Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert completed just 18 of 35 passes for 223 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, the second of which was a pick six to see the New England Patriots into the lead; Mac Jones also went 18 of 35, for 218 yards
Monday 1 November 2021 06:12, UK
Adrian Phillips picked off Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert twice - including a 26-yard pick six in the fourth quarter - to see the New England Patriots edge out the Los Angeles Chargers 27-24 at SoFi Stadium on Sunday.
Phillips, who spent his first six NFL seasons with the Chargers, claimed his second pick off Herbert on a 3rd-and-10 pass intended for Jared Cook and returned it to the house with 10 minutes and 11 seconds remaining in the contest.
The score, along with a successful two-point conversation - Mac Jones to Jakobi Meyers - saw the Patriots into a 24-17 lead, which they then extended to a 10-point advantage after Nick Folk fired through a fourth field goal on the day with just over two minutes to go.
Herbert found Joshua Palmer for a 24-yard consolation TD with 40 seconds left to play, but the Chargers failed to recover the ensuing onside kick to see New England clinch a hard-fought victory.
A third win in four sees the Patriots up to .500 on the season, sitting at 4-4, while the Chargers' second-straight defeat drops them to 4-3.
Titans
Chargers
There were to be no signs of Los Angeles' later struggles on offense as they scored on the game's opening drive, Austin Ekeler rumbling in for a five-yard touchdown.
New England answered back with an impressive 10-play, 75-yard drive of their own, tying the game up with a Damien Harris run from down at the goal line.
A five-yard scoring strike from Herbert to Keenan Allen restored LA's lead early in the second half, before both defense began to step up.
Folk fired through his first two field goals - from 34 and 48 yards - before the half, the second of which coming off the back of Herbert's first pick to make it a one-point ball game at the break.
A couple more field goals were exchanged in the third quarter, before Phillips came up with what proved to be the game-clinching play, returning a Herbert interception 26 yards early in the fourth to see the Patriots into a lead they would not relinquish.
The Patriots (4-4) stay on the road, this time facing off against the Panthers (4-4) in Carolina next Sunday, while the Chargers (4-3) are headed east to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles (3-5).
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