It was a good run.
And despite Monday night, the Raiders have proved that there may be more good runs ahead.
The Los Angeles Chargers handed the Silver and Black their first loss of the season, 28-14. Another slow start in the first half was their downfall, as the Raiders were down 21-0 at the end of the first half and only produced 49 total offensive yards.
"I think we needed to start a lot faster if I'm being honest," Derek Carr said after the loss. "We started the season great, but we don't start games nearly good enough yet. And I think that's something we need to be better at."
The second half of the game was a different story.
The Raiders showed the same resilience that won them two overtime games this season and looked to be marching toward another comeback. Carr opened the second half with 14 unanswered points in touchdown passes to Hunter Renfrow and Darren Waller. Both players were extremely dependable for their quarterback, combining for 10 catches and 95 yards against the Chargers on Monday night.
No. 13 also made his presence felt on special teams. The receiver made a big hit on a fake punt to force an incompletion on fourth down. While it may have been the first time Raider Nation has seen Renfrow lay someone out, he let it be known that it wasn't a fluke. After the game, he shared that he actually played a few snaps at defensive back in high school.
"We didn't have a guy out there, and I was kind of in-between and I didn't know if I should play the return or go down and play the receiver," said Renfrow. "So luckily, he took some time to throw the ball, and [I] was able to make a play.
"It was a big stop for us."
Carr wasn't as modest as Renfrow when talking about the clutch play.
"That was an amazing play. Even if the guy had caught it, he was short," said Carr. "And that just shows you what kind of football player [Renfrow] is. I think he's one of the best football players in the NFL. I think he's a special, special talent and for him to make that play ... you look back at that play like, 'Wow, what a play.' I was very impressed by that."
With the Raiders offense still trying to fight back late in the fourth quarter, their comeback bid was cut short when All-Pro safety Derwin James jumped a route on Waller and secured an interception.
Even in defeat, the overall performance of the Raiders defense and the resiliency of the offense in the second half were high points. After allowing Justin Herbert to go 6-for-6 passing for 49 yards and a touchdown on his opening drive, they to cooled him off with relentless pressure and physicality. From that point on, Herbert completed under 60 percent of his passes and was sacked twice by former Charger Darius Philon.
"There's some good things we'll take out of this game," said Head Coach Jon Gruden. "And there's some things we've got to learn. We've got to straighten out the opener. We've got to straighten out the first quarter, and that we will start working on as soon as I get out of here."
The loss may be a difficult pill to swallow for a banged-up Raiders squad, but at the end of the day, they're still 3-1 and playing some of their best football in recent memory. Their rematch with the Chargers in Week 18 will be a game circled on their calendar moving forward.
"You never want to lose, but it's hard to win in this league. But we'll see them again," said Carr.
They'll now try to regroup and assess injuries on a short week and prepare for the Chicago Bears (2-2) at home this Sunday. The Bears are coming off a 24-14 victory over the 0-4 Detroit Lions.
"Hopefully we can get some guys ready; we got a short week. Got to get back home and get ready," said Gruden. "I'm proud of our team, I'm going to reiterate that. We're 3-1, we've had some tough overtime victories, and we fought back to put ourselves in position to make a dramatic comeback tonight.
"We just didn't make the plays."
View photos from the Raiders' Week 4 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Quinton Jefferson (77) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Trayvon Mullen Jr. (27) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Casey Hayward Jr. (29) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Clelin Ferrell (99) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Denzel Perryman (52) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Yannick Ngakoue (91) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Damon Arnette (20) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib (94) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders offensive lineman Jermaine Eluemunor (72), center Andre James (68), quarterback Derek Carr (4) and guard John Simpson (76) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Damon Arnette (20) and wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (13) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (13) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (13) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (28) and guard Jordan Simmons (60) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib (94) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Cory Littleton (42) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib (94) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Denzel Perryman (52) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Amik Robertson (21) and safety Tre'von Moehrig (25) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders tight end Darren Waller (83) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Kenyan Drake (23) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III (11) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (28) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Cory Littleton (42) and linebacker Denzel Perryman (52) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (28) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (28) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (28) and tackle Kolton Miller (74) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders tackle Kolton Miller (74) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (13) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (28) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (13) and quarterback Derek Carr (4) celebrate after connecting for a 10-yard touchdown during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs (39) and defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Darius Philon (96) sacks the quarterback during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Darius Philon (96) is congratulated by cornerback Casey Hayward Jr. (29) after sacking the quarterback during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III (11) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders tight end Darren Waller (83) makes a 3-yard touchdown catch during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib (94) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders safety Tre'von Moehrig (25) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III (11) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III (11) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Zay Jones (7) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Cory Littleton (42) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Las Vegas Raiders safety Roderic Teamer (33) during the regular season away game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
