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The Ravens’ Rashod Bateman (7) flips over as he makes a touchdown catch over Chargers cornerback Kristian Fulton (7) in the second quarter to give Baltimore a lead it would not relinquish. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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 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. Instead of the towering 6-foot-3 Henry, however, it was Justice Hill — a 5-10, 195-pound former fourth-round pick — who made the decisive play, scoring on a 51-yard run with 7:24 remaining.
The game-breaking touchdown was set up by a dropped pass on third and six by Quentin Johnston on the Chargers’ previous possession when they trailed by seven. The second-year receiver had a wide-open catch with plenty of room to run, but the ball glanced off his hands. He shook his head as he retreated to the sideline, where teammates gave him encouraging taps on the shoulder.
Still, the damage was done.
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Instead of allowing the Chargers’ defense to rest on the sideline, the drop let the Ravens continue a run of five straight scoring drives.
While the Ravens controlled the game with their punishing running game, the Chargers (7-4) went three and out on their first two fourth-quarter drives, mimicking last week’s late-game struggles against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Chargers stirred back to life just in time against the Bengals, but couldn’t find a similar lifeline Monday against Lamar Jackson. The two-time most valuable player threw for 177 yards and two touchdowns on 16-of-22 passing and ran for a…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/chargers-drop-ball-offense-defense-043739357.html
Author : LA Times
Publish date : 2024-11-26 04:37:00
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