5 numbers that tell tale of Chargers’ victory over Broncos

The Chargers hosted the Broncos at SoFi Stadium in a must-win game to keep their playoff aspirations alive.

They delivered, defeating Denver by the score of 34-13.

Here are five numbers that tell the story of Los Angeles’ victory in Week 17:

35

Every week, it seemed that Justin Herbert accomplished something to be put in the history books, but this feat was special. Herbert’s 45-yard touchdown pass to Mike Williams in the fourth quarter gave him the single-season franchise record for touchdown passes with 35. Philip Rivers had the previous record with 34 touchdowns in 2008. To know that he surpassed this in just his sophomore season is truly remarkable.

3

The Chargers struggled to get off the field in weeks prior, fielding the worst third-down defense in the league. However, the team made a turnaround for the better in this game, as they held the Broncos to just three conversions on 11 attempts. It helped with having Joey Bosa, Derwin James, and Justin Jones back to force Denver into third-and-long situations.

3.1

That segues perfectly into the run defense, where the Chargers did a 360 after being gashed by the Texans the week before. The difference was night and day, and it’s due to the contributions of Bosa, James, and especially Jones, who ate up blocks and slivered his way through gaps to make plays in the backfield. As a result, the Broncos averaged just 3.1 yards per carry.

101

When was the last time the Chargers had a competent kick returner? The midseason signing of Andre Roberts showed to be worth it as soon as he took the field in the blue and gold. But the veteran made a strong point to be re-signed at the end of the season. Roberts opened up the game with an eyebrow-raising 47-yard kick return. Then, early into the fourth quarter, Roberts took one back to the crib for a 101-yard return, marking the fourth-longest in franchise history the first by a Chargers player since 2012.

173

Austin Ekeler has been electric since Week 1, but his fellow teammate Justin Jackson is hitting his stride at the right time. Impactful catching the football just as much as they were running it, Ekeler and Jackson combined for 173 yards from scrimmage, which was more than half the team’s total yards (341). Having a solid one-two punch in the backfield will go a long way heading into the season’s final game and the playoffs, should the Chargers beat the Raiders.