Justin Herbert threw three landing passes and the Los Angeles Chargers clinched their second playoff look in three seasons with a 40-7 win over the New England Patriots on Saturday.
The win additionally secured Jim Harbaugh’s fourth postseason look in 5 seasons as an NFL coach, including to the three he made throughout his time with the San Francisco 49ers.
Herbert completed 26 of 38 for 281 yards, changing into the third participant in NFL historical past with at the least 3,000 passing yards and 20 landing passes in every of his first 5 seasons. He joins Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning and Russell Wilson.
Ladd McConkey made eight receptions for 94 yards and made TD throws of 6 and 40 yards. With a 10-yard reception within the second quarter, he surpassed 1,000 receiving yards for the season, changing into the third Chargers rookie receiver to succeed in that mark.
JK Dobbins rushed 19 occasions for 76 yards and a landing.
The Patriots have misplaced six straight video games, their second shedding streak of the season. They at the moment are 2-14 within the final two seasons at dwelling.
New England quarterback Drake Maye completed 12 of twenty-two for 117 yards and a landing. He grew to become the primary rookie quarterback in franchise historical past with a landing cross in eight consecutive video games. But he was sacked 4 occasions and a fumble within the second quarter marked his eighth straight sport with at the least one turnover.
Los Angeles outgained New England 428-181 for the sport.
Maye briefly left the sport to be evaluated for a head harm following a success to the helmet within the first quarter.
He was scrambling close to the sideline on third down of the Patriots’ first possession when he was hit by Chargers cornerback Cam Hart, knocking the ball unfastened as Maye spun out of bounds.
No flags have been thrown on the play, and Maye remained on the turf for a number of seconds earlier than getting up and operating off the sphere. He initially sat on the bench earlier than going to the medical tent for evaluation.
He was changed by backup Jacoby Brissett on the subsequent sequence, which resulted in a punt. But after additional analysis within the locker room and a 27-yard discipline purpose by Cameron Dicker that gave the Chargers a 10-0 lead, Maye returned to the sport for the Patriots’ third sequence, at 10:15 of the second quarter.
Maye scrambled 9 yards on his first playback, leading to a success by linebacker Junior Colson as he slid to the bottom. Colson was flagged for pointless harshness.
Five performs later, Maye missed the throw to Demario Douglas, leading to a fumble that was recovered by Derwin James.
The Chargers took over on the New England 44 and 9 performs later, Herbert linked with McConkey for a 6-yard landing cross to provide Los Angeles a 17-0 lead.
Injuries
Chargers: WR Joshua Palmer left the sport within the third quarter with a heel harm. DB Elijah Molden limped off the sphere after a collision within the third quarter. He returned however was later carried off the course on a golf cart attributable to a shin harm.
Patriots: In addition to Maye, CB Christian Gonzalez left the sport within the second quarter to be evaluated for a concussion and was later dominated out with a concussion.
Beginner report
McConkey, a second-round draft choice, additionally set a rookie report for Chargers catches, surpassing Keenan Allen, who had 71 in 2013.
Next
Chargers: Visit Las Vegas within the common season finale.
Patriots: Host Buffalo subsequent Sunday of their season finale.
Associated Press reporting.
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