The Los Angeles Chargers are going to the playoffs. It likely won’t be the last time for the Jim Harbaugh-Justin Herbert combination.
Harbaugh came back to the NFL after leading the University of Michigan to a national title and took a historically underachieving Chargers franchise right to the playoffs. And the Chargers looked every bit of a playoff team Saturday.
The Chargers obliterated the New England Patriots 40-7 on Saturday afternoon, clinching an AFC wild-card spot. The Chargers improved to 10-6. They still have a shot at the No. 5 seed, which is valuable because that team will play the Houston Texans (9-7), who will be the weakest of the AFC’s division winners and are locked into the No. 4 seed.
Ladd McConkey of the Los Angeles Chargers celebrates with Justin Herber after scoring a touchdown in the Chargers’ win over the Patriots. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
The Chargers did everything right on Saturday. With J.K. Dobbins back from injury, they ran the ball effectively. Herbert had perhaps his best game of the season with three touchdown passes and 281 yards. The defense was all over Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye, and New England was unable to move the ball. The Chargers pulled Herbert with just under 11 minutes to go because the outcome was already decided.
Some teams get in the playoffs by getting help or grinding out a closer-than-expected win. The Chargers wanted to leave no doubt about their postseason credentials. All AFC playoff teams watching the Chargers know they wouldn’t be getting an easy out if they draw Los Angeles.
Previous versions of the Chargers would have been hard to trust in an early Saturday start on the East Coast. There has typically been something holding back the Chargers from playing to their talent level.
Whatever was missing, Harbaugh fixed it right away.
The Chargers outgained the Patriots 249-91 in the first half, and 36 of the Patriots’ yards came on their only highlight of the first half. The Chargers were offsides so Drake Maye took advantage of the free play and lofted a long pass to Demario Douglas, who made a nice adjustment to catch it for the score. That pass came after Maye took a huge hit on New England’s first drive, went to the locker room to be evaluated for a concussion but returned to the game after he was cleared.
That’s about the only positive for the Patriots. The Chargers had the ball for 23:20 of the first half, which reflected the inability of New England’s defense to get off the field and also of its offense not being able to sustain drives. The second half was even more dominant for the Chargers.
The Patriots aren’t a good team, as their 3-13 record shows. But one of the signs of a good team is not leaving any doubt against poor teams, and the Chargers did that.
Herbert and Harbaugh are the type of pairing that can perhaps make life a little uncomfortable for the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West over the upcoming seasons.
Herbert had exciting highlights and strong stats before Harbaugh arrived, but he wasn’t great late in games and the Chargers weren’t winning much. Harbaugh didn’t place more responsibility on his quarterback, which seemed counterintuitive, but he unlocked a much more efficient quarterback.
Herbert was fantastic against New England. He had his first three-touchdown game of the season. Two of the TD passes went to exciting rookie receiver Ladd McConkey. The Chargers’ offense played well and the defense allowed very little to the Patriots. It was a complete win.
In many ways, the Chargers have the look of a well-coached team. They should be even better next season, with the front office having more salary-cap flexibility to add players who fit Harbaugh’s wants. This doesn’t feel like a fluky playoff appearance for the Chargers. They’re pretty good this season, and it might get a lot better as the Harbaugh era moves on.
