What Chargers accomplished in loss to Broncos: Next season schedule is set
DENVER — Playing out the schedule for an interim head coach, the Chargers looked the part Sunday, losing to Denver 16-9.
The defeat was their fourth in a row and seventh in eight games as they fell to 5-11. A Chargers team most recently lost as many as four straight early in the 2020 season.
The loss dropped Giff Smith to 0-2 since taking over as the interim coach for the fired Brandon Staley.
The Chargers played Sunday without their top three wide receivers as Keenan Allen (heel) and Joshua Palmer (concussion) were unavailable. Mike Williams (knee) was lost for the season in Week 3.
Two other starters — linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. (shoulder) and left guard Zion Johnson (neck) — missed their first game of the season. Nick Niemann and Jordan McFadden started in their spots, respectively.
Broncos recover onside kick to preserve a 16-9 win over Chargers
🏈 Broncos 16, Chargers 9 — FINAL
Cameron Dicker kicked a 52-yard field goal with 1:17 left, but the Chargers failed to recover the ensuing onside kick, allowing the Broncos to hold on for victory.
Stone Smartt nearly recovered the kick, but it bounced off his hands and Alex Singleton fell on the ball to secure the win for Denver.
Easton Stick, starting at quarterback for injured Justin Herbert, completed 24 of 38 passes for 220 yards but couldn’t find the end zone. Austin Ekeler rushed for 46 yards in 13 carries.
Dicker kicked three field goals and had one attempt blocked.
Denver’s Jarrett Stidham, starting for benched quarterback Russell Wilson, completed 20 of 32 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown.
The Broncos were hoping to remain in playoff contention with a win, but Kansas City’s victory over Cincinnati eliminated Denver’s slim hopes of making the postseason.
Broncos block Chargers’ 50-yard field-goal attempt
🏈 Broncos 16, Chargers 6 — 6:19 left in the fourth quarter
Denver’s Zach Allen blocked a 50-yard field-goal attempt by Cameron Dicker to stymie another scoring opportunity for the Chargers.
Allen managed to get a hand on the ball and deflect it, causing it to go wide right.
The Chargers are running out of time to mount a comeback.
Austin Ekeler fumble leads to another Broncos field goal
🏈 Broncos 16, Chargers 6 — 11:19 left in the fourth quarter
Wil Lutz kicked a 20-yard field goal as the Broncos capitalized on a Chargers turnover to extend their lead.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Denver defensive tackle D.J. Jones forced Austin Ekeler to fumble and linebacker Josey Jewell recovered the ball.
A pass interference penalty on Chargers safety Alohi Gilman in the end zone resulted in a 28-yard penalty, moving the ball to the one-yard line. A pair of Denver penalties and a pair of defensive stops by the Chargers inside the 10 forced Denver to settle for a field goal.
Chargers cut into Broncos’ lead on Cameron Dicker field goal
🏈 Broncos 13, Chargers 6 — 6:20 left in the third quarter
Cameron Dicker kicked a 50-yard field goal as the Chargers managed to cut into the Broncos’ lead on their first possession of the second half.
After forcing Denver to punt on its possession coming out of halftime, the Chargers put together a nine-play, 58-yard drive. Gerald Everett picked up 22 yards on a catch-and-run pass and Stone Smartt had an 18-yard reception to help push the Chargers into Dicker field-goal range.
Broncos miss field-goal attempt just before halftime
🏈 Broncos 13, Chargers 3 — HALFTIME
Broncos kicker Wil Lutz missed a 48-yard field-goal attempt as time expired in the first half to keep it a 10-point game. Lutz’s kick went wide right at the end of a four-play, 55-yard drive.
Quarterback Easton Stick connected on 10 of 18 passes for 97 yards in the first half for a Chargers team that was held to 142 total yards. Alex Erickson has four catches for 68 yards and Austin Ekeler has 25 yards in seven carries.
Broncos extend lead after failed fake punt by Chargers
🏈 Broncos 13, Chargers 3 — 1:53 left in the second quarter
A failed fake punt by the Chargers set up another scoring drive for Denver, Wil Lutz kicking a 43-yard field goal to extend the Broncos’ lead.
Facing fourth-and-one at their own 44-yard line, the Chargers attempted the fake, but linebacker Nick Niemann, who was lined up behind the long snapper as a blocker, mishandled the snap.
The Chargers reached the two-minute warning with only four first downs and zero conversions on five third-down attempts.
Denver retakes lead on 54-yard touchdown pass
🏈 Broncos 10, Chargers 3 — 6:37 left in the second quarter
Denver wide receiver Lil’ Jordan Humphrey weaved through the Chargers’ defense and then dived across the goal line to cap a 54-yard touchdown reception, putting the Broncos back into the lead.
The play finished a six-play, 75-yard possession led by backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who replaced Russell Wilson for this game.
Stidham is eight for 15 for 99 yards.
Chargers tie game on a Cameron Dicker field goal
🏈 Chargers 3, Broncos 3 — 9:43 left in the second quarter
Cameron Dicker’s 36-yard field goal in the second quarter pulled the Chargers even with Denver.
The offense went 42 yards in eight plays to set up the kick. The biggest play was Easton Stick hitting Alex Erickson for 27 yards.
On the Chargers’ previous defensive series, Khalil Mack went over 100 sacks for his career. Mack pushed his way into Jarrett Stidham’s space and dropped the Denver quarterback.
Mack, 32 and his 10th year, now has 16 sacks for the season, which is a career high.
Broncos take early lead on Wil Lutz field goal
🏈 Broncos 3, Chargers 0 — 3:55 left in the first quarter
Denver took a 3-0 lead on a 32-yard field goal by Wil Lutz with 3:55 remaining in the opening quarter.
The Chargers’ first two offensive possessions have netted no first downs and only 12 total yards.
Quarterback Easton Stick has missed on his first two pass attempts.
Rookie Jordan McFadden started at left guard in place of the injured Zion Johnson (neck). The start is the first of his career for the fifth-round pick.
Chargers’ international player from Nigeria is having the ride of his life
In a Chargers season that’s going nowhere, he is — as a professional athlete — traveling there in a rather unlikely way.
On a bicycle.
CJ Okoye doesn’t have a car. Or a driver’s license. He never even has operated a motor vehicle.
He does have an electric bike, however, that he has ridden all season to get to his job as a Chargers defensive lineman.
“I’ve seen him zooming through the building on it a couple times,” linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. said. “It’s like, ‘Damn, CJ!’ ”
Okoye, 22, joined the Chargers in May through the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program.
Chargers vs. Denver Broncos inactives for Sunday
The Chargers’ inactives for Sunday against Denver are wide receivers Keenan Allen (heel) and Joshua Palmer (concussion), linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. (shoulder), LG Zion Johnson (neck), DL Nick Williams (shoulder), TE Donald Parham Jr. and safety JT Woods.
Allen and Palmer were ruled out Friday. Murray was doubtful and will miss his first game of the season. Johnson also started the first 15 games of 2023.
Only certainty for players on dismantling Chargers: No playoffs with Denver, K.C. next
They make good, often great, money — some in the millions and millions — and their livelihood is playing a game.
But their futures typically are etched in sand, with the tide always threatening to rush in with little notice.
“It’s a strange life to live,” Chargers tight end Gerald Everett said. “It’s a strange career to have. Most people will never understand that. But that’s just the nature of our profession, the politics and everything else that goes into it.”
So here the Chargers are, with two games remaining in a season that has soured, a group originally built to last falling apart after just a few months.
Chargers-Broncos matchups: How to watch, start time and prediction
Breaking down how the Chargers (5-10) and Denver Broncos (7-8) match up heading into their game Sunday at 1:25 p.m. PST in Denver. The game will be televised by CBS:
When Chargers have the ball
On 12 possessions against Buffalo last weekend, the Chargers scored one touchdown, on a one-yard keeper by quarterback Easton Stick. Readying for his third career start, Stick has shown improvement the last two games and an arm that’s strong enough to make throws that could be reasonably expected from a backup quarterback in the NFL.