The Chargers pulled out all the stops to get a win on Saturday night. They basically changed the playbook for the Jaguars in Week 3, putting the pedal to the floor and not letting up until they built a four-point lead with less than five minutes left in the first half.
But this is a charger we’re talking about. No matter how much the team culture has changed in the post-regular-season renaissance, no matter how much the coaching staff seems to weigh in on game plans and personnel decisions, the same old problems are back to bite them in their first playoff run. middle.
With less than five minutes left in the first half, the Bolts built a 27-point lead. From there, they were outscored by the Jaguars 31-3, eventually sending them home on a field goal that should have been the quietest flight in recent memory.
For a full quarterly recap of tonight’s game, check it out below.
the first season
The Chargers won the throw and delayed the game.
A Sebastian Joseph Day pass from Trevor Lawrence falls into the arms of Drew Tranquill, who plays the ball in the second play of the game Pass back to the Jaguars 18-yard line. After a short pass to Donald Parham, Austin Eckler threw the ball for his first touchdown of the game for his 14th rushing touchdown of the season.
With less than 90 seconds to go, the Chargers took a 7-0 lead.
The Jaguars broke through on their second possession, another interception by Lawrence in nine straight games. This time, it was Asante Samuel Jr. Who returned it to the Chargers’ 39-yard line.
The Bolts drove all the way to the Jaguars’ four-yard line and faced the second goal. Jaguars defensive lineman Arden Key’s helmet blocked Keenan Allen’s touchdown pass, and an incomplete third pass forced a Cameron Dicker field goal.
With 5:30 left in the opening game, the Chargers led the Jaguars 10-0.
Both teams had three outs on the ensuing possessions, and the Chargers’ third fumble came off a second pass that the Jaguars defense hit. On the Jaguars’ fourth down of the game, Lawrence made his third interception of the game, his second on Samuel, deep in Jaguars territory. A few plays later, Eckler scored from six yards to extend the Chargers’ lead to 17-0.
second quarter
On the other side of the break, Kenneth Murray and Sebastian Joseph Day entered the backfield to sack Lawrence, ending the short drive.
The Chargers’ offense would run right into the Jaguars’ defense before Herbert threw a touchdown pass to Gerald Everett, which pushed the Bolts’ lead to a very strong 24 points.
In most dramatic fashion, Samuel was intercepted by Lawrence for the third time, becoming only the second player in NFL history to record three or more picks in the playoffs.
There was nothing the Chargers could do on the other side as they were forced to kick the ball away in a sudden change of circumstances. But just as the ball bounced in the Chargers’ way over and over again for the rest of the night, JK Scott’s punt deflected off the Jaguars’ helmet and was recovered by linebacker Amen Obambemiga. , this happens again.
The Bolts got the ball just a yard from there, and Herbert missed an open Allen behind the end zone on third down. Dick’s second field goal of the night extended their lead to 27-0.
After the trade punt, the Jaguars started the charge at the Chargers 47-yard line with less than two minutes left in the first half. Lawrence converted on a four-and-one run from the 26-yard line, then found tight end Evan Engram from 9 yards two plays later for the Jaguars’ first touchdown of the night.
Both teams entered the locker room 27-7 in favor of the Chargers.
the third quater
The Chargers opened the second half without scoring a point. They went all the way to the Jaguars’ 38-yard line, but three consecutive incompletes led to another punt from Scott.
The Jaguars continued their best form from the end of the first half, building a 14-play, 89-yard touchdown run in 7:17. With 5:11 left in the quarter, the score cut the Chargers’ lead to 13 points.
Everett played another pivotal role in the Chargers’ next drive, catching a pair of passes for 46 yards and Dickel finishing with a third field goal of 50 yards. The rookie’s first conversion of 50 or more yards pushed the Bolts’ lead back to 16 yards.
It took the Jaguars just five plays on their next drive to find the end zone of the Chargers’ 39-yard touchdown to wide-open Marvin Jones’ explosive coverage. The offense tried to make it an eight-point game with a two-point attempt, but Samuel broke the pass to keep the 10-point deficit.
On that two-point attempt, Bosa’s decision to argue no penalty in what was considered a timeout ended up biting him in the back when he was hit with a 15-yard free throw that would support the Chargers after the ensuing kickoff. Team.
At the end of the period, Bolt ran the ball once without gaining anything.
fourth quarter
The Chargers rushed for 58 yards in less than seven minutes in 14 games. On a 3-pointer and a 3-pointer, Herbert spun to his right and passed a pass over Josh Palmer’s head in the end zone. Eckler was called to a timeout but the Jaguars refused to drop the score to fourth, but Dickel made a rare 40-yard turnover and the Jaguars were still down 10 with 8:47 remaining. point.
The unbelievable meltdown continued, and the Chargers’ defense again failed to stop it. Lawrence found Christian Kirk for 9 yards, a quarterback goaltender helped put the Chargers’ lead with 5:25 left with the help of Bosa’s second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Narrowed down to two points.
Another 3-point out for the Chargers opened the door for the Jaguars’ final drive. With 1:27 left in the game, Travis Etienne hit the fourth on Chagrers’ 41-yard line and turned 25 yards to right end.Jaguars run out of time before hitting a field goal to send Chargers home