Chargers Embarrassed and Dominated in Loss to Texans
There is no sugar coating the Chargers 41-29 loss to the Houston Texans; it was an embarrassment. It is weird to say that an 8-6 team was in a must-win situation against a 3-11 team, but the Chargers needed this victory to stay in the playoff picture.
Both teams came in with numerous COVID issues, but Houston adjusted better. They were missing eight starters on defense, receiver Brandon Cooks, and three offensive line starters.
"I just didn't coach well enough today," Chargers head coach Brandon Staley said. "I didn't coach well enough. I didn't put our guys in good enough positions to be consistent in the game, and that's why we lost."
The Texans defense was playing fast to the ball and held the Chargers to two field goals on their first two drives.
While Texans quarterback Davis Mills made effective throws to start the game, the running game gave them flashbacks of them not stopping the run like earlier in the season. Rex Burkhead scored a 25-yard touchdown to open up the scoring for Houston.
The Chargers offense was able to run the ball well with Justin Jackson. He capped off a seven-play 70-yard drive with a 17-yard rushing touchdown on their third drive.
The Texans answered back with a field goal.
Justin Herbert has usually done well to score before the half, but today, Herbert was on Houston's 39-yard line when he threw down the field and was intercepted by Jonathan Owens. It was intended for Josh Palmer, who was open, but Herbert let it hang too long.
"I just got to throw farther," Herbert said. "I thought Josh ran a good route is that I had plenty of time. I just got to throw farther."
Mills had about four minutes to work with, so he started with a nice back-shoulder 36-yard pass to Phillip Dorsett over a returning Asante Samuel Jr. A couple of plays later, he threw a beauty to Chris Conley for a 41-yard touchdown to give Houston a 17-12 halftime lead.
Texans came out at halftime, and missed a field goal. Chargers kicker Dustin Hopkins made his third field goal to bring them to within nine points.
Houston bled the clock and the energy of the defense on their next drive, mixing the run with the pass well. Burkhead finished the drive off with a one-yard score and, over seven minutes, came off the clock.
The second mistake came when Jackson fumbled on the second play giving the ball back to Houston.
They got three points off the drive.
Chargers drove up the field quickly, and capped off the drive with a Jackson nine-yard touchdown. Besides the fumble, he had 162 total yards and two touchdowns.
Houston answered when Burkhead went for a 36-yard gain, which gave him a career-high in rushing yards 149 plus two touchdowns. The drive was ended by a Mills touchdown throw to rookie receiver Nico Collins.
Mills picked apart the Chargers defense all night, going 21 for 27 for 254 yards and two passing touchdowns.
"I thought he's been a quality player the entire season," Staley said. "I think he's given them a real chance, and that's why they're starting him. They're starting him because they feel like he's their best quarterback and that they feel like he has a chance to be the starter for that team moving forward."
Herbert threw a pick-six to Tavierre Thomas and then a touchdown pass to rookie Josh Palmer to finish the game.
The Chargers offense wasn't themselves on Sunday. They settled for field goals and couldn't put the ball in the end zone. They had three turnovers that led to 17 points by Houston.
"It's one of those things that we kind of shot ourselves in the foot, and we didn't move the ball really well," Herbert said. "I thought we ran the ball well, and unfortunately, we didn't get to turn those drives into a touchdown."
Los Angeles does have a lack of depth. This team is top-heavy, and when their stars can't play, they struggle. On Sunday, there was no Derwin James, Joey Bosa, and Michael Davis, so the defense struggled. It was a time for backups to show that they are quality rotational players.
"A lot of guys had the opportunity to step up and kind of show what they did," cornerback Chris Harris said. "We couldn't really do that today. I don't think we took full advantage of the opportunity that we had."
Even with that, there is no excuse to lose to the Houston Texans. There is none. It was an embarrassing result that for now has them on the outside looking in as far the playoffs. Almost all season long, the Chargers have been in the playoff bracket.
"We ain't come ready to play as a team," Harris Jr. said. "It's just something that we got to bounce back next week."
The Chargers play the Broncos at home and finish the season in Las Vegas. They will need help to get into the playoffs, which is by Pittsburgh, Miami, and Baltimore taking losses.
They didn't want to be in this position. They controlled their own destiny coming into Sunday. Now in typical Charger fashion, they must rely on help to get in.
If the Chargers don't get into the playoffs, this Houston game will come back to sting them, but the lack of depth is starting to hurt them during the most crucial stretch of the season.
"We got a bunch of pissed off guys," left tackle Rashawn Slater said. "Just got to lock in next week."
