Despite Harbaugh’s best efforts, heartbreaking losses are still occurring for Chargers

Jim Harbaugh has brought plenty of enthusiasm to the Los Angeles Chargers.

The one thing he hasn’t been able to eliminate, though, is the team’s uncanny ability to suffer losses in heartbreaking fashion, otherwise known as “Chargering.”

Monday night’s 17-15 loss to the Arizona Cardinals was the sixth time since the Chargers moved to Los Angeles in 2017 that they have lost on the last play in regulation and 12th including overtime.

Harbaugh hopes this loss puts the “steel in the spine” instead of adding more negativity to a team familiar with close losses.

“The stuff that builds a callus. There is a taste in the mouth,” Harbaugh said. “Like Nelson Mandela said, ‘I don’t lose, either win or I learn.’ To me, what that means is let’s make sure we learn from things that happen and let that make us better. As opposed to any kind of deflecting or anything other than that, so that’s we do.”

Two areas where the Chargers (3-3) need to make immediate improvements are in red zone offense and better results in the fourth quarter.

The offense is five of 13 in scoring touchdowns when it gets inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. The 38.5% success rate is the third lowest in the league.

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“We have to do a good job of playing the way the game needs to be played, not the way we want to play,” said quarterback Justin Herbert, who passed for a season-high 349 yards. “We moved the ball well. We did everything we could. We executed on some third downs. But when it matters most, we have to be able to go out there and execute and score on those drives.”

That also means better execution in the final 15 minutes. Since scoring a pair of touchdowns and rallying for a 22-10 victory over Las Vegas in Week 1, the Chargers have not reached the end zone in the fourth quarter and have been outscored 43-9 in the past five games.

Herbert had his 26th 300-yard passing game of his career on Monday night, but he is 13-13 in those games.

“If we’re spreading the ball around and controlling all aspects of the field, I think that’s huge for our offense. But there’s a lot to improve and we’re looking forward to the challenge of this week,” Herbert said.

What’s working

The passing game. Herbert completed passes to nine players for the second straight game, with seven having at least one catch for at least 14 yards. Herbert was especially effective on first down, completing 13 of 16 passes for 125 yards.

What needs help

Containing scrambling quarterbacks. Kyler Murray’s 44-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter was the second-longest scramble the Chargers have allowed since 2000. It came one week after Denver’s Bo Nix had 61 yards on six scrambles.

Stock up

Cameron Dicker had his second five-field goal game with the Chargers. The third-year kicker also tied a franchise record when he was good from 59 yards on his first attempt.

Stock down

WR Jalen Reagor was on his way to scoring a 44-yard touchdown on the opening drive when he fumbled at the Cardinals 3-yard line. Arizona safety Jalen Thompson recovered the ball in the end zone.

Injuries

LB Joey Bosa missed his third straight game because of a hip injury. WR DJ Chark (hip) will begin his second week of practice after opening the season on injured reserve. ... WR Quentin Johnston (ankle) was inactive.

Key number

68 — Games it took Herbert to reach 1,700 completions. Herbert is the fastest player to reach the milestone, with Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes having the previous mark at 69 games.

What’s next

The Chargers host New Orleans on Sunday, beginning a stretch where four of Los Angeles’ next five games are at home.

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