Chargers News: Easton Stick Recalls Disastrous First Start with LA

Talk about a rough start.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

There were few scores during the 2023 NFL season more surprising than the Las Vegas Raiders' 63-21 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday Night Football late in the season.

The Raiders scored 21 points in each the first and second quarter and held a 42-point lead at the half over the Chargers. The Bolts did not get their first points until the third quarter, and scored 21 total points, but they all came during garbage time when the Raiders had well secured the lead.

For Chargers backup quarterback Easton Stick, this was his first-ever NFL start. Quarterback Justin Herbert had sustained a season-ending injury, meaning it was Stick's chance to start for the first time in his five years as a backup. Talk about a disaster. With a lot of his family in town to watch this monumental moment in his career, the Chargers were completely blown out by the Raiders. Stick's numbers ended up looking solid as he went 23-32 for 257 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception, but again, most of this production came when the game was long over.

"That was a tough night," Stick recalled on Hot Mic with Dom Izzo. "Just a total nightmare for so many reasons I left the game, as terrible as it was being like 'oh yeah, I can do this. We can do this. We're going to find a way to win these last three games.' We didn't unfortunately, but we're in all of them at the end. That's the way it goes in the NFL. That was the biggest thing for me, I walked away feeling like I can do this."

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The Chargers lost all four of the games Stick started last season, but the rest of their three games were one-possession losses. Heading into the 2024 season, Stick has returned to the Chargers in the backup role to Herbert again.

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