The LA Chargers almost Chargered away a win on Sunday Night Football against the Cincinnati Bengals but were able to pull a win out of a losable game thanks in large part to head coach Jim Harbaugh. Even those on the Chargers roster admitted after the game that there is a new sense of confidence under Harbaugh that did not exist in previous years when the bottom started to fall out.
While the outcome was positive, there are some rightful concerns after the game. The Chargers' inability to put the Bengals away is concerning as it highlighted holes on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball.
Most notably, the Chargers were unable to run the ball consistently against the Bengals to put the game on ice in the second half, prompting flashbacks of the blown lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2022 playoffs.
The Chargers completely went away from Gus Edwards during this stretch and when asked for an explanation on why that was the case, Harbaugh provided an answer that only confuses fans.
RB Gus Edwards played his final snap last night with 13:23 remaining in the third quarter. Jim Harbaugh said Edwards' lack of snaps in the second half was not injury related. He said RB J.K. Dobbins "was rolling" and "in a great rhythm."
— Daniel Popper (@danielrpopper) November 18, 2024
Jim Harbaugh's explanation for the Chargers going away from Gus Edwards makes no sense
On paper, it appears Harbaugh made the right call. J.K. Dobbins finished the game with more yards per carry and clinched the game with a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. However, that touchdown run tilts the numbers and wasn't so much Dobbins' doing as it was the team's doing.
Dobbins averaged 2.7 yards per carry outside of his game-winning 29-yard touchdown. The former Ravens running back carried the ball five times for 18 yards (15 of those yards coming on one run) prior to the 29-yard sprint. He was by no means tearing it up.
Meanwhile, Edwards averaged 4.5 yards per carry in his nine attempts in the game. Edwards was by no means perfect but he played well enough to receive snaps when the game mattered most.
This is not to say Dobbins should not have been playing down the stretch for the Chargers. While his overall performance left more to be desired, he came up with the biggest play of the game in the biggest spot.
Instead, this highlights a play-calling gaffe by the Chargers in this game. The Bolts ran only seven designed runs in the second half despite protecting a big lead. The Chargers had no counter whatsoever to Cincinnati's run defense and simply decided to go against the run altogether.
Thankfully, the Chargers can learn lessons from this game while also coming away with the win. But if the Bolts weren't so fruitful then the main story around the game would have been the team's lack of a rushing attack in the second half.