The Raiders practiced without tight end Brock Bowers again on Thursday.
Bowers has not practiced since having surgery on his meniscus last week. Head coach Klint Kubiak said earlier this week that he hoped Bowers would be able to return to practice, so Friday will be the last chance for that to happen before the Raiders face the Chargers.
Michael Mayer would be the team’s top tight end if Bowers remains out. He had six catches for 32 yards in last Sunday’s win over the Dolphins.
Cornerback Darien Porter (foot) was also out of practice for the second straight day and quarterback Aidan O’Connell missed practice for personal reasons. Running back Ashton Jeanty (ankle) was listed as a full participant.
Chargers Clips
Expectations for the pairing of quarterback Justin Herbert with offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel started high and kept rising all offseason, but the Chargers’ first outing of the 2026 season fell far short of them.
The Chargers gained 268 yards and turned the ball over twice in a 26-14 home loss to the Cardinals. The Chargers entered the game as the biggest favorites of the week and McDaniel called the result “a case of humble pie” at a press conference on Thursday.
“You have a lot of visions over coming to a new team and working on something for months and the vision never looked like that,” McDaniel said.
McDaniel called the offensive performance “shocking” based on what he’s seen in practice, but said that he remains confident in what the team can do because of the way players have “understood the moment and risen to the occasion” this week.
The chances of rebounding against the Raiders will be slimmer if wide receiver Ladd McConkey is unable to play through his rib injury, but McDaniel, Herbert and the rest of the unit will have to find a way regardless of the circumstances if belief in their capabilities are going to remain as high as they were earlier this year.
Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. caught only one pass in his team’s win over the Chargers on Sunday, which Harrison says was a result of Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh focusing the defense on shutting him down.
Harrison played three years at Ohio State when Harbaugh was Michigan’s head coach, and Harrison said Harbaugh game plans for him.
“I’m familiar with Harbaugh, going up against the team up north for many years, and how they played me a lot of the time, and they still hjave the same respect for me,” Harrison said. “So I had a feeling going into the game that I wasn’t going to see many one-high looks.”
Harrison’s one catch was for 33 yards, and he said that was one of the few plays when the Chargers’ coverage wasn’t designed to shut him down.
“We threw the go ball and completed that one,” Harrison said. “We’re not going to get many opportunities, but when we did we capitalized on the way we had. It’s a part of the game, everybody’s going to have their weeks, have their days, but at the end of the day the team won, and all you can do is your part.”
Harrison is in his third season and so far hasn’t developed into the All-Pro receiver he was expected to be when he was starring at Ohio State. At some point, he needs to find a way to make more plays, no matter what the defense is doing.
One of the Chargers’ key receivers is still working through an injury and his availability is now in question for Week 2.
Per Kris Rhim of ESPN, receiver Ladd McConkey was working off to the side with a trainer at Thursday’s practice as he deals with a rib injury.
McConkey went down during Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals after taking a hard hit. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has characterized McConkey as day-to-day.
The young receiver did not practice on Thursday.
McConkey caught 66 passes for 789 yards with six touchdowns for Los Angeles last season. He had five receptions for 82 yards with a TD before exiting Sunday’s loss.
The Chargers’ full Thursday injury report will be released later in the day.
The Chargers won’t have wide receiver Ladd McConkey at practice on Wednesday.
McConkey suffered a rib injury in the second half of last Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals and did not return to action. Head coach Jim Harbaugh called McConkey day-to-day on Monday and said on Wednesday, via multiple reporters, that he will not participate in the team’s first practice of the week.
The Chargers placed wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith on injured reserve Tuesday. They signed Gary Jennings off of the practice squad and added veteran Marquez Valdes-Scantling to their practice squad.
Harbaugh also said, via Kris Rhim of ESPN, defensive back Elijah Molden will also miss practice due to a hamstring injury while defensive lineman Teair Tart and offensive lineman Trey Pipkins will sit with undisclosed injuries.
Raiders tight end Brock Bowers will not be on the field to start the practice week, but he may be on it soon.
Head coach Klint Kubiak told reporters in his Wednesday press conference that Bowers (knee) is not yet ready to practice. But Kubiak said he’s hopeful that Bowers will be able to return this week.
Bowers underwent a meniscus trim last week. He’s still considered day-to-day.
In 12 games last season, Bowers caught 64 passes for 680 yards with seven touchdowns.
Additionally, cornerback Darien Porter (foot) is not slated to practice on Wednesday and is considered day-to-day.
The Raiders will issue their first injury report for the Week 2 matchup against the Chargers later on Wednesday.
The Chargers are signing wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to their practice squad, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports.
Valdes-Scantling, 31, spent training camp with the Cowboys, but they released him on cutdown day.
The Chargers needed help at the position after injuries to wide receivers Ladd McConkey (rib), KeAndre Lambert-Smith (hamstring) and Derius Derives (undisclosed). Lambert-Smith landed on injured reserve Tuesday.
The Chargers replaced Lambert-Smith on the active roster by signing wide receiver Gary Jennings from the practice squad.
The Packers selected Valdes-Scantling in the fifth round in 2018, and he spent his first four seasons in Green Bay. He has also played for the Chiefs, Bills, Saints, 49ers and Steelers.
Valdes-Scantling has totaled 219 receptions for 3,686 yards and 21 touchdowns.
Linebacker Kenneth Murray has found a job.
The former first-round draft pick is joining the Texans’ practice squad, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports.
The Texans needed help at the position after they placed Henry To’oTo’o on injured reserve.
Murray, a Houston native, visited the Texans on Tuesday before agreeing to terms.
He worked out for the Giants and Dolphins this offseason, but had remained a free agent since March.
Murray started at middle linebacker for the Cowboys last season, finishing with 81 tackles, four tackles for loss, three quarterback hits and two pass breakups.
The Chargers made Murray the 23rd overall pick in 2020, and he spent his four seasons with the team. He played one season with the Titans before the Cowboys acquired him in a trade with Tennessee.
Wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith injured his hamstring in Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals and he’s going to be out of action for at least the next month as a result.
The Chargers placed Lambert-Smith on injured reserve on Tuesday. Lambert-Smith played two snaps on special teams against Arizona.
Lambert-Smith was a fifth-round pick last year. He had five catches for 51 yards and a touchdown in 10 games as a rookie.
The Chargers filled the open roster spot by signing wide receiver Gary Jennings off of their practice squad. Jennings played in one game for the Dolphins in 2019 and more recently saw action in the UFL.
Cornerback Isas Waxter was signed to the practice squad to complete the day’s moves.
The Chargers had one of the most disappointing debut performances and it left head coach Jim Harbaugh with some second thoughts about how the team prepared for the start of the regular season.
Harbaugh played the team’s starters for brief stretches in the team’s second and third preseason games. During a Monday press conference, he said that Sunday’s 26-14 home loss to the Cardinals made him think that may not have been enough time.
“We made some preseason type of mistakes,” Harbaugh said. “Now in retrospect, I wish we’d played our guys a little bit more in the preseason and given them those reps.”
The Chargers can’t change course now, which means they’ll have to make improvements on the fly as they try to rebound from a poor start to the year.
