Things got heated late in the Los Angeles Chargers’ 22-10 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday afternoon.
Shortly after a failed 2-point conversion at SoFi Stadium, players from both teams were involved in a lengthy scrum in the back of the end zone that lasted awhile. Players and coaches from both teams came running out to try to end the incident that appeared to start between Chargers receiver Joshua Palmer and Raiders cornerback Jack Jones.
Both Palmer and Jones were hit with unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and ejected.
It’s unclear what sparked the altercation. The Chargers tried to convert the 2-point conversion by handing it off to Gus Edwards, but he was stopped short. Palmer and Jones were in the back of the end zone away from the play.
The 2-point conversion came after a short toss from quarterback Justin Herbert to rookie Ladd McConkey, who side-stepped his way into the end zone for his first career touchdown. That put the Chargers up 22-10 late in the fourth quarter and sealed their season-opening win.
Gardner Minshew went 25-of-33 for 257 yards with a touchdown and an interception for the Raiders. He found Alexander Mattison for a score in the first quarter on a 31-yard toss. Zamir White added 44 rushing yards on 13 carries, and Jakobi Meyers had 61 receiving yards on three catches for the Raiders.
Herbert went 17-of-26 for 144 yards with one touchdown in the win for the Chargers. J.K. Dobbins had 135 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries to lead them on the ground, and McConkey had a team-high 39 receiving yards on five catches.
The Chargers entered halftime down 7-6 after a very slow first half, but put up 13 points in the fourth quarter to grab the win, the first under new head coach Jim Harbaugh, who landed there after leading Michigan to a national title last season in college football.