A clutch fourth quarter that fueled a season-opening win offered hope that this era of the Chargers might be different from the also-ran teams of the past. Two reality-check losses have shown old habits die hard.
The Chargers were held scoreless in the second half Sunday for the second consecutive game while squandering a 10-7 halftime lead again.
Herbert, who left last week’s game in Pittsburgh with an ankle injury early in the third quarter, lamented the offense’s struggles on third and fourth downs against the Chiefs.
The Chargers were four-of-13 on third downs and failed a fourth-and-one from the Chiefs’ three-yard line during the fourth quarter of a tied game. The team is seven-for-24 on third downs in the last two games.
The Chiefs, who have not yet turned into the offensive juggernaut of recent years, converted nine of 16 (56.3%) of their third-down tries, a season-best.
“They did better playing situational football,” outside linebacker Khalil Mack said. “In other years, it was kind of like a breakdown here, breakdown there and they were able to put up 20-plus points. Today, it seemed like it was a little tougher for them.”
The Chargers, who have lost six straight to their AFC West rivals, largely kept Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes from making game-changing running plays.
The two-time NFL most valuable player had 12 rushing yards on five carries. But while throwing for 245 yards, with one touchdown and one interception, Mahomes started “picking his spots” in the running game, Mack said. His biggest run came in the fourth quarter, a 13-yard gain on third-and-three.
