Jim Harbaugh and his Chargers defeated the Chiefs 27-21 in their season opener Friday night in Brazil.
The game marked the debut for rookie running back Omarion Hampton, whom the Chargers selected in the first round of April's draft with the No. 22 pick. He rushed for 48 yards on 15 carries and added two receptions for 13 yards in his first NFL game. The first-year back also made a rookie mistake toward the end of the first half, where he ran out of bounds on an eight-yard carry as the Chargers were trying to burn the clock before taking a field goal.
They kicked a field goal and had to give the Chiefs the ball back with too much time left, allowing them to hit a field goal of their own in incredible fashion. Harbaugh looked frustrated on the sideline after Hampton ran out of bounds and the North Carolina product even received some advice from Marshawn Lynch, who was working the game as a photographer.
In the end, the blunder didn't matter as the Chargers came out on top. Harbaugh even took the blame for the miscue during his postgame interview.
"Before the half I was trying to run the ball, get the play clock down to 13 seconds," Harbaugh said to reporters following the win. "And we called an outside run and none of us smart coaches relayed the message to our young running back to stay in bounds. Not [Hampton's] fault at all, that's on me."
A learning experience for everyone. The win made Harbaugh 6-0 in Week 1 as an NFL head coach, which ties the record for the most opening game wins without a loss per ESPN's Adam Schefter. Now 1-0, the Chargers travel to play the Raiders in Week 2.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jim Harbaugh Shouldered the Blame for Omarion Hampton’s Clock Management Blunder.
