Kansas City 34, L.A. Chargers 28
When: 8:20 PM ET, Thursday, December 16, 2021
Where: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California
Temperature:
54°
Head Official:
Shawn Smith
Attendance:
70240
By Field Level Media
Patrick Mahomes tossed a shallow cross that Travis Kelce turned into a 34-yard touchdown in overtime Thursday as the Kansas City Chiefs won their seventh straight by downing the Los Angeles Chargers 34-28 at Inglewood, Calif.
The win widened the AFC West lead for the Chiefs (10-4) as they won their eighth straight road game against the Chargers (8-6).
Mahomes overcame two turnovers, including an interception at his own 4-yard line, and a misfired pass to a wide-open receiver on fourth-and-goal. He finished 31 of 47 for 410 yards, with three touchdowns and one pick. Kelce recorded a career-best 191 yards and two TDs on 10 receptions.
Los Angeles gave the ball away three times on downs, once on a fumble and once on an interception.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert threw for 236 yards, going 22 of 38 with two touchdowns. Justin Jackson led a strong mix of Los Angeles rushers, gaining 86 of the Chargers' 192 yards on the ground.
The teams each scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns, with the Chiefs using a two-point conversion to forge a tie. The last score in regulation came with 1:16 left on a 7-yard Mahomes strike to Kelce, who set up another TD with a 69-yard catch.
Herbert, who was named the AFC player of the week for each of his past two performances, generated second-quarter touchdowns on his own 1-yard rush and a 4-yard pass to Jalen Guyton, giving the Chargers a 14-10 halftime lead.
Los Angeles could have grabbed a larger margin but failed on fourth-and-goal opportunities on its first and last drives of the half.
In the first quarter, Chargers tight end Donald Parham Jr. could not handle a pass in the back of the end zone, then landed awkwardly on his head and was taken to a hospital for evaluation. He was listed in stable condition late in the game.
On the final play of the half, the Chiefs' Daniel Sorensen knocked down a pass by Herbert, keeping Los Angeles from cashing in on a strip-sack by Joey Bosa.
The Chiefs established a 10-0 margin by scoring on their first two possessions.
Kansas City generated seven first downs on its first drive, moving 95 yards to put Michael Burton in position for a 7-yard TD burst on its first possession. The Chiefs got a 30-yard field goal from Harrison Butker early in the second quarter.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
Receiving
Kansas City |
|
L.A. Chargers |
Travis Kelce
|
Player |
Keenan Allen
|
10 |
Receptions |
6 |
191 |
Yards |
78 |
19.1 |
Avg Yards |
13.0 |
2 |
Touchdowns |
1 |
69 |
Long |
29 |
Team Stats Summary
|
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
Kansas City
|
496 |
86 |
410 |
4 |
2 |
1 |
0.0 |
1 |
L.A. Chargers
|
428 |
192 |
236 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
1.0 |
1 |
Upcoming Games
-
L.A. Chargers will play their next game on the road against Houston. The Chargers have a W/L % of .375 after a win and .833 after a loss.
-
Kansas City will play their next game at home against Pittsburgh. The Chiefs have a W/L % of .700 after a win and .750 after a loss.