Raiders bring 1-0 start and five-sack defense to SoFi to face 0-1 Chargers

The Raiders head to SoFi Stadium on Sunday at 1-0, carrying a defense that looked like a genuine asset in Week 1. The Chargers arrive at 0-1 and nursing injuries in their secondary, which makes this an early AFC West game with more on the ledger than September usually allows.

Start with the defense. Las Vegas sacked Miami quarterback Malik Willis five times in the 27-13 opener, and the team's own numbers, laid out by Raiders.com's Levi Edwards, are louder still: a league-best 56 percent "havoc" rate, pressure on 43.3 percent of four-man rushes and a blitz rate under 19 percent. That last figure is the one I'd underline. Rob Leonard got home without sending extra bodies, and he credited the players' comfort with a pared-down scheme, saying you "can only go at the pace at which players are comfortable to play fast."

The offense's formula was just as plain. Ashton Jeanty carried 23 times for 102 yards and scored twice, per Pro Football Network's recap, and Jeanty carries no game designation after being listed with an ankle this week. That matters more than usual, because the passing game will likely be without Brock Bowers, who is doubtful with a knee injury, and the secondary is without cornerback Darien Porter (foot), according to the official injury report. Quarterback Aidan O'Connell is questionable for personal reasons after missing Thursday and Friday; RotoWire notes he was the emergency third quarterback in Week 1, so Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza are the working pair either way.

The Chargers' books are messier. They lost 26-14 at home to Arizona, a game the Chargers' own recap says turned on a sack, an incompletion and a blocked punt early in the fourth quarter. Receiver Ladd McConkey, who had 82 yards and a touchdown before leaving that game, is questionable with a rib injury, while defensive back Elijah Molden and lineman Trey Pipkins III are out.

My read: this sets up for the plan NFL.com analyst Bucky Brooks sketched in the Raiders' keys to the game. Feed Jeanty, protect the ball, and load up against running back Omarion Hampton so a banged-up receiving corps has to beat you. It's not glamorous. It is the cheapest path to 2-0.

Kickoff is 1:05 p.m. PT Sunday on CBS. Watch the 90-minute inactive list for final word on Bowers and O'Connell, and whether McConkey suits up for Los Angeles.