Charger Report

Chargers WR Josh Palmer Explains What Led to Ejection vs Raiders

Sam Garcia

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The end of the Los Angeles Chargers regular-season opener looked more like a boxing match than a football game. The Chargers are one of two teams that found themselves at the center of the first brawl of the 2024-25 NFL season. 

The Chargers secured a dominant 22-10 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders in their regular season opener on Sunday. But, in the final minutes of their Week 1 game, two players were ejected from the game after breaking out into a fight at SoFi Stadium. 

Chargers’ wide receiver Josh Palmer and Raiders’ cornerback Jack Jones were at the face of the altercation and were dealt the first ejection of the 2024-25 NFL season. The scuffle between the two opponents sparked a two-team brawl as multiple players stepped in to help their respective teammates and break up the fight. 

Chargers’ wide receiver Quention Johnston tried to break up the fight but was quickly pulled down by a yank to his collar from Raiders’ outside linebacker Maxx Crosby, leading two a second tussle. 

Palmer claimed that he did not expect to face an ejection.

"I did not expect an ejection. I didn't throw a punch. I was just defending myself," Palmer told Chargers.com. 

What started out as a heartwarming moment, watching a rookie score the first touchdown of his professional career, quickly became a sparring match between the opponents. 

Second-round draft pick Ladd McConkey caught a 10-yard pass before weaving in and out of the Raiders’ defense and impressively juking out two Las Vegas defenders. McConkey’s moves helped him make his way to the end zone for the first time on an NFL stage. The 22-year-old wide receiver’s touchdown put the Chargers up by two touchdowns with three minutes and 40 seconds remaining in the game. 

After McConkey added some cushion to the Chargers’ lead, the Raiders kept Chargers’ running back Gus Edwards out of the end zone for a two-point conversion. 

During the attempt, Palmer ran to help McConkey double team Raiders’ safety Marcus Epps. Similar to Palmer, Jones ran to help his teammate, Epps, by defending Palmer. By the end of the attempt, Palmer and Jones were fighting in the end zone. 

“We were just blocking physically," Palmer said to Chargers.com. "They got mad and started throwing punches and we just started defending ourselves."

Palmer told ESPN.com that there is “no bad blood” between himself and Jones or the Raiders. He assumes the Raiders were frustrated with the physicality of the Chargers’ defense. 

Ultimately, the fight ended with Chargers’ head coach Jim Harbaugh and linebackers coach Navarro Bowman stepping on the field to break up the altercation.

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Sam Garcia

SAM GARCIA

Samantha Garcia is a student at the University of California, Los Angeles. She is majoring in Psychology and minoring in Professional Writing. She is also a sports writer for the Daily Bruin at UCLA.

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