Chargers get the boot from Cardinals in last-second defeat – Orange County Register

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Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert throws a pass during the first half of their game against the Arizona Cardinals on Monday night in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

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GLENDALE, Ariz. — When it was done and the Chargers had lost to the Arizona Cardinals, 17-15, on Monday night at State Farm Stadium, their wide receivers held an impromptu meeting in front of their locker stalls, hashing out what did and didn’t work in a game that slipped away suddenly and then all at once.

“All of us, we just want to be accountable,” wide receiver Simi Fehoko said. “We just wanted to talk about how the game went and about holding ourselves accountable. Just being consistent and being a friendly or any kind of receiving option for Justin (Herbert) is huge for us. Go out and execute.”

Across the way, kicker Cameron Dicker offered a tight smile and accepted congratulations after kicking five field goals, accounting for all of the Chargers’ 15 points, including a career-best and franchise record-tying 59-yard boot. He also was successful from 50, 28, 47 and 40 yards.

Dicker’s 40-yard field goal gave the Chargers’ an all-too-brief 15-14 lead with 1:54 remaining in the game. Herbert had guided the Chargers from their own 1-yard line to the Cardinals’ 22 during a massive, 15-play drive that exhausted 8:12 of the fourth-quarter clock.

“I’m very happy with the way I hit (the ball),” said Dicker, whose previous best was a 55-yard field goal last season. “Did what I could, but at the end of the day, a loss is a loss. It’s fun for me to continue like this (converting from long distance), but it’s always a bummer to lose like this.”

Down the corridor from the locker room, Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh did his best to explain how and why it went wrong for the Chargers (3-3), who failed to score a second-half touchdown for the fifth consecutive game and watched in agony as Chad Ryland kicked the winning 32-yard field goal as time expired.

“I thought we moved the ball effectively in the air, but I kept waiting for our running game to pop, and it never did,” Harbaugh said. “It’s not time to lighten up, but to tighten up. Credit to the Cardinals. Their back (James Conner) had a great game, making us miss.”

Conner rushed for 101 yards on 19 carries, anchoring an Arizona ground game that totaled 181.

Moments later, Herbert entered the same interview room that Harbaugh had just exited and tried to put into words the reasons for the Chargers’ ongoing offensive struggles beyond halftime, when it matters most and games are on the line. Herbert threw for a season-best 349 yards but no touchdowns.

“It’s a razor-thin margin in this league,” said Herbert, who also set season highs with 27 completions on 39 attempts, connecting with seven different receivers for gains of 14 yards or more, but did not throw an interception. “We’re a couple of plays away from putting up a lot of points.”

By the end of the night, the Chargers suffered from a case of the what-ifs.

As in, what if rookie cornerback Cam Hart wasn’t penalized for unnecessary roughness on an incomplete pass from Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray to Marvin Harrison Jr., giving Arizona a first down at its own 45? The Cardinals would have then faced a third-and-10 at their own 30 with 1:45 to play.

One replay angle made it appear as if Hart missed Harrison.

“The flag was thrown by the back judge, middle of the field, center field guy. He had a really good look at it,” referee Clete Blakeman told a pool reporter after the game. “It was essentially helmet-to-helmet contact near the head and neck area of the receiver, which is what triggered the foul for unnecessary roughness.”

Arizona then drove for Ryland’s winning field goal.

“That flag was devastating,” Chargers safety Derwin James Jr. said.

Continuing the what ifs, what if Chargers defensive lineman Teair Tart hadn’t fumbled after intercepting a pass from Murray that ticked off the hand of outside linebacker Mack and ricocheted to him? The Chargers would have had the ball deep in Arizona territory early in the game.

And what if Chargers wide receiver Jalen Reagor hadn’t fumbled the ball through the end zone after a 41-yard pass play from Herbert? The Chargers would have had the ball at the Cardinals’ 2-yard line with a chance to take a first-quarter lead, but instead struck out on another scoring opportunity.

“We’ve just got to be better,” James said. “It wasn’t our best football. Frustrated, bro. We don’t want to lose any games, especially because we know how much they count in the end. We’re going to look back on this game and I don’t want to dwell on it, but we need to win these games, these types of games.”

Originally Published: October 21, 2024 at 8:58 p.m.

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Chargers get the boot from Cardinals in last-second defeat – Orange County Register

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