What Went Wrong: The Timeout Wasn't the Only Reason

The playoffs got underway, and many fans of the Los Angeles Chargers are still thinking, "If only Brandon Staley hadn't called that timeout." Yes, Brandon Staley's choice to call a timeout with 38 seconds left in overtime (and the game overall) was responsible for the Chargers' devastating loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in the final game of the regular season. However, what if I told you that it wasn't the only cause of their demise? What if I told you that the timeout was just the cherry on top of a proverbial banana split of blown opportunities that occurred during the final four weeks of the regular season? No, this isn't 30 For 30; this is just a brief look at the factors that resulted in the Chargers missing the playoffs.

The Chargers entered Week 15 at 8-5, and with a home game against the Kansas City Chiefs, they had a good chance to create a stranglehold in the AFC West. The Chargers had a shocking road win over the Chiefs, and a home win would have completed the series sweep and put them in the driver's seat in the division. However, there was one problem. Head coach Brandon Staley became obsessed with 4th down conversions, even when they were deep in field goal range. All of the Chargers' placekicking was used for extra points. No field goals. As a result, the game ended up going to overtime, and the Chiefs won the toss and drove all the way, with Travis Kelce winning it.

The Chargers lost 34-28, a six point loss. Six points, that's two field goals. If they had decided to kick a few field goals when they had the chance, it would have been a different story. But even with that, they were still in a good playoff position.

The following week saw the Chargers face the lowly Houston Texans. "Perfect," any and all Chargers fans thought that week, as it was an easy opportunity to make up for that bad loss at home. The Texans' season was dead, they were eliminated entering that game, so it'll be easy for the Chargers, right? Wrong. Dead wrong! The Chargers were absolutely flat against this team. The Texans played like worldbeaters against a Chargers team who was playoff bound and a contender for (at least) the AFC West. Houston put up 41 points on the Chargers, and that loss allowed the Chiefs to lock up the AFC West following their own win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. So it was Wild Card or bust for the Bolts, but they were still in decent shape in that regard.

Which brings us to the final game against the Raiders. The Chargers were getting blasted by the Raiders, badly. They were down 29-14 late in the fourth, but quarterback Justin Herbert pulled some rabbits out of his helmet in the final five minutes of regulation. A touchdown, a two-point conversion, and a final second TD to force overtime. The two teams traded field goals to make it 32-32, and the Raiders had the ball in the final moments. After the two minute warning, the play got conservative, but with the Raiders on a 3rd and 5, Brandon Staley calls a timeout, which is later followed by these seven words uttered by Herbert:

"I've never wanted to tie so bad."

The reason why Herbert said those words was simple. There were two playoff spots left in the AFC at kickoff of this finale. The winner would get in and also let the Steelers in thanks to their win in Baltimore and the Indianapolis Colts' shocking loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. More importantly, thanks to the Colts loss, a tie in this game would allow both participating teams to clinch, and it definitely appeared that the Raiders were playing to kill the rest of the clock and settle for the tie (both QB Derek Carr and coach Rich Bisaccia confirmed this after the game). But thanks to Staley's timeout, the Raiders changed their game plan and later handed off the ball to Josh Jacobs, who converted and got into field goal range, allowing Carr to call timeout with two seconds left, and Daniel Carlson to later make the game winning field goal that sent the Raiders and Steelers into the playoffs, while ending the Chargers' season.

Did Staley's timeout cost them the playoffs? Yes. Was it the only factor? No. The Chargers were sitting pretty with four weeks left, but they lost three of their final four games; they fizzled out at the worst possible time. If they had kicked field goals when they should have against KC, if they had beaten the Texans, they wouldn't have needed that game against the Raiders--and they certainly wouldn't have been in a position to settle for a tie just to get in the playoffs.

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