End of shutdown?
Not for Chargerswhose defense stifled the Pittsburgh Steelers by hitting win 25-10 in front of a sea of fans dressed in black and gold and a national television audience.
Neither team had much of an offensive highlight (or first downs, for that matter), but the Chargers did enough to win their third game in a row, something they hadn't done since the first three games of the season.
You could call the Chargers inhospitable considering the Steelers entered the game averaging 25.3 points. You can call the Steelers inhospitable for filling Sophie Stadium with Pittsburgh fans.
Terrible towels were everywhere, but there were very few opportunities to twirl them. By the fourth quarter, thousands of these fans were streaming to the exits. The Steelers gained 11 first downs, converted two of 11 third downs and gained a total of 221 yards.
Aaron Rodgers looked in every way like he was 41 years old. He was sacked three times, intercepted twice, picked off in the end zone for a safety, and finished the game with an anemic passer rating of 50.6.
The Steelers looked nothing like the team that committed six losses last week against Indianapolis and handed the Colts only their second loss.
In moments of decline, Keenan Allen caught a pass and ran for seven yards to become the Chargers' all-time leader in receptions (956), surpassing the Hall of Fame tight end. Antonio Gates.
Rodgers was unable to establish anything close to an offensive rhythm, and the Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert suffered a familiar setback playing behind an offensive line that featured 19 different combinations this season.
Herbert was sacked five times, a week after the Tennessee Titans picked him off six times.
Chargers linebacker Bud Dupree dances after sacking Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers on Sunday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
The Steelers scored first with a 59-yard Chris Boswell field goal in the first quarter, but after that it was virtually all the Chargers. Cameron Dicker kicked three field goals, while Ladd McConkey and Kimani Vidal scored touchdowns.
Rodgers threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Roman Wilson with 2 minutes, 57 seconds left, but it was just a cosmetic result that made the game tighter.
Herbert was hit from behind in the second quarter, slowly rose to his feet and had both ankles taped on the sideline.
He entered the game being pressured an average of 17 times per game, more than any other quarterback this season, and averaging nine hits per game, the second-highest total for an NFL quarterback in the last 20 seasons, according to NBC.
The Chargers were coming off a win at Tennessee, in which they lost left tackle Joe Alt, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury. Team traded for New Orleans offensive lineman Trevor Penning last week.
Even though they resorted to a variety of quick passes to quickly get the ball out of Herbert's hands, the Chargers still saw their quarterback get knocked down time and time again. His passes were also picked off at the line of scrimmage, and one again ended up in Herbert's hands on a reception (though it was negated by a Pittsburgh penalty).
The Chargers defense got to Rodgers, putting the home team's first points on the scoreboard by sacking the future Hall of Famer in the end zone.
Next up, the Chargers travel to Jacksonville. The Jaguars, who started 4-1, have lost three of four.
Jacksonville was the scene of a terrible memory for the Chargers, who blew a 27-point lead and suffered a one-point loss in a playoff game in January 2023.
