Chargers drop the ball on offense and defense in second half as Ravens prevail
A dropped pass. Then a missed tackle. Ultimately a 51-yard touchdown by the Baltimore Ravens that spelled the end of the Chargers’ four-game winning streak.
Searching for an opportunity to establish themselves as legitimate playoff threats, the Chargers instead found mistakes, a run-weary defense and another anemic second-half offense in a 30-23 loss to the Ravens on Monday at SoFi Stadium.
The Ravens (8-4) rushed for 212 yards, a season high for a Chargers opponent, led by 140 from Derrick Henry. The defense that boasted an NFL-leading points-against average gave up a season high in points, not to mention five straight scoring drives that easily erased an early 10-0 Chargers’ lead.
Chargers run out of chances in 30-23 loss to Ravens
🏈 Ravens 30, Chargers 23 — FINAL
The Baltimore Ravens ended the Chargers’ four-game winning streak, capitalizing on a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to win the Harbaugh Bowl at SoFi Stadium.
Chargers running back Gus Edwards scored on a one-yard touchdown run with 46 seconds left, but the Chargers failed to recover the ensuing onside kick, ending the game.
The Chargers’ final, 11-play, 63-yard drive benefited from a couple of pass interference penalties by the Ravens. An 18-yard catch by Ladd McConkey also helped.
The Chargers’ hopes for a comeback were compromised on the previous possession when an initial pass interference penalty was reversed by officials. Ravens cornerback Brandon Stephens appeared to grab Joshua Palmer just outside the end zone as the ball neared them, but officials ultimately determined there was no penalty after initially throwing a flag.
The Chargers fall to 7-4 and the Ravens improve to 8-4 as Baltimore coach John Harbaugh goes to 3-0 in head-to-head matchups against his brother, Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert completed 21 of 36 passes for 218 yards. He also rushed for a touchdown. Rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey made six catches for 83 yards.
Running back J.K. Dobbins, who left the game in the first half because of a knee injury, led the Chargers with 40 rushing yards on six carries.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson completed 16 of 22 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Derrick Henry had 140 yards in 24 carries and receiver Zay Flowers made five catches for 62 yards.
Justice Hill scores on 51-yard touchdown run to put Ravens in control
🏈 Ravens 30, Chargers 16 — 7:34 left in the fourth quarter
Ravens running back Justice Hill broke free to score on a 51-yard touchdown run, capitalizing on a Chargers defensive miscommunication to extend the Ravens’ lead.
Hill was able to run around the Chargers defense and break a tackle by safety Alohi Gilman before winning a sprint to the end zone.
The touchdown concluded a six-play, 72-yard drive that put the Chargers in danger of seeing their four-game winning streak come to an end.
Ravens extend their lead on Mark Andrews touchdown catch
🏈 Ravens 23, Chargers 16 — 12:32 left in the fourth quarter.
Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson found tight end Mark Andrews in the back of the end zone on a six-yard touchdown pass, but the Ravens failed to convert on a two-point try.
The touchdown capped a 14-play, 70-yard drive that took more than 6½ minutes off the game clock. Ravens running back Derrick Henry had runs of nine and four yards on the drive to pass the 100-yard rushing mark. He has 114 yards in 18 carries.
The Ravens have scored points on each of their last four possessions.
Cameron Dicker makes it a one-point game once again
🏈 Ravens 17, Chargers 16 — 4:08 left in the third quarter
Cameron Dicker kicked a 52-yard field goal — his third field goal of the game — to once again make it a one-point game.
Justin Herbert directed a 10-play, 36-yard drive that included a 19-yard reception by Ladd McConkey.
Ravens extend their lead on Justin Tucker field goal
🏈 Ravens 17, Chargers 13 — 9:29 left in the third quarter
Justin Tucker kicked a 45-yard field goal to extend Baltimore’s lead early in the third quarter.
The Ravens managed to get into field-goal range on a 10-play, 43-yard drive after Zay Flowers caught a 25-yard pass from Lamar Jackson. Tight end Mark Andrews converted on third down off an 11-yard catch and run early in the drive.
Cameron Dicker’s field goal makes it a one-point game at halftime
🏈 Ravens 14, Chargers 13 — HALFTIME
Despite getting the ball back with only 24 seconds left in the half, the Chargers quickly marched down field and Cameron Dicker kicked a 52-yard field goal as time expired to make it a one-point score.
Justin Herbert connected on a 17-yard pass to Joshua Palmer with two seconds left to set up the field goal. An 11-yard reception by Jalen Reagor also helped fuel the five-play, 36-yard drive.
Herbert has completed 13 of 18 passes for 129 yards. J.K. Dobbins, who is questionable to return with a knee injury, had 40 yards in six carries in the first half. Ladd McConkey has 41 yards on three receptions.
Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson has completed five of nine passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. Running back Derrick Henry has 66 yards in nine carries.
Ravens take lead on 40-yard touchdown catch by Rashod Bateman
🏈 Ravens 14, Chargers 10 — 24 seconds left in the second quarter
Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman made an amazing, 40-yard touchdown catch on a pass from Lamar Jackson to give the Ravens the lead after a gutsy fourth-down call earlier in the possession.
Bateman managed to make the catch in the end zone despite Chargers cornerback Kristian Fulton being flagged for pass interference.
At the start of the eight-play, 93-yard drive, Ravens coach John Harbaugh opted to go for it on fourth and one from the Ravens’ 16. Baltimore converted when tight end Mark Andrews took a direct snap and was pushed to a first down.
Jackson then connected on a 22-yard pass to Zay Flowers. The Chargers lost 12 more yards when Fulton was called for pass interference. On the next play, the Ravens took over the lead.
Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins sustained a knee injury on the Chargers’ previous possession and is questionable to return.
Lamar Jackson scores on 10-yard run to put Ravens on the board
🏈 Chargers 10, Ravens 7 — 7:48 left in the second quarter
Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson shimmied and sprinted to the end zone on a 10-yard run to get the Ravens on the scoreboard, capping an efficient, seven-play, 70-yard drive.
The touchdown came after Jackson completed a 16-yard pass to tight end Mark Andrews to move the Ravens into the red zone. Derrick Henry started the drive with runs of 19 and 14 yards.
Jackson has completed two of six passes for 18 yards and Henry has rushed for 57 yards on six carries.
Chargers extend their lead on a Cameron Dicker field goal
🏈 Chargers 10, Ravens 0 — 11:38 left in the second quarter
Cameron Dicker kicked a 42-yard field goal to extend the Chargers’ lead.
The Chargers had hoped for more after Gus Edwards picked up three yards on fourth and one. On the next set of downs, the Ravens held Justin Herbert to a pair of incomplete passes, necessitating the field-goal try.
A 19-yard punt return by Derius Davis and a 17-yard run by J.K. Dobbins were the biggest plays of the possession.
Chargers cornerback Eli Apple went off with a hamstring injury and is listed as questionable to return.
Chargers don’t get far on their second possession vs. Ravens
🏈 Chargers 7, Ravens 0 — 2:57 left in the first quarter
The Chargers’ second possession wasn’t as efficient as their first, with Jalen Reagor dropping a pass on third down after the wide receiver took a shot from cornerback Nate Wiggins.
Earlier in the possession, on third and 13, Justin Herbert threw under pressure to rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey for 16 yards. Herbert has completed four of six passes for 62 yards so far.
Defensively, the Chargers looked sharp on the Ravens’ first possession:
Justin Herbert scrambles for touchdown on opening possesion
🏈 Chargers 7, Ravens 0 — 9:45 left in the first quarter
The Chargers put together a solid opening drive, with Justin Herbert scoring on a five-yard scramble up the middle.
A strong helping of J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards fueled the nine-play, 70-yard drive, which also featured a 17-yard catch by wide receiver Ladd McConkey and an 18-yard reception from tight end Will Dissly.
The Chargers were so efficient they didn’t even face a third down on the possession.
Justin Herbert doesn’t have ‘secret’ athleticism. It’s been on display his whole life
He’s not just the prototypical passer. To Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh, dual-threat quarterback isn’t even the right classification for what Justin Herbert can do.
“Justin could play tight end in the National Football League,” Harbaugh said. “He could be an edge rusher. He could do all those things because of his speed, strength, his agility, his athleticism. It’s off the charts.”
Chargers takeaways: Is dramatic win over the Bengals a sign of ‘magic going on’?
During a 34-27 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday at SoFi Stadium, Chargers players soaked up loud chants of “Let’s go Chargers!” Quarterback Justin Herbert was even serenaded with chants of “M-V-P!”
The crowd for Sunday’s prime-time game wasn’t just the Chargers’ loudest home-field advantage of the season, offensive lineman Rashawn Slater estimated. It was the best home crowd of the 2021 first-round draft pick’s career with the franchise. Slater called the growing enthusiasm around the team “pretty special.”
Chargers vs. Ravens inactives for Monday night
Here are the players who will not be suiting up for the Chargers and Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football:
After years of injury setbacks, J.K. Dobbins’ impressive comeback keeps Chargers running
It was one of the darkest moments in J.K. Dobbins’ career. The preseason game in 2021 when two Washington defenders sandwiched him on a tackle and bent his knee and tore two ligaments. It somehow can still bring a smile to Dobbins’ face.
“Because,” the Chargers running back said, “I made it through that storm.”
The storm of two season-ending injuries in three years has cleared to reveal wide-open running lanes for Dobbins. Entering a prime-time reunion against his former team — at home against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night — Dobbins is a leading candidate for NFL comeback player of the year, a resurgence that matches his new franchise’s rise.
‘Enthusiasm unknown to mankind’: How the Harbaugh family mantra began
While their sons add another chapter to their unmatched slice of NFL history, Jack and Jackie Harbaugh will be tuned in from across the country.
The warm and endlessly enthusiastic couple will be celebrating their 63rd anniversary Monday when sons John and Jim coach against each other for a third time, with Jim’s Chargers playing host to John’s Baltimore Ravens at SoFi Stadium.
The Harbaughs are the only brothers to face each other as NFL head coaches. John is 2-0 in the matchups, having defeated Jim’s San Francisco 49ers on Thanksgiving in 2011 and by three points in the Super Bowl the following season.
Jim Harbaugh reflects on Chargers’ Justin Herbert, Ravens’ Lamar Jackson: ‘Mirror images’
Jim Harbaugh has run out of ways to describe Justin Herbert’s athletic feats.
The way the Chargers quarterback can place a pass over a lurking linebacker and in front of a charging cornerback.
The seemingly impossible throw across the field to Ladd McConkey in the fourth quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals that put the Chargers in scoring position on the game-winning drive.
Jim Harbaugh’s new-age Chargers have that old ‘Charm City’ feel
It was almost as if he never left Baltimore.
J.K. Dobbins couldn’t help but notice how familiar everything felt with the Chargers. That familiarity convinced him to be part of the Jim Harbaugh-led overhaul in L.A. after four seasons with the Baltimore Ravens.
Chargers vs. Baltimore Ravens: How to watch, predictions and betting odds
The brothers on the sideline have dominated the conversation, but Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh — who will coach against older brother John Harbaugh on Monday — knows the prime-time game between the Chargers (7-3) and the Baltimore Ravens (7-4) will be decided by the players on the field.
“It’s about the two teams,” said Jim Harbaugh, who will coach against his brother for the third time in the NFL and the first time since losing the Super Bowl in 2013. “I’m sure he doesn’t want to make it about him. I don’t want to make it about me.”