge, but it’s difficult to determine how good the Chargers are based on their 22-14 victory over the Raiders on Monday Night Football.
Raiders LB Travis Goethel had two bad snaps filling in for long snapper Jon Condo (head injury) to give San Diego great field position. Chargers TE Dante Rosario blocked a third punt. These unusual circumstances led to three field goals, the difference in the game.
The defense looked improved, but not perfect, and the running game was miserable without RB Ryan Mathews (broken right clavicle). “We need to make the best use of this short week and dramatically improve,” coach Norv Turner said.
No running game: The running game mustered only 32 yards on 20 attempts. Starting RB Ronnie Brown rushed for five yards on five carries. RB Curtis Brinkley led San Diego’s rushing attack with 12 yards on 10 carries.
“We did a lot of good things up front,” Turner said in defense of the poor rushing performance. “We had two or three plays where we had the play blocked for more yards than we got and we did not make good cuts. It’s always a combination of different things. One of our things going into the game was to use our short passing game as our running game. We had a lot more 4-, 6- and 8-yard passes than we would normally have and that was by design.”
Mathews returned to practice last week, but was limited and has not been cleared for contact. It is uncertain if Mathews will be cleared for full practice this week, which would allow him to potentially play Sunday against the Titans.
“It could be tomorrow,” Turner said of Mathew’s being cleared for contact. “It could be a week from tomorrow. We are continuing to evaluate him and hopefully it will be sooner than later.”
Harris test: LT Mike Harris (undrafted, UCLA), who played in place of starting LT Jared Gaither (back spasms), made it through his first game without giving up a sack. For the most part, Harris fended off against Raiders DE Matt Shaughnessy, who is more known for snuffing out edge runs than rushing the QB.
Harris will face the Titans DE Kamerion Wimbley on Sunday. Last year, Wimbley played for the Raiders and sacked QB Philip Rivers four times in Week 10.
Shaughnessy did share a sack with LB Philip Wheeler for the night’s lone sack of Rivers, but neither beat Harris on the play. The sack appeared to be a result of good coverage.
Better safe than sorry: The Chargers were only 1 of 5 for TDs in the red zone. Turner and Rivers, however, pointed out that each trip resulted in points. “I was real excited by what we did inside the 20,” Turner said in spite of the red-zone failures. “In our first five games last year, I think we had six turnovers.”
Rivers, who had 20 INTs in 2011, pointed out the Chargers' winning percentage since he has been with the team has topped 90 percent when they do not turn the ball over.
Kaeding pleased with return: Kaeding tore an ACL last year on the season-opening kickoff against the Vikings and missed the remainder of the season. He was stellar in his return by matching a career-high five field goals (23, 28, 19, 41, and 45-yards). Kaeding is not known for his leg strength, but six of his kickoffs resulted in touchbacks. “It was a good scenario all-around,” Kaeding said of his return.
Veteran G/T added: G/T Reggie Wells, a 10-year veteran, was signed Monday. Wells (6-4, 318) has started 91 of 117 career games. He will likely be a utility backup for the O-line.
No corresponding move was needed on the 53-man roster because WR Vincent Brown (broken ankle) was placed on the eligible-to-return injured reserve list last week.
No Injury Report: CB Shareece Wright (foot) did not return after the game’s opening kickoff. TE Antonio Gates (ribs) went to the locker room, but returned to action. Turner did not update the status of either player and said an injury report would be released Wednesday.
Looking forward: San Diego has an excellent chance to get off to a 2-0 start. The Chargers host the Titans this week, who were beaten at home by the Patriots 34-13 on Sunday. The Patriots rushed for 162 yards. Good yardage on first-down runs consistently allowed QB Tom Brady to move the chains with short, safe passes. Philip RiversRivers should be able to do the same if the Chargers' running game is somewhat productive.
What’s next: The Chargers will conduct a late practice Wednesday afternoon.
Follow Chargers reporter Dan McLellan on Twitter @CBSSportsNFLSD and @sandiegosports.
