The Las Vegas Raiders will be looking to make it two straight wins to start the 2026 NFL season on Sunday, as they’ll play their first road game against the division rival Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium.
The biggest question for the Raiders heading into this divisional matchup in Los Angeles has been whether star tight end Brock Bowers will be able to play after missing the season opener against the Miami Dolphins due to a left knee procedure to trim his meniscus.
Raiders TE Brock Bowers Ruled Out vs. Chargers
Unfortunately for Las Vegas, the Raiders will have to play at least one more game without arguably the team’s best player, with Bowers officially ruled out, according to the team’s X account.
After the news surfaced about Bowers needing to have the procedure on his meniscus, the consensus was that he wouldn’t miss that much time. One or two missed games were expected, and now it’ll be at least two games without the star tight end heading into Week 3 against the New Orleans Saints.
Even though the Chargers are coming off perhaps the biggest upset of Week 1, losing to the rebuilding Arizona Cardinals, they are almost always a formidable opponent for the Raiders.
Los Angeles is currently favored at -6.5 coming into this matchup, which might change after Bowers was officially ruled out on Sunday.
The Raiders will look to capitalize on a solid start to the season, where the team’s offense was firing on all cylinders, with star running back Ashton Jeanty putting on a show with 147 yards from scrimmage and two receiving touchdowns.
Raiders Could Lean on Ashton Jeanty Once Again
With Bowers still on the mend and set to miss his second straight game to start the 2026 campaign, the Raiders might need to lean on star running back Ashton Jeanty once again in both the run game and downfield in the passing game.
During the 14-point win against the Miami Dolphins in Week 1, Jeanty put his versatility on display, as he caught two touchdowns from Cousins.
Along with Jeanty putting on a show against the Dolphins, the Raiders got a glimpse of what could be a very dynamic backfield, with rookie running back Mike Washington Jr. also having a solid performance on only seven carries. He finished with 41 rushing yards and showed that he and Jeanty could put opposing defenses on notice this season.
Even new Raiders offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko had high praise for the rookie running back, who he’s expecting a lot from this season.
“Mike [Washington Jr.] is an explosive player, and we want to maximize his talents,” Janocko said of the rookie running back. “He’s a guy when he gets the ball in his hand, we expect a lot out of him. Making sure he’s on his tracks, seeing what he’s supposed to see, and then making sure he hits the hole and gets to the second level and breaks tackles down the field.”
The Raiders will need a heavy dose of Jeanty and Washington on Sunday if they want to pull off the upset against the Chargers in Los Angeles.
Raiders Make Final Call on Brock Bowers for Week 2 vs. Chargers