The Chargers are hitting their stride on offense going into the playoffs

The Los Angeles Chargers’ offense is finally hitting its stride at the most important part of the season.

Over the last 10 quarters, the Chargers have scored on 18 of 25 possessions (10 touchdowns, eight field goals). That includes seven straight drives that produced points in Sunday’s 34-20 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders that wrapped up the AFC’s fifth seed for the Chargers (11-6) and a trip to Houston on Saturday for a wild-card round game.

“If you’re picking a time to peak, this is the time to do it,” offensive coordinator Greg Roman said last week. “I think we’ve made a lot of strides over the course of the year, and we’re starting to see the results of a lot of hard work.”

A big reason for the offensive surge is that the run and pass games are both clicking at the same time.

Justin Herbert passed for 346 yards on Sunday, his first 300-yard game since Oct. 21 at Arizona. Quentin Johnston had career highs in receptions (13) and yards (186). It was also the most receiving yards by a Chargers player since Keenan Allen had 183 against Houston in Week 3 in 2019.

Ladd McConkey finished with 10 straight games of at least 50 receiving yards, breaking the NFL rookie record that Odell Beckham Jr. set with the New York Giants in 2014.

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J.K. Dobbins’ return has bolstered the run game. The Chargers are averaging 121.8 yards and 4.1 yards per carry with Dobbins in the lineup compared with the 74.8 yards per game and 3.6 yards per carry during the four games he missed because of a knee injury.

The balance on offense has helped Herbert excel on play action. The fifth-year quarterback has a league-high 75.5% completion percentage on play fakes, according to the NFL’s Next Gen Stats, including 12 of 12 for 176 yards and a touchdown on Sunday.

“Ideally that’s when we’re at our best offensively. It’s having all those guys and having Ladd on third down, having Q (Johnston) and Dis (tight end Will Dissly) and even the run game we’ve had and putting all those pieces together. When we’re able to do that, we are playing our best football,” Herbert said.

The Chargers’ next task will be preparing for a Houston defense that allowed the sixth-fewest yards per game (315) and was second in interceptions with 19.

“I think we’re in a good place. The fellas are ready to roll,” said coach Jim Harbaugh, who is headed to the playoffs for the fourth time in his five NFL seasons.

What’s working

The defense allowed the fewest points in the league (301), the first time the Chargers have done that since 1963 when they were in the American Football League. A big reason for that is they allowed only 18 touchdowns in 40 red-zone possessions. That 45% rate was the best in the league.

What needs help

The Chargers have allowed 11 passing touchdowns of at least 25 yards, second most in the league. Five have come in the past four games, including a 25-yard score by Las Vegas’ Jakobi Meyers during the second quarter on Sunday.

Stock up

In his first start at left tackle, rookie Joe Alt allowed just one quarterback pressure on 37 pass-blocking snaps, according to Next Gen Stats. Alt moved from right tackle when Rashawn Slater was declared inactive after he felt discomfort in his knee during pregame stretching.

Stock down

CB Kristian Fulton allowed four receptions for 62 yards, including the TD to Meyers where Fulton bit on a double move. Fulton has been targeted 18 times in the past four games and allowed 15 receptions for 172 yards and two touchdowns.

Injuries

Slater is slated to have an MRI to determine if there is anything significant about the knee discomfort he experienced in warmups. RB Gus Edwards (ankle), WR Joshua Palmer (foot) and LB Denzel Perryman (groin) were inactive against the Raiders.

Key numbers

3 — Interceptions thrown by Herbert, the second fewest in NFL history by a quarterback with at least 450 pass attempts.

11 — Wins by the Chargers, their most since they had 12 in 2018.

9 — Turnovers committed, the fewest in franchise history and third fewest in NFL history.

What’s next

The Chargers have not faced the Texans since Week 17 of the 2021 season, a 41-29 loss at Houston. Los Angeles leads the all-time series 5-3 but has dropped three of the past four.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL