When the SoFi Stadium lights went out midway through the fourth quarter to begin a hype video, hundreds of fans flocked to the exits. The lights were out after a 40-17 Chargers loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Chargers lost ground in a tight AFC wild-card race on Sunday, giving up 27 unanswered points in the second half to drop to seventh in the AFC playoff standings.
The Chargers (8-6) entered Week 15 as one of three 8-5 teams in playoff position and gave up a season high in yards (506) and points, falling behind the Baltimore Ravens and the Denver Broncos in the play-off rankings.
After losing games for the second straight time this season, the Chargers must quickly regroup for a crucial AFC West matchup against the Broncos on Thursday at SoFi Stadium.
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Quarterback Justin Herbert threw for two touchdowns and 195 yards, but had a pass intercepted for the first time since Week 2. His streak of passes without an interception ended at 357, one shy of tying Tom Brady for the fourth-longest streak in NFL history.
But any personal best was the least of Herbert’s worries when Tampa Bay cornerback Jamel Dean hauled in the quarterback’s errant pass.
The Buccaneers (8-6) turned Herbert’s miscue into a 35-yard touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield to Mike Evans four plays later to jump ahead 30-17 with 1:36 left in the third quarter.
Tampa Bay erased a four-point halftime deficit caused in part by two turnovers in the second quarter by scoring 17 points on three straight drives in the third quarter.
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Evans had nine catches for 159 yards and two touchdowns, while Mayfield shook off a second-half interception to finish with 288 yards passing and four touchdowns. He completed 22 of 27 pass attempts against the defense entering the game, putting up a league-best 15.9 points per game.
With 117 yards rushing by running back Bucky Irving, the Buccaneers flexed their balanced attack compared to the Chargers’ running game that only mustered 32 yards on the ground.
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
