NASHVILLE, Tenn. _ An already flustering season for the Los Angeles Chargers reached a new low Sunday when they lost by inches and seconds to the Tennessee Titans, 23-20.
The game was decided when Melvin Gordon fumbled into the end zone when trying to score from inside the one-yard line in the final 10 seconds.
The Chargers had nearly scored twice before that play but both were ruled nontouchdowns by replay review.
The loss, the fifth in six games for the Chargers, dropped them to 2-5.
The game was tied 10-10 entering the fourth quarter, when the Titans took over with a pair of touchdowns.
The first _ a five-yard pass from Ryan Tannehill to Tajae Sharpe _ was the result of a blown coverage by the Chargers' secondary. The score capped a 14-play, 85-yard drive.
The second _ an 11-yard run by Derrick Henry _ happened when free safety Rashawn Jenkins missed a tackle. That series lasted seven plays and consumed 75 yards.
In between those touchdowns, Chase McLaughlin kicked a 50-yard field goal to keep the Chargers close.
They closed to within three points on a 41-yard pass from Philip Rivers to Austin Ekeler with 5:09 remaining.
Then the Chargers took over at their own 49-yard line by stopping the Titans on fourth-and-one with just over two minutes remaining.
They moved to inside the Tennessee one-yard line but couldn't get in the end zone.
Austin Ekeler was originally ruled to have scored on a 16-yard pass from Rivers. Gordon was signaled in on what would have been a one-yard run.
Replay review changed both, sending the Chargers home with their most bitter defeat yet.
The Titans used a successful fake punt to extend their first drive, a drive that ended in a 45-yard field goal by Cody Parkey to make it 3-0.
On fourth-and-eight from the Chargers' 43-yard line, punter Brett Kern took the snap and passed to Kevin Byard, the team's starting free safety, for an 11-yard gain.
The Chargers did respond defensively with cornerback Michael Davis breaking up a third-down pass to force the Parkey field goal.
The Chargers tied it 3-3 on their next possession, McLaughlin making a 29-yard field goal after the offense stalled at the end of a 12-play, 64-yard series.
The three points were the first in an opening half in three weeks for the Chargers, who were shut out in the first half in home losses to Denver and Pittsburgh.
The Chargers took their first lead since last month in the second quarter with a highlight-filled 14-play, 94-yard drive. The series featured two toe-tap catches along the sideline by Keenan Allen and one by Mike Williams.
On third-and-goal at the Tennessee one-yard line, the Chargers brought on two extra linemen and appeared ready to try to power the ball into the end zone.
Instead, Gordon leaked out into the left flat and was wide open for Rivers to find him.
McLaughlin's extra point made it 10-3, the Chargers' first lead since winning 30-10 on Sept. 29 in Miami. The touchdown was the first for Gordon since last year's playoffs.
That lead couldn't survive a series, however, as the Titans drove right back (eight plays, 86 yards) to tie the score 10-10 on an eight-yard pass from Tannehill to Corey Davis.
