The short-handed Los Angeles Chargers deployed an “is-what-it-is” attitude after their 19-3 loss to the Broncos on Sunday afternoon at Empower Field at Mile High.
Asked if the AFC playoff picture is “wide open,” veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen paused for a moment and then said, “Yeah, kind of. The seeds don’t really matter. Home-field advantage doesn’t.”
Allen had better be right if L.A. is going to have any chance to make some postseason noise.
An upset victory over Denver would have given the Chargers (11-6) the AFC’s sixth seed in the playoffs. Sunday’s loss, however, dropped them to the seventh seed, sending them to second-seeded New England (14-3) in next weekend’s wild-card round.
Should the Chargers upset the Patriots, they will earn a return trip to Denver to face the top-seeded Broncos (14-3) in two weeks. The Broncos earned a first-round bye via Sunday’s win.
Those Chargers would be much different than the team that bumbled its way to 217 total yards of offense on Sunday against a relentless Broncos defense.
With no chance to win the AFC West, the Chargers treated Sunday’s game much like a late-summer exhibition game. Coach Jim Harbaugh sat several of his starters, most notably star quarterback Justin Herbert, safety Derwin James, edge rusher Khalil Mack, and outside linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu. All four are expected back for the playoff game at New England.
All told, 14 Chargers regulars didn’t play Sunday.
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Herbert's return will be crucial. This season, he's thrown for 3,727 yards (232.9 per game), completing 66.4% of his passes, with 26 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He has also rushed for 498 yards on 83 attempts with two touchdowns.
Backup QB Trey Lance had no chance against the Broncos' defense, nor against the raucous crowd at Empower Field. Making his sixth career start and first with the Chargers, he was out of synch from the beginning. His fourth pass glanced off the hands of KeAndre Lambert-Smith and into the arms of Ja'Quan McMillian, who raced down the Broncos' sideline for a 45-yard touchdown and a 10-0 lead.
Lance completed just 20 of 44 passes for 136 yards and a 43.4 passer rating. He was sacked four times by a Denver defense that set a franchise record and NFL-high 68 sacks this season, four shy of the 1984 Chicago Bears' NFL-record 72 sacks.
Harbaugh, naturally, was ready to move past Sunday's loss and begin thinking about the Patriots.
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Harbaugh said he would have liked to have won Sunday's game, but said he had no regret about sitting some of his best players. Asked about the possibility of returning to Denver to face the Broncos' defense and their fanatical fans, Harbaugh said, "It's a great environment for football. It's tough."
The Broncos and Chargers split the season series, with the Chargers winning 23-20 in L.A. in Week 3. In that game, Herbert threw Allen for a tying touchdown with 2:44 remaining in the game and then led L.A. into position for Cameron Dicker's game-ending 43-yard field goal. Herbert was 28 of 47 for 300 yards and one TD and one interception in that game.
L.A. has been a formidable opponent for Denver. In fact, quarterback Bo Nix has yet to beat a Chargers team at full strength since entering the NFL as a rookie in 2024 as a first-round pick.
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