If the Los Angeles Chargers make a strong push late in the season and go far in the playoffs, one major factor will be what Derwin James Jr. did during halftime on Thursday night.
With the Chargers trailing the Denver Broncos 21-13 and playing some of their worst football of the season, it was James, not head coach Jim Harbaugh, who spoke to the team during the break.
Whatever James said had an impact, as the team responded with a 34-27 victory, putting them closer to securing their second playoff spot in three years.
“Derwin was great in the locker room at halftime,” Harbaugh said. “The energy was high right from the beginning and it never wavered.”
James had plenty of reasons to be upset during halftime. The Chargers had been outscored 48-13 in the last four quarters, which included the second half against Tampa Bay and the first half against Denver.
Even worse, the defense had allowed scores on 13 out of 18 drives (including eight touchdowns) and had forced only two punts in seven quarters.
“I feel like, as players, we need to take it upon ourselves. This is our team, too,” James said. “And I feel like, man, my message was simple. Man, it’s time for us to play ball.
And I feel like, as a team, we just came out and did that. It was nothing rah, rah, rah. It was just: ‘It’s time to go, man. It’s time for us to play our best ball in December, January.’ I feel like we did that today.”
The Chargers received help from all areas in the second half, ending a rough stretch of three losses in four games.
Justin Herbert and the offense scored on three of their first four possessions after halftime. The running game, which had been struggling since J.K. Dobbins’ knee injury, showed improvement, and Herbert made a remarkable cross-body throw while off-balance to Derius Davis for a 19-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter, putting Los Angeles ahead.
The defense limited Denver to just 107 yards in the second half after allowing 229 in the first.
Special teams also played a role in the comeback, with Cameron Dicker making a 57-yard fair-catch kick on the final play of the first half, becoming the first kicker in 48 years to do so.
“I feel like we showed that we can win in many different ways — whether it’s the defense, it’s the offense, special teams, in prime-time games — we’ve showed that and just want to keep that going,” James said.
With a 9-6 record, the Chargers have a 97% chance of making the playoffs, according to the NFL, and currently hold the sixth seed in the AFC after beating Denver. This means they will likely face Pittsburgh or Baltimore in the wild-card round, which is a better outcome than playing Kansas City or Buffalo as the seventh seed.
Los Angeles will secure its second playoff appearance in three years if Indianapolis and Miami lose on Sunday.
The Chargers have two away games left but are favored against New England and Las Vegas.
