Two days have past and the Chargers’ overtime victory over the Raiders has still been the talk of the town.
To recap Los Angeles’ Week 15 win, here are my four main takeaways:
Give Justin Herbert the award now
Since his first snap in Week 2 to now, Herbert has not disappointed one bit. While the Chargers are enduring on their second-straight losing season, the rookie has been the reason for enthusiasm now and the future, as seen when leading the team to its second-straight game-winning drive.
Commanding the offense and making reads and throws like a 10-year veteran, Herbert threw for 314 yards and two touchdowns, tying him with Baker Mayfield for the most touchdown passes in a rookie season.
He played like this, all without wide receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams for the majority of the game, too. He’s been deserving of Offensive Rookie of the Year honors all season, but Thursday night should have solidified it for the former Oregon product.
Defense comes up clutch
Throughout the course of the game, the Chargers had no answer for quarterback Marcus Mariota, who came in after Derek Carr left the game with a groin injury. Whether it was him passing the ball or using his legs, Los Angeles could not stop him.
However, they came up with important stops that had an impact on the outcome of the game, both of which came late in the game.
The first came towards the end of the fourth quarter. Following Los Angeles’ first missed field goal, Las Vegas was cruising to a win. But that’s when cornerback Chris Harris Jr. picked off Mariota on a pass intended to wide receiver. Unfortunately, L.A. was unable to capitalize on that, as they missed the go-ahead field goal.
The second came in overtime. After the Raiders worked their way to the red zone, the Chargers stuffed running back Joshua Jacobs on first and second downs. On third down, edge defender Isaac Rochell deflected Mariota’ in the direction of fullback Alec Ingold. That stop forced the Raiders to kick a field goal. From there, it was all Herbert.
The Chargers’ defense is still a work in progress, but they came up big when it mattered the most, which hadn’t been the case all season.
Anthony Lynn’s job is still not safe
The Chargers have won their past two games, which may make it seem like coach Anthony Lynn is going to earn another year. However, that’s not necessarily the case. The outcome might suggest that, but the incompetence coaching almost blew the game away on multiple occasions.
The Chargers had two go-ahead field goal attempts inside the final four minutes and, of course, missed them both. Despite the fact that kicker Michael Badgley has been poor beyond 45 yards, Lynn still felt that it was the right decision rather than trusting the guy who was lights out.
Special teams wasn’t the only thing that went wrong. The decision to take the ball out of Herbert’s hands was, too. Despite the fact that he was tearing it up through the air all night, the rookie was held to one pass in the entire fourth quarter.
As a result, they didn’t go hand in hand. If Herbert wasn’t so dang good and the defense didn’t capitalize towards the end of the game, the outcome would’ve likely been different, all because of the team’s faulty game management.
If Lynn is brought back, it’s all because Herbert’s play bought him another season.
