The Las Vegas Raiders took a number of losses during their Thursday Night tilt against the Los Angeles Chargers, including the game, but quarterback Marcus Mariota made his season debut and put on a solid performance.
Mariota came in relief for quarterback Derek Carr and the highest-paid backup signal caller in the league fell just short of leading the Raiders to the overtime victory.
The loss dropped the Raiders to 7-7 on the season and may have put an end to their playoff hopes as the regular season winds down.
Mariota led four scoring drives throwing for for 226 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception, to go along with 88 yards on 9 carries, but the defense couldn’t stop the Chargers.
“When it comes down to it, it’s part of your job — to be prepared,” Mariota said, according to ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez. “It’s just fun. It’s fun to play. … I think of myself as a point guard and try to distribute and give our guys an opportunity to just go out there and play. Sometimes the defense is going to give you some scrambling lanes, and I just try to execute and make first downs and keep the rhythm going.”
Carr may not be able to play moving forward, and Raiders head coach Jon Gruden says he will be more than comfortable rolling with Mariota if that’s the case.
“If Derek can’t go, we’re going to always try to do what our quarterback does best,” Gruden said. “This guy can really run, he’s a dual threat, and he proved it tonight.”
