knee

It’s Raiders week.

Resist the urge to yawn.

What used to be an intense AFC West rivalry is now a bit muted with the Chargers limping into the fourth quarter of the season and the Raiders fumbling around in the dark, having lost nine of their last 10 games.

The Chargers, who began the season with three consecutive divisional victories, have a chance to pull off their first sweep of the season. The Raiders are looking to bounce back from a humiliating loss at home by two touchdowns to Cleveland.

Meanwhile, the Chargers are coming off their worst loss of the season — by 29 points to Jacksonville on the road.

Despite the Raiders’ record, the home team can’t get too comfortable.

“Raiders, it’s a rivalry,” Coach Jim Harbaugh said. “And we know they’re going to bring it.”

How the Raiders can win: Get in an offensive rhythm with interim play-caller Greg Olson, cleaning up the communication issues that were a problem in Chip Kelly’s system. Establish a ground game with Ashton Jeanty and mix in more Brock Bowers at tight end. Protect Geno Smith, who has been sacked 18 times in the past three games, including 10 times by Cleveland last week. Get after Justin Herbert, especially off the edges with Maxx Crosby, Malcolm Koonce and Tyree Wilson.

How the Chargers can win: As usual, protect Herbert behind a cobbled-together and constantly-changing offensive line and get some traction with the ground game. The Raiders can bring pressure off the edge, but their linebackers struggle in coverage and they are vulnerable at corner opposite Eric Stokes. The Chargers have the receivers to get open, particularly Ladd McConkey and Oronde Gadsden II. The Raiders have some of the same offensive line problems as the Chargers. Smith could be in trouble.

PHILADELPHIA — Tyrese Maxey scored 39 points, Paul George had nine points and seven rebounds in his season debut, and the Philadelphia 76ers rallied for a 110-108 victory over the short-handed Clippers on Monday night.

Quentin Grimes added 19 points and Andre Drummond had 14 points and 18 rebounds while filling in for Joel Embiid.

James Harden scored 28 points for the Clippers, who have lost eight of nine. Harden became the 11th player to eclipse 28,000 career points with a first-quarter layup.

Derrick Jones Jr. sat out after injuring his knee in Sunday’s 121-118 loss at Boston. The Clippers also were without Kawhi Leonard (ankle/foot sprain) for the seventh straight game.

Embiid (right knee injury management) sat out for the third straight game and eighth of 13 this season.

The Clippers controlled the first 3½ quarters and led 91-81 with 8:44 left on Ivica Zubac’s 10-footer. But Philadelphia used a 14-3 run over the next 2:49, capped by Maxey’s layup, to go in front 95-94. It was close from that point.

Drummond made two free throws to put the 76ers ahead 110-106 with 1:08 left. Kobe Sanders made a pair of free throws with 13.8 seconds left to pull the Clippers within two before officials whistled Kris Dunn for a foul on Maxey. But that was overturned to a steal by Dunn after a challenge by the Clippers, giving L.A. a chance to tie or win.

Harden misfired on two three-point attempts in the final seconds.

In addition to Embiid, the 76ers were missing Kelly Oubre Jr. (left knee sprain) and Adem Bona (right ankle sprain).

George sat out the first 12 games while recovering from offseason left knee surgery. The nine-time All-Star played 21 minutes.

Up next for Clippers: At Orlando on Thursday night.

Different team. Different time. But it’s back to the scene of the crime for the Chargers, who three years ago succumbed to a 27-point comeback in a playoff loss at Jacksonville.

This season’s Jaguars got off to a 4-1 start but have lost three of their last four to slip back into the pack. They don’t have star rookie Travis Hunter, who underwent surgery this week and will miss the remainder of the season.

The team plays hard for first-year coach Liam Coen, who said he wants quarterback Trevor Lawrence to “cut it loose and let it rip” when he sees opportunities down the field.

After opening the season 3-0, the Chargers lost three of four, but are now riding another three-game winning streak. Justin Herbert has been outstanding at times, despite being the most-hit quarterback in the NFL.

The Chargers defense is coming off a gem of a performance in a win over Pittsburgh. Aaron Rodgers looked every bit of 41 years old, and at one point the Steelers were 0 for 9 on third down.

How the Chargers can win: As usual, protect Herbert behind a patchwork offensive line. Jacksonville has struggled to pressure quarterbacks, especially with Travon Walker at less than full strength and a beat-up secondary. Get the ball to Ladd McConkey and Oronde Gadsden II, with some Keenan Allen mixed in. Don’t allow the Jaguars to control the game with the run.

How the Jaguars can win: Jacksonville can look like a playoff team when it wins at the line of scrimmage but tends to collapse when it gets pushed around. The Jaguars need to establish the run early and grind out some long drives because they do not get a lot of explosive plays. Get to Herbert quickly before he has a chance to attack that weakened secondary. Contain Herbert, too, because he can burn you with his feet.

On one side, Justin Herbert. On the other, Aaron Rodgers. They’re two of the prettiest passers in NFL history, and they’ll be meeting Sunday night at SoFi Stadium.

Both the Chargers and Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off victories, with the Chargers winning in Tennessee, and the Steelers forcing six turnovers to hand the Indianapolis Colts just their second loss.

The Chargers lost left tackle Joe Alt to a season-ending ankle injury and once again have to reshuffle an offensive line that has been in a constant state of flux.

Rodgers has rediscovered his spark in Pittsburgh and consistently puts the football in the right places.

How the Chargers can win: Protect Herbert with quick-developing pass routes that allow him to get the ball out of his hands. Pittsburgh’s edge rush of T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig can create havoc if Herbert holds the ball too long. Attack the corners. Joey Porter Jr. has been penalty-prone, and Darius Slay isn’t as fast as he once was. The Steelers often struggle covering tight ends, so Oronde Gadsden II could be in line for a big game.

How the Steelers can win: Generate pressure and turnovers. When the Steelers force mistakes, they win. Let Watt and Highsmith collapse the pocket and make Herbert uncomfortable behind a patchwork Chargers line. Keep Rodgers clean and balanced with an efficient mix of Kenneth Gainwell and Jaylen Warren runs to control tempo. Defensively, stay disciplined in coverage with Jalen Ramsey and Kyle Dugger as the new safety tandem.

Rams coach Sean McVay and San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan know each other — and each other’s schematic and play-calling tendencies — better than perhaps any two coaches in the NFL.

Close games between the teams are a constant.

Since they first squared off in 2017, nearly half of their 18 matchups have been decided by three points or fewer, including the 49ers’ 26-23 overtime victory on Oct. 2 at SoFi Stadium.

• Share via Close extra sharing options

Gary Klein breaks down what you need to know for Sunday’s matchup between the Rams and San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.

So expect another game that could come down to the final possession when the Rams play the 49ers in an NFC West game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.

“Two good teams with two good staffs that are familiar with each other,” Rams tight end Tyler Higbee said in explaining the tight nature of the matchup, “and then you throw the rivalry part into it.”

McVay is 7-11 against Shanahan, his former mentor, though the Rams had won three in a row before the Week 5 loss that ended when 49ers star linebacker Fred Warner stopped Kyren Williams on a fourth-and-one play at the 49ers’ 11-yard line.

Rams kicker Joshua Karty missed a 53-yard field goal attempt and had an extra-point attempt blocked in the defeat.

The Rams this week moved to improve their season-long kicking-game issues by signing rookie kicker Harrison Mevis and veteran long snapper Jake McQuaide to the practice squad. Both will be elevated to the roster and play on Sunday.

Mevis, 23, made 89 of 106 field-goal attempts at Missouri, including one from 61 yards. In the United Football League this past season, he made 20 of 21 field-goal attempts.

The 49ers wasted no time addressing their own kicking-game issues.

After a season-opening defeat that included a missed field goal and a blocked kick, they released Jake Moody and signed Eddy Pineiro.

Pineiro has made all 19 of his field-goal attempts and 14 of 15 extra points.

Just when it seemed the Washington Commanders’ night couldn’t get much worse, it actually got much, much worse.

With his team trailing the Seattle Seahawks by 31 points midway through the fourth quarter Sunday night, Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels suffered a gruesome injury to his non-throwing arm that will likely keep him off the field for several weeks.

After Washington’s 38-14 loss, coach Dan Quinn had little information on his second-year quarterback, saying only that Daniels had a “left arm injury” and that he hoped to provide an update in the morning.

Multiple media outlets are reporting that Daniels dislocated his elbow and will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of the injury.

A former star at Cajon High, Daniels won the Heisman Trophy at Louisiana State in 2023 and was selected at No. 2 overall by the Commanders in the 2024 NFL draft. He immediately took the league by storm, earning Pro Bowl and offensive rookie of the year honors while leading Washington to an unlikely appearance in the NFC championship game.

Season 2 has been a disappointment. Going into this weekend, Daniels had already missed three games with knee and hamstring injuries and the Commanders had struggled to a 3-5 record.

Then came Sunday night. Down by four scores in the fourth quarter, Washington drove to the Seattle 2-yard-line and was looking to make a slight dent in the deficit when disaster struck. On second-and-goal with 7:39 remaining in the game, Daniels faked a handoff and scrambled to his right before being spun down by Seattle’s Drake Thomas for a 2-yard loss.

As he was being taken to the ground, Daniels put out his left arm to brace himself. His elbow bent the wrong way. Commanders guard Sam Cosmi called the scene “gut-wrenching.”

“I didn’t see what happened exactly. I just heard a pause and I kind of put my head down and prayed for him,” Cosmi said. “You just don’t want to see that happen.”

A similar scene took place nearly 13 years ago for Washington, when another rising young star at quarterback, Robert Griffin III, re-injured his knee during a home game against the Seahawks. His career was never the same afterward.

Griffin was one of several people who took to social media Sunday night to comment on the matter. He seemed to speak for the majority of them when he wrote on X, “WHY WAS JAYDEN DANIELS EVEN STILL IN THE GAME?!?!?!”

“The Seattle Seahawks had the game won,” a visbly distraught Griffin said in a video also posted to X. “I understand you want to play to the end, but with the injuries that he’s already had this year, and the injuries he had last year, why is he in the game? Doesn’t make sense.”

Griffin, who currently works as a college football analyst on Fox Sports, added: “You can’t say a knee and a hamstring leads to an elbow injury like that. It was a freak accident, freak play. But I can’t help but feel for Jayden Daniels. Man, I can’t help but feel for Washington Commanders fans. Just a demoralizing blow, man.”

Asked by reporters after the game whether any consideration was given to removing Daniels before that series, Quinn seemed to indicate that the plays being called didn’t seem to present a high injury risk.

“Obviously in hindsight, you don’t want to think that way, where injury could take place,” Quinn said. “Obviously, we’re more concerned in that spot to run and hand off and not have reads to go, but just the end result, obviously I’m bummed.”

Later in the news conference, in response to a similar question, Quinn gave a similar answer.

“Yeah, obviously, I’m just gutted by this, bummed,” Quinn said. “The one that he was on injured is usually a runner or throwing the flats, not a scramble. So it wasn’t a designed read or play into that spot. If we run it 50 times, it’s either hand off or throw, say, 50 times. So it’s a bummer, man, in a big way.”

Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota has led the Commanders to a 1-2 record starting in place of Daniels this season.