LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Chargers and Raiders each enter Sunday's meeting coming off back-to-back victories that affect each other's futures in remarkably different ways.
For the Chargers, those wins helped their playoff positioning. For the Raiders, the victories hurt their draft prospects while providing temporary good feelings mixed with thoughts of what could've been.
So once the regular-season finale ends, Los Angeles (10-6) will continue to have something to play for this month while Las Vegas (4-12) will begin to make some serious decisions about its future.
“We’re doing everything we can to win this game,” Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert said. “We can’t let anything pull away from our level of preparation. The Raiders are a lot better than their record indicates.”
The Raiders likely feel the same way, but a 10-game losing streak not only took them out of any early playoff talk but instead created conversation regarding how high they could draft in search of a franchise quarterback.
Except the players and coaches wanted no part of that discussion, saying they were all about winning. That was proven true the past two weeks, perhaps creating some regret about why Las Vegas didn't have more success sooner.
“I’m just trying to stay present," coach Antonio Pierce said. "Can’t live in the past. Can’t worry about the future.”
His future is far from certain. Owner Mark Davis could elect to make a change next week, and he likely will receive input from general manager Tom Telesco.
This is Telesco's first year as GM after he was fired after 11 seasons with the Chargers. His final game there was the Raiders' 63-21 embarrassment of LA.
Not only did the Chargers oust Telesco, they let coach Brandon Staley go, paving the way to hire Jim Harbaugh. Now Harbaugh has the Chargers one game away from appearing in the postseason.
There is still some uncertainty about seeding and opponent heading into the weekend, but it's a far better situation than the Chargers found themselves in a year ago at this time. Harbaugh stressed the importance of beating the Raiders and creating the best possible path in the playoffs.
“That’s where things stand for us,” Harbaugh said. “The plan for us is to win. That’s been the mindset from the beginning.”
The Chargers come into the game after a six-quarter stretch that was their best of the season.
Los Angeles has scored 61 points since halftime of its win over Denver, which includes four touchdown passes by Herbert.
Running back J.K. Dobbins returned last week after missing four games with a knee injury and had 76 yards. Dobbins rushed for a season-high 135 yards in the first meeting against the Raiders.
“It’s always good to keep developing and getting better. There are still some things to clean up and things to correct but as long as we’re moving in the right direction I think that’s what’s best for us right now,” Herbert said.
This game is the last chance for Aidan O'Connell to show he should be the Raiders' starting quarterback going into next season.
Las Vegas' two recent victories made it considerably more difficult to draft Colorado's Shedeur Sanders or Miami's Cam Ward, although the Raiders could try to trade up.
They also could be aggressive in free agency.
This is nothing new for O'Connell. He went from a walk-on to a record-setting two-year starter at Purdue. Then with the Raiders, he won the job midway through his rookie season, lost it in preseason this year and then got it back. O'Connell also dealt with two significant injuries this season.
“I think he’s been resilient, obviously go back to the quarterback competition in the spring and training camp,” Pierce said. “Thought he handled it like a pro. He was always ready to go.”
The Chargers come into the game light at safety after Elijah Molden broke his fibula during the second half of last Saturday’s game.
Alohi Gilman has resumed practicing after missing five games with a hamstring injury, but it remains to be seen if he will get activated off injured reserve.
Tony Jefferson is expected to start if Gilman is unable to go.
The Raiders lost about half their defense to injuries this season, including end Maxx Crosby and tackle Christian Wilkins.
Yet the defense has played better as the season has progressed.
Over the past five weeks, the Raiders were fourth in the NFL is scoring defense (17.2 points per game), eighth in average yardage allowed (317.4) and tied for fourth in total sacks (17).
But defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said he would “be miserable” once the season ends and the Raiders again aren't in the playoffs.
“We haven't won,” Graham said. “That's how I judge it.”
AP Sports Writer Joe Reedy in El Segundo, California, contributed to this report.
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69Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce reacts on the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Aidan O'Connell (12) scrambles up field during the first half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)
Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh listens to a reporter's question during a news conference following an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal agents carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota's Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman rammed the door of one home Sunday and pushed their way inside, part of what the Department of Homeland Security has called its largest enforcement operation ever.
In a dramatic scene similar to those playing out across Minneapolis, agents captured a man in the home just minutes after pepper spraying protesters outside who had confronted the heavily-armed federal agents. Along the residential street, protesters honked car horns, banged on drums and blew whistles in attempts to disrupt the operation.
Video of the clash showed some agents pushing back protesters while a distraught woman later emerged from the house with a document that federal agents presented to arrest the man. Signed by an immigration officer, the document — unlike a warrant signed by a judge — does not authorize forced entry into a private residence. A warrant signed by an immigration officer only authorizes arrest in a public area.
Immigrant advocacy groups have done extensive “know-your-rights” campaigns urging people not to open their doors unless agents have a court order signed by a judge.
But within minutes of ramming the door in a neighborhood filled with single-family homes, the handcuffed man was led away and soon gone.
More than 2,000 immigration arrests have been made in Minnesota since the enforcement operation began at the beginning of December, said Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.
The Twin Cities — the latest target in President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign — is bracing for what is next after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an immigration officer Wednesday.
“We’re seeing a lot of immigration enforcement across Minneapolis and across the state, federal agents just swarming around our neighborhoods,” said Jason Chavez, a Minneapolis city councilmember. “They’ve definitely been out here.”
Chavez, the son of Mexican immigrants who represents an area with a growing immigrant population, said he is closely monitoring information from chat groups about where residents are seeing agents operating.
People holding whistles positioned themselves in freezing temperatures on street corners Sunday in the neighborhood where Good was killed, watching for any signs of federal agents.
More than 20,000 people have taken part in a variety of trainings to become “observers” of enforcement activities in Minnesota since the 2024 election, said Luis Argueta, a spokesperson for Unidos MN, a local human rights organization .
“It’s a role that people choose to take on voluntarily, because they choose to look out for their neighbors,” Argueta said.
The protests have been largely peaceful, but residents remained anxious. On Monday, Minneapolis public schools will start offering remote learning for the next month in response to concerns that children might feel unsafe venturing out while tensions remain high.
Many schools closed last week after Good’s shooting and the upheaval that followed.
While the enforcement activity continues, two of the state’s leading Democrats said that the investigation into Good's shooting death should not be overseen solely by the federal government.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and U.S. Sen. Tina Smith said in separate interviews Sunday that state authorities should be included in the investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.
“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiased investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw — what they think happened," Smith said on ABC’s "This Week."
The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot Good in her car, saying he was protecting himself and fellow agents and that Good had “weaponized” her vehicle.
Todd Lyons, acting director of ICE, defended the officer on Fox News Channel’s “The Sunday Briefing.”
"That law enforcement officer had milliseconds, if not short time to make a decision to save his life and his other fellow agents,” he said.
Lyons also said the administration’s enforcement operations in Minnesota wouldn't be needed “if local jurisdictions worked with us to turn over these criminally illegal aliens once they are already considered a public safety threat by the locals.”
The killing of Good by an ICE officer and the shooting of two people by federal agents in Portland, Oregon, led to dozens of protests across the country over the weekend.
Thousands of people marched Saturday in Minneapolis, where Homeland Security called its deployment of immigration officers in the Twin Cities its biggest ever immigration enforcement operation.
Associated Press journalists Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis, Thomas Strong in Washington, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, contributed.
A woman gets into an altercation with a federal immigration officer as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A federal immigration officer deploys pepper spray as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A family member, center, reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Bystanders are treated after being pepper sprayed as federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A family member reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Federal agents look on after detaining a person during a patrol in Minneapolis, Minn., Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
Bystanders react after a man was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
People stand near a memorial at the site where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)
A man looks out of a car window after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Border Patrol agents detain a man, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
People shout toward Border Patrol agents making an arrest, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)
Protesters react as they visit a makeshift memorial during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
