Chargers vs. Raiders: First-half takeaways from Week 13 game

The Chargers are tied with the Raiders, 7-7, after one half of play on Sunday.

Here are a few things to take away from the first half.

Justin Herbert's health

Herbert left the game in the first quarter with a left-hand injury, returning in the second quarter wearing a bulky glove on his left hand with two fingers taped together. Replays on the broadcast seemed to suggest that Herbert injured one of the fingers on his hand when Raiders safety Jeremy Chinn wrapped Herbert up on a scramble, as Chinn's helmet made contact with Herbert's hand. When Herbert returned to the game, the Chargers operated exclusively out of the shotgun.

Unforced errors

There's a real argument that this game should be 21-7 Chargers at halftime, but Herbert threw a red zone interception on the drive he returned for that Raiders cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly took out of the end zone to back up the Las Vegas offense. Raiders quarterback Geno Smith threw the ball right back to LA when a deep pass to rookie Dont'e Thornton Jr. was broken up by Donte Jackson and intercepted by a diving Tony Jefferson on the sideline. The Chargers went for a 4th & 1 on the ensuing drive, but were stuffed on a Kimani Vidal run up the middle because of their inability to go under center.

Run defense steps up

With the Raiders trying to feature rookie running back Ashton Jeanty more under interim offensive coordinator Greg Olson, the Chargers have buckled down and kept him from impacting the game at a high level. Jeanty took nine first-half carries for only 27 yards and was held without a reception after piling up over 100 yards from scrimmage in Las Vegas' last game. That effort was crucial in limiting the Raiders' first two drives before the Smith interception and the touchdown drive.

Containing Brock Bowers

While the Chargers have found a way to bottle Jeanty up, Bowers has been the main threat on the Raiders' offense. He had three catches for 57 yards and the lone touchdown of the half for Las Vegas, accumulating all but 19 of Las Vegas' passing yards in the first half. His biggest play came on a 27-yard reception when he beat Derwin James Jr. in man coverage on a drag route, then the Chargers lost track of him in the red zone and allowed a wide-open score from 6 yards out. LA will need to find a better way to limit Bowers in the second half to keep the Raiders from building momentum.

Churning effort on the ground

It's been a slog for the Chargers on the ground offensively, as the team has taken 21 carries for 60 yards through the first two quarters. Vidal has 14 rushing attempts for 37 yards, and backup Jaret Patterson took 3 for 13 yards as a change of pace, but the longest run of the half went for just 8 yards and required Vidal to break two tackles near the line of scrimmage and tiptoe up the sideline to get a well-earned first down. The Chargers had the ball for nearly 20 minutes of the first half, but that was primarily due to a 6-for-6 start on third downs. They'll need to find a rhythm on the ground to keep the Raiders out of it in the second half.

This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: Chargers vs. Raiders: First-half takeaways from Week 13 game