What Made Alexander Mattison's First Game as a Raider Most Impressive

Running back Alexander Mattison scored a receiving touchdown in his first game as a Las Vegas Raider.

Sep 8, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Las Vegas Raiders running back Alexander Mattison (22) runs for a touchdown in the first half against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Alexander Mattison made some key plays in his first game as a Las Vegas Raider on Sunday.

The veteran running back posted 43 yards and a touchdown on four receptions, while adding 19 rushing yards in the Raiders' 22-10 Week 1 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

You might think the most impressive part about Mattison's showing was the fact that it was his first game with a new team -- and he was a backup.

But that wasn't it.

"I give him [Mattison] a lot of credit," said Raiders coach Antonio Pierce on Monday. "His wife went into labor right before the game started and for him to stay focused like that. Baby boy was born I believe last night. So, congrats to him. But I thought he did a heck of a job. Every time he went in there, made plays. Really good job also in pass protection for us. I thought this was just one of those games. You're in the game thinking, 'Hey, listen, a lot of Zamir White,' and then Alex Mattison makes some plays. And as we go throughout the week, we'll look at that more and more."

Mattison could very well see more reps going forward. While he serves as running back Zamir White's backup, he could have a big-time role in this offsense going forward.

The Raiders' run game struggled throughout Sunday's contest but did show glimpses of how effective it could be if small improvements are made.

"We didn't finish," Pierce said. "We didn't finish up front. Running backs got to stay on track and we got run with better pad level with our backs overall. I mean, some of these tackles, we got breakthrough arm tackles. And I think just up front, we got to finish. We got to stay on our blocks. I mean, they did an outstanding job. Hats off to them. They finished blocks and finished plays, and we didn't. And that has to start with us as coaches and the players doing it."

The Raiders will head to Baltimore to take on the Ravens on Sunday, a game in which Las Vegas will need to be clicking on all fronts to have a shot at leaving with the upset.

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