Bolts From The Blue
The Chargers faced a two-score deficit in the first half but battled back to score two fourth-quarter touchdowns en route to completing the season sweep of the Broncos.
Don’t call it a comeback.
The Chargers (9-6) were down 21-13 at halftime and did not necessarily look all that great for the first 30 minutes. You wouldn’t have been crazy to believe the team hadn’t yet gotten over their recent loss to the Bucs, but apparently that all finally got flushed at halftime because this was a new team in the final two quarters.
Los Angeles scored three times in the second half, including touchdowns on the first two drives of the third quarter. Justin Herbert threw scores to Derius Davis and Hassan Haskins, finishing the day 23-of-31 for 284 yards with his third pick of the year. He also added 28 yards rushing, including a big 16-yard scramble on a late third down run.
Gus Edwards, whose 43-yard run in the fourth quarter helped seal the win, finished with 68 yards and two short touchdowns.
They held Denver to just six first downs in the second half and six total points. After the Bo Nix and the offense made it look easy early, they struggled to extend drives, going three-and-out twice and punting three times after the midway point.
Rookie Ladd McConkey stood out once again as he hauled in a team-high six passes for 87 yards. On Thursday night, he became the first rookie wideout since Odell Beckham Jr. in 2014 to record 50+ receiving yards in eight consecutive games.
Defensively, Daiyan Henley led the team with 10 total tackles to go with a tackle for loss. Joey Bosa and Bud Dupree each recorded sacks. Khalil Mack drew a holding penalty late that helped deter the Broncos’ comeback attempt, as well.
This game wasn’t pretty by any means, but the Chargers once again found a way to play their best when their best was needed. They’ll head to Foxborough next week for a road date with the Patriots before a season finale against the Raiders in Las Vegas.
For a complete quarter-by-quarter recap of today’s game, check it out below.
The Broncos won the toss and chose to defer. The Chargers offense was up first.
Denver’s defense came to play from the first whistle. After two short gains by Gus Edwards on the ground and in the air, the Broncos stuffed up an outside rush by Derius Davis and the Chargers were forced into a three-and-out to begin the game.
Rookie quarterback Bo Nix and the Broncos offense were spurred on by the early momentum gained by their defense and rode that way to a 10-play, 74-yard drive capped off by a rushing touchdown from rookie Audric Estime to give them an early 7-0 lead.
The Chargers offense responded with a long drive of their own, going 70 yards in eight plays led by the running back duo of Gus Edwards and Kimani Vidal. Vidal broke...
