Broncos 23, Chargers 17: One Fourth-Down Stop Flips the Game
Denver scored the final 13 points after a fourth-and-1 stuff at SoFi Stadium, dropping the Chargers to 0-5 for the first time since 2003.
For three quarters on Sunday, the Chargers looked like a team about to win its first game of the season. Then Justin Herbert was stopped on fourth-and-1 at his own 41, and everything unraveled. The Broncos scored the game's final 13 points to win 23-17 at SoFi Stadium, moving to 3-2 while Los Angeles fell to 0-5 — its worst start since 2003, per the AP.
How it unfolded
Denver struck first after tight end Charlie Kolar fumbled at the Chargers 40. Bo Nix found Evan Engram for 34 yards, and J.K. Dobbins punched in a 2-yard score — his first touchdown of the season. The Broncos took a 10-3 lead into halftime, but the third quarter belonged to Los Angeles: Herbert hit Hayden Rucci for a 7-yard touchdown, and Kimani Vidal broke loose on a 42-yard run for a 17-10 lead.
The turning point
Early in the fourth, coach Jim Harbaugh rolled the dice on fourth-and-1 from his own 41. Que Robinson stopped Herbert short, and Nix answered with a 5-yard touchdown to Courtland Sutton to tie it. Denver's defense then produced two more takeaways — a Zach Allen strip sack recovered by Robinson, and a Brandon Jones interception on fourth down — and Wil Lutz cashed both in with field goals, the second with 1:08 left. "It was the wrong decision," Harbaugh said of the fourth-down call, per the Denver Gazette.
What it means
This was a defensive win in full: Denver managed just 224 total yards (Nix finished 16-of-27 for 123 yards) but held the Chargers to 237 and forced three turnovers. Herbert was sacked five times and has now turned the ball over in five straight games. Los Angeles added nine penalties for 93 yards.
The Broncos host Seattle on Thursday night; the winless Chargers visit Kansas City on Sunday.