The Chargers opened the Jim Harbaugh Era with a win.

The Bolts secured a 22-10 victory over the Raiders Sunday at SoFi Stadium to pick up an early AFC West win in the standings.

Here are five takeaways from Week 1:

1. The perfect formula

The Chargers were victorious in Harbaugh's return to the NFL.

And they made sure to celebrate accordingly in the postgame locker room.

"They're hard to get," Harbaugh said of wins in the NFL. "These are hard to get and everybody in that locker room knows it, as do I.

"It is really hard to win a game in the NFL. I just take my hat off to everybody," Harbaugh added.

But what stood out Sunday afternoon wasn't that the Bolts won, it was how they earned a 22-10 win.

Ever since Harbaugh arrived in Los Angeles in late January, he worked to instill a brand of football that features tough, blue-collar and physical players.

Offensively, it means continually running the ball and wearing a defense down.

Check. The Bolts on Sunday had 176 rushing yards and no turnovers.

Defensively, it means frustrating opposing quarterbacks and winning at the line of scrimmage.

Check. The Chargers defense notched four sacks and three takeaways.

And as a team overall, it means winning when it matters most — in the fourth quarter.

Check. The Bolts outscored the Raiders 13-3 in the final stanza.

Down 7-6 at halftime, the Chargers came to life in the second half by dominating the third and fourth quarters.

"When we had to be at our best, we were at our best," Harbaugh said.

He later added: "I thought that really put the flavor on this game. That's what it really felt like to me."

Players in the postgame locker room said they felt the formula Harbaugh envisions come to life in a win over the division-rival Raiders.

"It shows that we're a physical team. We're a connected team," Daiyan Henley said. "And we don't back down to nobody.

"We don't care what your mindset or mentality is as a team, we're going to show you what ours is every time we're out there," Henley added.

Rashawn Slater said: "Couldn't have said it any better. That's exactly what happened. We know there's a lot to improve on, and we will. But to finish it like that is special. It means a lot to us."

Harbaugh, meanwhile, downplayed any personal credit in revamping the Bolts culture this offseason.

"The culture's already here. Me and all the new guys, we stepped into it," Harbaugh said. "We're the lucky ones. The culture here is work."

The Bolts are now 1-0 in the Harbaugh era. And while there's a long journey ahead for the 2024 season, Sunday might felt a strong step in the right direction.

"It can be something special," Derwin James, Jr. said, "If we just keep working and don't get bored with the details and keep buying in."

Joey Bosa added: "New coach, new staff, all these things ... we wanted to come out and make a statement."

2. A swarming defense

If you watched any of the Chargers training camp practices, Sunday's defensive performance shouldn't have come as a surprise.

Led by first-year Chargers Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter, the Bolts flew around the field and made timely plays that turned the tide of the game.

And while it wasn't a perfect showing, it was a gritty one.

"We just played hard and that was the goal ... that's what we knew we could control," Bosa said.

Khalil Mack led the way with 1.5 sacks as he now has a whopping 10.5 sacks in his past three home games against the Raiders.

Bosa also notched a sack, while Morgan Fox tallied 0.5 sacks and the Chargers were credited with a team sack.

"A great performance, an inspiring performance," said Harbaugh, who later added it was a "lights out" showing.

Perhaps the lone blemish were missed tackles on a 31-yard Las Vegas passing touchdown in the second quarter.

But the Raiders next 10 drives featured four punts, three turnovers, a field goal, a missed field goal and a run play to end the first half.

The Bolts first takeaway was a bit of a gift as Gardner Minshew's pass went backwards and was eventually scooped up by Mack, who returned the ball to the 12-yard line.

"Khalil got it and he was like a wrecking ball as a runner," Harbaugh said.

Mack was frustrated he couldn't take it the distance.

"I was trying to take it to the crib," Mack said with a smile. "I don't know how I got caught by a lineman.

"That was bad. I got a couple boos from my teammates on the sideline," Mack added. "But a play we needed."

Bosa's effort caused another fumble as he chased down Raiders running back Zamir White and punched the ball free 10 yards downfield.

"Joey Bosa played lights out in this game," Harbaugh said.

The Bolts final takeaway came on the Raiders final possession when Mack tipped a Minshew pass that landed in the hands of Poona Ford.

It capped off a spectacular day for Minter's crew, as the held the Las Vegas offense to under 300 yards of offense (296) and limited the Raiders to just five third-down conversions in 14 tries.

"We're going to play physical, we're going to play fast and we're not going to flinch," Fox said.

3. Offense comes through late

It was a tale of two halves for the Chargers offense.

The first 30 minutes were marred by penalties (five) and struggles on third downs.

"There's no excuse for the penalties we had early. We'll go to work on that," Harbaugh said. "But going from Week 1 to Week 2, that's where you can make the most amount of progress in a one-week period.

"We'll be laser focused on getting better this week," Harbaugh added.

Held to just 83 total yards in the first half, the Bolts put together a pair of second-half scoring drives to pull away.

J.K. Dobbins punched in the Chargers first score of the season from 12 yards out on the first play of the fourth quarter. That capped off a six-play, 61-yard drive that gave the Bolts a 16-7 lead.

"Just staying patient," Herbert said. "Understanding we have the right strategy and the right guys, we just have to go execute."

Dobbins late hit on a 61-yard run that eventually set up Herbert's 10-yard touchdown pass to Ladd McConkey that saw the second-round pick dance his way to six points. That drive spanned 92 yards.

"It's a good feeling," McConkey said. "Any time you get in the end zone, it's hard to get into the end zone so don't take any of those for granted. Coming out with the win made it that much more special."

The Chargers finished with 316 yards of offense but came through when it mattered the most, as the unit got on the scoreboard on three of the five drives in the second half.

"The past couple years, maybe we'd go three-and-out and punt the ball and things go a different way," Herbert said. "To be able to drive the ball down like that and put it in the end zone, and then have the defense come up with a big stop, it was awesome to see."

4. Run defense sets tone

Perhaps the biggest moment in Sunday's game just past the midway point.

The Chargers led 16-10 as the Raiders faced fourth-and-1 at the Bolts 43-yard line, meaning a conversion kept a go-ahead drive in play for Las Vegas.

Instead, the Raiders punted. And while they pinned the Chargers at the 8-yard line, Herbert and Co. put together the aforementioned 92-yard touchdown drive to ice the game.

"I wasn't surprised or anything," Harbaugh said. "Probably the stops we got earlier in the game might have played into that."

The Chargers had already stuffed the Raiders multiple times on short-yardage situations earlier in the game.

On the Raiders first drive, Otito Ogbonnia stopped and second-and-1 run for no gain. Bosa did the same on the ensuing third-and-1 run.

Las Vegas faced fourth-and-1 from their own 41-yard line midway through the first quarter when Ford powered his way through to stop White on a tackle for loss.

Overall, the Raiders first three carries of the game went for minus-1 yard.

"Everybody just playing disciplined, playing the techniques we were coached," Ford said. "Just staying gap disciplined, linebackers running and making tackles. Everybody just played as one today."

"It was a run wall," Harbaugh quipped.

5. No love lost between rivals

The Chargers made "Raider Week" a point of emphasis in the days leading up to the season opener.

Wins against your division rival aren't easy but can count as two in the standings — a win for you and a loss for them.

But the end of Sunday's game turned heated when a brawl broke out after the Chargers were stuffed on a 2-point play after McConkey's touchdown.

After several skirmishes, officials eventually ejected Joshua Palmer and Raiders cornerback Jack Jones.

"We were just blocking physically," Palmer said. "They got mad and started throwing punches and we just started defending ourselves."

Palmer added: "I did not expect an ejection. I didn't throw a punch. I was just defending myself."

The Chargers said they weren't surprised emotions boiled over with the Raiders on the opposing sideline.

"We were getting after it. Guys in the trenches were getting after it," Bradley Bozeman said. "When one thing falls, the whole thing falls with it. We have our teammates' back no matter what."

Rashawn Slater said: "It's a combination, Chargers-Raiders, first game of the year, guys are fired up, it's hot out there. Whatever reason, saw it through and got the dub."

Harbaugh ended up coming down to the end zone to try and de-escalate the situation.

"Just trying to get our guys back and get them separated," Harbaugh said.

Palmer added: "He has our back. And we have his back."

The Bolts now look toward a Week 2 road date in Carolina. The Panthers lost 47-10 in their season opener.

"2-0 would be a lot sweeter than 1-0," Bosa said.