Getty The Las Vegas Raiders at SoFi Stadium.
After much anticipation, the NFL schedule for 2022 is starting to trickle out. The Las Vegas Raiders are one of the most exciting teams in the NFL and opened their season during primetime last year. This upcoming season won’t feature a primetime opener but it will feature one of the most exciting matchups of Week 1.
The Los Angeles Chargers announced that they will be hosting the Raiders at SoFi Stadium for the first game of the 2022 season.
it’s on.
The Raiders still have a strong fan presence in Los Angeles and their fans frequently outnumber Chargers fans when the two teams play. Raiders offensive lineman Jermaine Eluemunor has had a lot of fun taking shots at the Chargers since moving to Las Vegas. He didn’t miss his chance to take a shot at Los Angeles for their lack of a home crowd.
Obviously, there will be Chargers signs and marketing all over SoFi Stadium but Eluemunor is correct that it will be a home game for the Raiders. There will be waves of silver and black that overcome the powder blue.
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Chargers out for Revenge
While the Raiders will have the home-field advantage in the Chargers’ building, Los Angeles will be out for blood. The Raiders sent the Chargers home packing during the last game of the season. Had the Raiders settled for a tie during the overtime thriller, both teams would’ve made the playoffs. Instead, Las Vegas had Daniel Carlson kick the game-winning field goal that sent Los Angeles packing.
There’s no doubt that the Chargers remember Derek Carr’s smirk as he called the timeout that sealed their fate. That’s not to mention that it will be Khalil Mack’s first game playing against his former team as a member of the Chargers. It should make for one of the most intense matchups of Week 1.
Carr Referred to Games Against Chargers as ‘Another Home Game’
The Raiders and Chargers don’t like each other and the rivalry only got more contentious after last season. However, the Raiders have never been worried about the Chargers having a home-field advantage no matter where they’ve played. Carr has played in three different Chargers stadiums since joining the Raiders but the story is always the same.
“In my past, before playing in SoFi last year with no fans, whether it was in Los Angeles at that soccer stadium or in Qualcomm in San Diego, it was another home game,” Carr said of facing the Chargers last year. “You always looked at it as another home game and that was no disrespect, it’s just a fact. The way you practice, the way you meet, it felt like a home game. And I fully expect Raider Nation to take over the majority of the stadium again, they usually do in my time. Before I was here, that’s what everyone would talk about. [Charles Woodson] would say ‘hey, when we go down there it’s another home game’ and I fully expect that this time.”
Luckily for Carr, he won’t have to be dealing with a hostile crowd in Week 1.
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