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Bengals-Chargers: Justin Herbert leads winning drive after LA squandered a 21-point lead to beat Cincinnati 34-27

The Cincinnati Bengals had a great rally to come back from a 21-point deficit and tie Sunday night’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers. It was impressive.

And ultimately pointless.

The Bengals are in big trouble after their comeback failed to lead to a win. Evan McPherson missed two field goals in the fourth quarter, allowing the Chargers to turn around a huge collapse and win 34-27 on Sunday night.

Justin Herbert hit two big passes to Ladd McConkey in the final minute to put the Chargers within field goal range, before JK Dobbins took care of business himself by breaking up a 29-yard touchdown run with 18 seconds left for the win.

The Bengals could technically still win a Super Bowl this season, but that would likely require them to win every game from now until early February. Realistically, we saw the Bengals’ slim playoff hopes disappear on Sunday night. The Bengals are 4-7 after the loss. The comeback from a 27-6 deficit made for an entertaining game, but for the Bengals it was just another loss.

This defeat could spell the end of their playoff hopes. The Chargers can feel good about their own playoff chances after coming off a win they almost gave away. In previous years, the Chargers would have blown those types of games. It’s what they’ve become known for. But Herbert took action at just the right time and Dobbins closed the door to avoid an embarrassing loss.

Los Angeles Chargers running back JK Dobbins (27) jumps into the end zone to score a rushing touchdown past Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Josh Newton (28) during the second half of an NFL football game on Sunday, November 17, 2024 in Inglewood, California ( AP photo/Gregory Bull)Los Angeles Chargers running back JK Dobbins (27) jumps into the end zone to score a rushing touchdown past Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Josh Newton (28) during the second half of an NFL football game on Sunday, November 17, 2024 in Inglewood, California ( AP photo/Gregory Bull)

Chargers running back JK Dobbins scores the winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter in Los Angeles’ win against Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

The Chargers had a great first half. Cincinnati took a 3-0 lead on a field goal, but the rest of the first half belonged to the Chargers.

Herbert was fantastic in the first half, completing 10 of 14 passes for 183 yards and two touchdowns. One went to Will Dissly and the other to Quentin Johnston. A late drive in the first half resulted in a field goal and the Chargers led 24-6 at halftime.

The Bengals were outscored 272-126 before halftime. It looked like Los Angeles was on its way to a one-sided victory.

Then, with their season on the line, the Bengals came alive. Joe Burrow got hot. Touchdown passes to Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins cut Los Angeles’ lead to 27-20. A Herbert fumble inside Bengals territory gave Cincinnati even more momentum. Burrow escaped a pair of sack attempts on the ensuing drive and hit Chase for another touchdown. Cincinnati was terrible in the first half, trailing 27-6 at one point, but scored 21 straight points early in the fourth quarter to tie the game.

The Bengals stormed back and the Chargers imploded.

The Bengals were in position to take a late lead, but McPherson, normally reliable, missed a field goal. The Chargers couldn’t capitalize, with a holding penalty negating a first-down pass from Herbert, and then a big miss from Herbert to a wide-open McConkey as they played third down again.

While the Chargers let the Bengals back into the game, Herbert helped give it to them during his fourth-quarter fumble, McConkey’s miss and the overall ineffectiveness of the offense. Los Angeles only got a field goal after halftime as the Bengals had their scoring barrage.

After Herbert McConkey missed, the Bengals had another chance to complete the comeback. They drove into Chargers territory in the final minutes of regulation. Burrow continued to make huge passes to get the Bengals within field goal range. But McPherson missed a 51-yard attempt with less than two minutes remaining.

Herbert followed with three straight incompletions and the Chargers punted, giving the Bengals another chance to win the game. Cincinnati immediately kicked the ball back.

That gave Herbert an opportunity. He hit two passes to McConkey, one for 28 yards and the other for 27, seemingly putting the Chargers in position for a field goal. But Dobbins broke a long run and jumped into the end zone for the winning score.

There are still seven weeks left in the season and a lot can change in that time, but it looks like we can figure out the seven AFC playoff teams.

The Bills, Chiefs and Texans are heavy favorites to win their divisions. The Steelers lead the AFC North, but the Ravens can’t be counted out and the team that doesn’t win the division gets a wild card. The Chargers and surprising Broncos look like the other two wild-card teams. Sunday night’s loss puts the Bengals well out of the postseason picture.

The Bengals have been competitive in most of their losses, including a wild comeback to tie Sunday night’s game. Close won’t be good enough for Cincinnati if playoff spots are available.

LIVE DECLARATION IS OVER44 updates

  • A thrilling win for the Chargers, who are now two games behind Kansas City in the AFC West

  • Chargers take a timeout with three seconds left

    Cincinnati has the ball just past midfield for this Hail Mary attempt

  • JK Dobbins races for a 29-yard touchdown

    This game was great and JK Dobbins gave the Chargers a late lead with 18 seconds left.

  • Ladd McConkey AGAIN

    This is a crazy throw with so much pressure in Justin Herbert’s face.

  • Herbert to McConkey for a big play down the sideline

    Huge gain for LA to get within field goal range of Cameron Dicker

  • Chargers force a quick Bengals punt, and Justin Herbert gets another chance

    Neither offense can be late. The Chargers start at their own 16 and have 45 seconds and two timeouts to try to get within field goal range

  • Chargers go 3-and-out VERY quickly

    Three incomplete passes and the kick took up just 22 seconds of the clock, and the Bengals got it back with two timeouts and 1:26 left in the game.

  • McPherson misses AGAIN!

    This time both moved to the left from 51 meters. The Chargers now take over at the 41-yard line. with another chance to move on

  • Joe Burrow was sparkling tonight

    At the two-minute warning, Burrow goes 27-for-42 for 329 yards and three touchdown passes with Tee Higgins as the leading receiver with nine catches for 148 yards and a touchdown.

  • Holding the penalty will clear the third down pass and Chargers will punt

    A tough task for the Chargers after Justin Herbert hit Joshua Palmer and converted a 3rd-and-4 that was called back to pin Rashawn Slater. After the kick, the Bengals take over on their own with the game still tied and just under 5:30 left in regulation.

  • Evan McPherson misses from 48 meters

    We remain tied at 27 with 7:31 to play, and the Chargers have a chance to break the tie as their drive begins at the 38-yard line

  • Joe Burrow with a 15-yard dash for a huge third down conversion

    It keeps the drive alive and takes it to the Chargers’ 34-yard line with eight minutes to play in the fourth quarter

  • There’s something magical about this Cincinnati offense

  • Cincinnati gets one more stop

    The Chargers’ offense was non-existent in the second half. After opening the second half with a field goal, their three drives since have been 13 plays for 51 yards, with two punts and a fumble. The Bengals have just over 11 minutes left with a chance to take the lead on another JK Scott punt.

  • Make it two touchdowns for Ja’Marr Chase

    These two old tigers are simply unavoidable. Draw in Los Angeles.

  • Just some outrageous stuff from Joe Burrow

    Everyone in an orange helmet at SoFi Stadium looks like a completely different player in this second half, and Joe Burrow is leading the charge.

  • Herbert coughs it up

    Geno Stone recovers the ball and now the Bengals are at it. Logan Wilson’s leg knocked the ball out, and now the Bengals can tie the game on this drive after trailing 27-6 in the third quarter.

  • A hole to Higgins šŸ’£ on a 4th and 2 for a touchdown

    Cincinnati is back in the game and their explosive offense is making a huge play. It’s 27-20 in the third quarter, and the Bengals are square in this game.

  • Bengals force a quick 3-and-out

    Cincinnati forces the quick kick. Joseph Ossai came home to sack Justin Herbert, and now the Bengals are knocking on the door to get back into the game after a bad kick from JK Scott.

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