SAN DIEGO — The scoreboard told the story — the numerical expression of a bomb crater.

The body language was as clear as 3-D. The Oakland Raiders trudged off the field with heads down. The San Diego Chargers, following quarterback Philip Rivers' clock-killing kneel-down, bounded to the locker room, giddy and carefree.

A roaring San Diego crowd provided the perfect soundtrack. The Chargers have been a huge disappointment this season, maybe the biggest bust in the NFL. But this — this darn near made up for everything.

This was at halftime of Thursday night's game, by the way. Thirty minutes remained on the clock, but the verdict was in.

You can't possibly be surprised to learn the Raiders lost.

It's what they do best. It's a gift, a culture, a legacy passed from generation to generation. Thursday night's 34-7 loss to San Diego wasn't as remarkable as what it represented. This was the 10th loss of the season for the Raiders, marking their sixth consecutive season of double-digit defeats.

That's not the record, not even close. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost 10-plus games for 11 consecutive seasons from 1983-94 — nearly every season the Raiders spent in Los Angeles.

That doesn't minimize the Raiders' current cavalcade of failure. It's ingrained in them now, to the point that you see the same ruinous elements on a more-or-less weekly basis.

We refer not to the injured right ankle that ended JaMarcus Russell's evening late in the first half. Russell left the stadium on crutches and wearing an orthopedic boot. In the coming days we'll learn what flavor of bad that represents.

No, this is a tribute to the manner in which the Raiders go about losing games on an unfathomably regular basis. And now a word from our keynote speaker, cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha:

"We're not close," he said, "and it's clear we aren't close. We don't play good football, we don't play sound football, we've been undisciplined. We wonder why we don't get prime time games and this is why."

And by "this" Asomugha means:

The slow start. The Raiders haven't scored a touchdown on their game-opening drive this season. But it's not always about the points they don't score. Their first drive Thursday ended with a Russell fumble that set the Chargers up for a 12-yard touchdown drive.

Little things that look huge in retrospect. A marvelous Shane Lechler punt and consecutive false starts backed the Chargers up to their own 1-yard line. They didn't stay there long — a Tommy Kelly personal foul gave them a first down, new life, and the seed that grew into a 96-yard touchdown processional.

Comic relief. This isn't always on the order of the Fake Field Goal Attempt Heard 'Round the World. Sometimes it's more subtle, such as the short pass Russell completed to Darren McFadden as McFadden was falling backward over one of his own blockers.

Enough good plays to make you think they shouldn't be this bad. We're talking Justin Fargas running with the heart of a lion. Or Justin Miller buzzing 92 yards for a touchdown with the Chargers' fifth kickoff of the game. Or Russell humming a nice pass to tight end Zach Miller for 21-yard gain.

Promising young talent looking more young than promising. Shortly after his nice pass to Miller, Russell made an appalling throw into quadruple coverage for one of his two interceptions. Sometimes the mistakes aren't merely physical. A foolish late hit on McFadden helped turn a first-and-10 at the San Diego 23 into a punt on fourth-and-31.

Tactical brainlocks. McFadden had three touches on offense Thursday, equaling the number of tackles he made after Oakland turnovers. "I really think it's the way the game went," coach Tom Cable said by way of explanation.

Asomugha, who has been with the Raiders for 93 games (71 of them losses), was a little less circumspect.

"You can't lie to yourself and say the gap is closed or we're any better than we were in the past," he said. "It's still the same league and we still have the same record. It's the same story."

Coming soon to a scoreboard near you.