INGLEWOOD — Justin Herbert’s fractured and surgically-strengthened left hand was protected by a heavily-padded white glove for the Chargers’ game on Monday night at SoFi Stadium. Nothing could protect him from the Philadelphia Eagles’ onrushing defense, but it really didn’t matter in the end.
A defensive play won the game for the Chargers.
Tony Jefferson intercepted a tipped pass at his own 1-yard line and the Chargers took a 22-19 victory over the Eagles in overtime, a wild ending to a wild game that saw Cam Hart deflect Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts’ pass intended for Jahan Dotson and Jefferson reach out and snare it with his right hand.
Jake Elliott’s 44-yard field goal with 2:16 left in the game broke a 16-16 tie, leaving the Chargers with time to drive for a tying or go-ahead score. The Chargers took advantage and tied it 19-19 on Cameron Dicker’s 46-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining, sending the game to overtime.
In overtime, Dicker kicked his fifth field goal, a 54-yard boot that gave the Chargers a 22-19 lead with 6:24 remaining in the 10-minute extra period. Hurts drove the Eagles to the Chargers’ 17-yard line, but his first-and-10 pass was intercepted, ending the game. It was the Chargers’ fourth pick of Hurts, who also fumbled once (on the same play after he had thrown an interception).
Philadelphia’s Saquon Barkley ran 52 yards for a go-ahead touchdown, giving the Eagles their first lead at 16-13 with 14:51 remaining in a game that had evolved into a field goal kicking contest after Herbert directed the Chargers to an 80-yard scoring drive on their first possession of the game.
Hart’s interception of a Hurts pass that slipped through the hands of wide receiver A.J. Brown set up Dicker’s game-tying field goal with 7:26 left in the game, the third of his field goals tying the score at 16-16 with plenty of time still to be played.
The Chargers led 10-6 by halftime, but their lead could have been wider.
Or narrower.
It depended on your point of view.
The first half was unevenly played in too many ways to mention, but it might have been best summed up by an unusual sequence in the second quarter that featured an interception and two fumbles that resulted in a first down for the Chargers at their own 43-yard line with 8:19 remaining.
Chargers defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand intercepted Hurts’ pass at his own 17 and then began running up the field. He didn’t get far before the Eagles’ Will Shipley forced him to fumble. Hurts picked up the ball at the 32, but the Chargers’ Jamaree Caldwell forced him to fumble at the 33.
Finally, with the ball rolling free toward midfield, the Chargers’ Troy Dye smothered the ball at the 43, putting an end to a comical chase. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Hurts is the first player to commit two turnovers on the same play dating to 1978, which is as far back as its research goes.
The Chargers capitalized on the turnover by extending their lead to 10-3 on Dicker’s 45-yard field goal with 4:53 remaining in the half.
In all, there were a combined six turnovers in the second quarter alone. That’s the most in a quarter since Oct. 27, 2013, when Denver and Washington combined for seven in the fourth.
Herbert had given the Chargers a 7-0 lead with an electric opening drive that included a scramble and then a make-it-up-as-you-go screen pass to running back Kimani Vidal for a 60-yard gain. Omarion Hampton’s first carry after being activated from injured reserve resulted in an 11-yard gain.
Hampton then caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Herbert with 8:49 left in the first half. The way the Chargers sliced through the Eagles’ defense on their first possession, it seemed they might have an easy evening against a reeling team that had lost consecutive games.
The Eagles’ only scores in the half came via two Elliott field goals.
A third attempt, from 48 yards in the closing seconds of the half, sailed wide right after Herbert’s interception in the final minute of the half. Vidal’s unnecessary roughness penalty against Adoree Jackson set up the Eagles at the Chargers’ 30 with 10 seconds remaining in the half.
It might not have been the best half of football ever contested on a Monday night, but it was entertaining.
Hours before the kickoff, the Chargers activated Hampton and fellow running back Hassan Haskins and defensive lineman Otito Ogbonnia from injured reserve. Hampton was sidelined by a fractured left ankle since the Chargers’ loss to the Washington Commanders on Oct. 5.
Haskins had a hamstring injury and Ogbonnia had an injured elbow.
More to come on this story.