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MNF takeaways: A scary injury for the Chargers, and Mayfield shines

NFL fans were treated to a double-header on Monday Night Football, and what an evening of football it was. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Houston Texans in a matchup that came down to the final moments, which continued an unprecedented NFL streak for the Bucs. The Los Angeles Chargers defeated the Las Vegas Raiders, but had a scary moment with one of their top playmakers.

It was a thrilling evening of football, with plenty to take away from both of the matchups. Now that the dust has settled and the smoke has cleared, let’s dive in.

Bucs vs. Texans

Baker Mayfield is back at it again. In the victory, Mayfield led his team on an 11-play 80-yard scoring drive that featured Mayfield wiggling away from pressure on a crucial fourth-down conversion. The Bucs found the end zone with just six seconds left on the clock. This wasn’t the first time this season that Mayfield has stepped up in a big moment. In Week 1, he helped lead the team to a thrilling final-minute victory over the Atlanta Falcons and continued on his impressive season with another game-winning drive.

Mayfield finished the game completing 25-of-38 passes for 215 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. One of his touchdowns came to rookie wide receiver and Offensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner Emeka Egbuka, who becomes more of a household name each week he plays. With back-to-back weeks with touchdowns, he’s off to a stellar start to his young NFL career.

The run game was working for Tampa Bay as both Bucky Irving and Rachaad White combined for over 60% rushing success against the Texans, which, as NFL.com reported, was the highest rate by Bucs running backs since 2021.

In the victory, the Bucs start the season 2-0 for the fifth straight season, an unprecedented streak in the NFL.

For Houston, its offensive line had plenty of issues in the contest. Stroud had virtually no time in the pocket after some clever blitz packages drawn up by the Bucs. A younger unit for Houston saw them roll out this new iteration of the offensive line, so not all hope is lost. Building chemistry will be the name of the game for the Texans’ offensive line moving forward.

There was reason to celebrate, though. Despite the loss, the Texans’ pass rush looked legit with Danielle Hunter logging his 100th and 101st career sack with both Will Anderson and Sheldon Rankins making their presence felt.

C.J. Stroud targeted Nico Collins heavily throughout the matchup, but the two were unable to be as successful as they’d hoped. In nine targets, Collins hauled in only three catches for 52 yards and a touchdown.

While Houston’s defense collapsed in the final few minutes, there was reason to be excited with running back Nick Chubb finding the end zone in the final minutes that ultimately would’ve been the talk of the town had Mayfield and the Bucs not marched down the field to win the game.

Stroud and the offense need to get things figured out, and Mayfield continues his impressive NFL journey as the Bucs, once again, start the year 2-0. If Mayfield keeps this up, Tampa Bay looks like a real NFC sleeper.

Chargers vs. Raiders

In the second matchup, it wasn’t as close of a contest. Justin Herbert and the Chargers pulled out the victory against the Raiders in a game that never really felt competitive.

However, it doesn’t mean that the Chargers came out unscathed. Superstar pass rusher Khalil Mack injured his elbow and was in clear pain before going to the sideline. He was unable to return to the contest, and his status for the future remains unclear. Despite the victory, Chargers fans were a bit worried after the clock hit 0.

That’s not to say the defense didn’t ball out throughout the contest. With a few turnovers and limited the Raiders to just 218 yards of offense, they made their presence felt. During the game, seven players had multiple passes defended, which was the most in a game since the stat was first tracked back in 1999.

Herbert continued his impressive 2025 campaign with a pair of touchdowns and was the player of the game for the Chargers. The quarterback finished his day going 19-of-27 for 242 yards, connecting with Quentin Johnston and Keenan Allen for his two scores.

A couple of turnovers in the first half for the Raiders had them playing behind for the duration of the game, with Geno Smith having a bad day at the office. Smith finished his day with only 200 yards of total offense, with three interceptions, while being sacked three times.

They just could not get things going during the contest and struggled mightily in the trenches. The Raiders’ offensive line gave up 16 pressures and three sacks. Rookie running back Ashton Jeanty was limited to 11 carries for 43 yards. One of the biggest playmakers, Brock Bowers, was only able to haul in five catches for 38 yards.

The Raiders were unable to get a touchdown on the board, with Smith having perhaps his worst game since his days in Seattle. He earned some unfortunate history in the loss, becoming the only quarterback since 2016 to attempt at least 10 downfield passes without a single completion.

The Chargers remain atop their division, and the Raiders have a lot of work to do to right the ship. If Mack is sidelined long-term, L.A.’s promising start could unravel quickly.

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