All that talk about the left hand of Justin Herbert, and Monday night came down to the left foot of Cameron Dicker — and both hands of Tony Jefferson.
Dicker made five field goals and Jefferson made a game-ending interception to lift the Chargers to a 22-19 overtime victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.
Cam Hart tipped the pass and Jefferson picked it off a yard from the end zone as the rest of the Chargers stormed the field.
It was the third consecutive defeat for the defending Super Bowl champions and the fifth win in six games for the Chargers, who still have a robust heartbeat in the playoff race. They need to win one of their final four games for a realistic chance at the postseason.
The Chargers (9-4) close out with a brutally difficult stretch. They play at Kansas City and Dallas, come home for a game against Houston, and finish at white-hot Denver.
Leading them is Herbert, who played Monday a mere week after surgery to repair his fractured left hand. At times, it seemed he was willing his team to victory against a franchise that bore little resemblance to the one that captured the latest Lombardi Trophy.
What proved to be the winning kick was a 54-yard field goal by Dicker, who forced overtime with a 46-yarder with eight seconds left in regulation.
Herbert, sacked a career-high seven times, didn’t half-step into the hole. He ran, ran and ran again Monday night, once even using his wounded hand to stiff-arm a defender on a keeper. He was his team’s leading rusher after a week of speculation whether he would even be on the active roster.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert tries to get rid of the ball while being sacked during the first half Monday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Herbert finished with 10 carries for 66 yards. He threw for 139 yards with a touchdown and interception.
The Chargers collected nine of their 16 first downs by running.
The game wasn’t pretty. Inglewood was closer to Fumblewood as both teams struggled with turnovers, including an interception and fumble by Hurts on the same play.
Ball security was merely a rumor at SoFi Stadium, as the Eagles (8-5) turned over the ball five times and the Chargers three times.
Hurts was intercepted four times after just two picks in his first 12 games. In the second quarter, his pass over the middle was picked off by Da’Shawn Hand, who subsequently fumbled. Hurts got the ball back but he too fumbled, and the Chargers wound up with it.
Herbert took a punishing assortment of hits and in the second half resorted to using his right hand to put the ball in the gut of his running backs when he would otherwise use his left. His surgically repaired hand was protected by a thin cast under his glove.
Late in the game, he had been sacked as many times in the second half (five) as he had completions. He couldn’t use his left arm to break his fall, either, so he was slammed to the turf on multiple occasions.
Once again, Herbert showed his grit. And that’s not a left-handed compliment.
Chargers kicker Cameron Dicker (11) celebrates after making a 54-yard field goal in overtime against the Eagles at SoFi Stadium on Monday night.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
