The Los Angeles Chargers take their 3-5 record into the bye after falling to the New England Patriots 21-13.
Stat of the Game:
Melvin Gordon's 87-yard touchdown run in the first quarter tied Paul Lowe for the single-longest run in Chargers history.
Play of the Game:
Facing a 2nd-and-9 from their own 13, Melvin Gordon took a handoff from Philip Rivers and rushed to the right. Seeing an opening thanks to blocks by Mike Williams and Hunter Henry, Gordon sprinted down the right sideline and into the end zone for the 87-yard score.
Turning Point:
The Chargers got a much-needed stop midway through the second quarter of a tied game, forcing a Ryan Allen punt. Unfortunately, after bobbling the catch along the sideline, Travis Benjamin ran backwards into the end zone trying to find space. He was tackled by Brandon King before he could cross the goal-line, resulting in a safety. The Patriots took the league, and momentum, never looking back from that point forward.
It Was Over When:
The Chargers got the ball back with just over a minute left in the game. They ended up getting down to the New England 23 with one second left in the game. With one shot left, Philip Rivers stepped back and tossed a deep pass aiming for Travis Benjamin. However, it was intercepted by Jonathan Jones.
Bolt Quotebook
"Our guys, they compete every week. So we're always going to have a chance to win the game, I believe. They kept themselves in the game evn though we didn't play our best football." – Head Coach Anthony Lynn
"It would have been nice to get back to .500 with eight left to play, but we've fought our way back to at least give ourselves a chance in the second half…. Certainly, everything is still in front of us." – Quarterback Philip Rivers
"He was just telling us how we did a good job in the first quarter of the season on how we turned the program around. We went 3-1 in the second quarter of the season, and we're looking forward after this bye week to finish the season strong." – DB Desmond King
"We definitely made some mistakes, including myself. We all made mistakes that they capitalized on. We just can't have it. We knew coming in we would have to make less mistakes than them, and we didn't do that today. It hurt us." – Running Back Melvin Gordon
"There really is no secret, you have to give them credit, they are a good team. I think we played well keeping them from scoring touchdowns. We had to make them kick field goals. I thought we did an excellent job, we just have to clean some things up. I thought we played a pretty good game overall." – NT Brandon Mebane
Odds and Ends
The Patriots outgained the Chargers in total yardage, 414-349. They had a 317-192 edge through the air, while the Chargers had a 157-97 advantage on the ground.
Melvin Gordon finished with 132 rushing yards, which are the most on the ground for Gordon this season and is the second-best total of his career.
With four catches, WR Keenan Allen reached 261 for his career, passing Freddie Jones (260) for 13th in team annals.
Joey Bosa's second-quarter sack of Tom Brady gave him the most sacks for a player in NFL history over his first 20 games (19).
Along with Bosa, Darius Philon and Desmond King also had sacks in the game.
Adrian Phillips had 12 solo tackles on the day while Hayes Pullard had 12 combined.
Inactives for the Chargers included QB Cardale Jones, WR Geremy Davis, RB Andre Williams, T Tyler Marz, RT Joe Barksdale, TE Sean Culkin and DE Jerry Attaochu.
