Chargers Defeat Titans to Pick Up Third Straight Win

Austin Gage | Contributing Sports Writer

Overcoming a slow start, Los Angeles relies on another big day from the pass rush to prevail against a struggling Tennessee Titans team.

Although the Chargers and star quarterback Justin Herbert did not share the gaudy passing production they had seen in the past couple of weeks, Los Angeles was able to rely on a strong defensive showing and a cleanly operated game to defeat the Tennessee Titans by a score of 27-17.

For a team that only reached five wins in the 2023 campaign, the Chargers' ability to reach six wins by Week 10 is nothing short of impressive. Paired with a new head coach and a new-look roster void of many of the star veterans that fans had grown to love such as wide receivers Keenan Allen and running back Austin Ekeler, expectations were not high for this Chargers team coming into the season. Now, after ten weeks, it is clear that Los Angeles will play a key role in the playoff picture in the AFC as they currently sit as the sixth seed with a 6-3 record.

Sunday afternoon's performance at home captured much that we knew about this team. Los Angeles is more than willing to run the ball at will and rely on their defense to win football games.

After an opening drive by the Chargers that culminated in a chip shot Cameron Dicker field goal make to establish a 3-0 lead, the Chargers' defense took the field for the first time on the day. Facing a below-average Titans offense that came into the day as the league's 27th-best scoring unit, expectations for a quality defensive showing were high. However, Tennessee's opening drive temporarily shut down those expectations, as quarterback Will Levis found highly-paid veteran wide receiver Calvin Ridley for a 41-yard touchdown pass to take a 7-3 lead with over four minutes left in the first quarter. Although the Titans' offense would eventually slow down, Ridley still ended the day with a healthy statline, catching five balls for 84 yards and two touchdowns through the air.

Contributing to the aforementioned slow start, the two teams traded drives ending in punts after the big play from Ridley.

A decent drive marked by a Titans' defensive face mask penalty put the Chargers into a scoring position, but another failed third down attempt by the Los Angeles offense forced another Dicker field goal try. The attempt would split the uprights and bring the Chargers closer to the Titans lead at 7-6.

Not to be outdone, the Titans offense continued their productivity early as Levis and company conducted a drive into Chargers territory midway through the second quarter. However, another face mask penalty ruined any hope of the drive ending in a touchdown, and Tennessee had to settle for a 49-yard field goal attempt. Kicker Nick Folk, the 40-year-old veteran who has been in the league since 2007, booted the ball from distance, but the football drifted right of the upright and made sure the game's score would stay the same.

Trying to capitalize on some new-found momentum, Los Angeles started the ensuing possession with a bang. Using a flea-flicker, Herbert was able to find wide receiver Joshua Palmer wide-open near the right sideline for a big 36-yard gain that would set the Chargers up at the Tennessee 25-yard line. From there, the Bolts ran the football seven straight times and topped the drive off with a fourth-down rushing touchdown from Herbert to take the lead, 13-7. Apart from Herbert's rushing score, three different running backs saw the football that drive: J.K. Dobbins, the workhorse back through the first nine weeks, Gus Edwards, another quality back who had just been activated from the IR before the Week 10 matchup, and young player Hassan Haskins. Both Dobbins and Edwards had solid days on the ground, ending with 50 and 55 yards respectively, while Haskins would later punch in a touchdown of his own.

After another trade of punts by both teams, the Chargers would enter halftime in Inglewood with a 13-7 lead.

Understanding that they needed to put up some points immediately to start the second half or the game could spiral out of control, the Titans marched down the field on their first drive coming out of the lockers. Another Levis to Ridley connection for 15 yards began the drive and the Titans moved to the Chargers 8-yard line at the peak of the drive, but the Los Angeles defense relayed a message of "bend but don't break" to force a Folk field goal try. A much shorter 27-yard attempt was in the cards for the Titans kicker and he nailed it through to inch Tennessee closer as the score changed to 13-10 in the Chargers' favor.

The Chargers offense would strike right back. Knowing that they needed to stomp out any hope that Tennessee may have regained coming out of halftime, Los Angeles immediately put an end to that with a great return of 56 yards by wide receiver Derius Davis on the kickoff. Herbert instantly connected with rookie standout wide receiver Ladd McConkey for 15 yards to begin the drive, and a plethora of solid gains on the ground eventually brought the drive inside the Titans' 20-yard line late in the third quarter. Staring at a third down and eight, Herbert was able to find wide receiver Quentin Johnston for a 16-yard touchdown. Thanks to a clean pocket created by stellar offensive line play, Herbert was able to find the second-year man for the touchdown. The offensive line played a huge role in the success on Sunday as they gave up zero sacks. Playing off the dominance up front, Herbert would produce a statline of an efficient 14 for 18 passing with 164 passing yards and the passing score to go along with nine carries for 32 yards and the score on the ground.

"It feels like you're around greatness every single day with Justin Herbert. And there's still a long way to go. His fifth year is far from complete. He's incredible. You run out of adjectives. Just a guardian of victory for our football team. Just in awe, really most of the time. All of the time," said head coach Jim Harbaugh.

The next drive for the Titans really allowed the Chargers' pass rush to shine. With a 20-10 lead late in the third quarter, Tennessee was forced to pass maybe more than they had wanted coming into the day. As a result, the Chargers defensive line was allowed to tee off. The Titans' possession was ruined by two sacks, one by linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu on first down and one by veteran linebacker Joey Bosa on third down. The stout effort from the defense saw them end the day with an outstanding seven sacks on the day.

"It's awesome. We're doing everything we can to give them rest and breaks, and as long as we're controlling possession and being out there for 10 plus [play] drives, it's only going to help them. You've got Bud Dupree, Khalil [Mack], Joey [Bosa], those edge rushers have really done a great job," Herbert said about his defense's effort.

McConkey kickstarted the next Chargers possession with a second down catch and run of 37 yards and the Bolts marched down the field to all but put the game away. Relying on the run game once again, Los Angeles held the ball for over seven minutes to milk the clock and eventually score on the ground with a Haskins rushing touchdown, extending their lead to 27-10 with just under eight minutes remaining in the game.

Despite a late receiving score by Ridley for his second on the day with just over a minute left, the game was decided. A failed onside kick attempt from Folk made sure the game would end with a final score in the Chargers' favor of 27-17.

The win gave the Chargers their best start to a season in six years, when they finished the 2018 season with a 12-4 record.

Up next, the Chargers will face the high-scoring Bengals on Sunday night, November 17th.