The Chargers had chances, but Sunday in Seattle followed a familiar script they could not escape. Los Angeles opened with a turnover, clawed back into it at times, and still left Lumen Field with a 30-23 loss that dropped the team to 0-4.
It started fast and messy. On the first play from scrimmage, Justin Herbert was picked off by Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas.
Seattle immediately gave it right back when Sam Darnold was intercepted by Chargers edge rusher Tuli Tuipulotu, setting up a first quarter that swung wildly before Los Angeles finally put points on the board. Cameron Dicker converted a 30-yard field goal to give the Chargers a 3-0 lead.
That edge did not last long. After a Seahawks punt, Derius Davis muffed the kick, and Seattle linebacker Connor O'Toole recovered it to flip possession back to the home team. Seattle made the mistake count right away, as Darnold hit Emmanuel Wilson on a short pass that turned into a 23-yard touchdown and a 7-3 lead.
From there, the game bogged down. The Chargers punted on four straight possessions, and the Seahawks answered with three consecutive punts of their own.
Then Seattle found a spark. Darnold led a drive that ended with a 28-yard rushing touchdown by Rasheed Shaeed, pushing the Seahawks ahead 13-3 after Jason Meyers missed the extra point.
Los Angeles had another chance late in the half, but Herbert threw his second interception, this one to Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV. Seattle took over in strong field position and cashing in again, with Wilson scoring from eight yards out for his second touchdown of the day. The Chargers did salvage something before halftime, getting a drive together and benefiting from a Seahawks personal foul before Dicker drilled a 39-yard field goal to make it 20-6.
The second half opened with more Seattle pressure. The Seahawks drove down the field and Darnold found Tory Horton for a six-yard touchdown to stretch the lead to 27-6. The Chargers answered with their best offensive stretch of the game, as Herbert connected with Kimani Vidal on a nine-yard touchdown to bring it to 27-13.
Seattle kept nudging the margin back out. The Seahawks moved into field-goal range, missed a 53-yarder, got extended by a personal foul, then settled for Meyers’ 35-yard kick to make it 30-13. Los Angeles responded again, this time with a balanced drive finished by Omarion Hampton’s two-yard touchdown run to cut it to 30-20.
That set up a tense finish. Seattle bled clock and punted, pinning the Chargers deep. Herbert then delivered one of the game’s biggest throws, a 44-yard completion to Quentin Johnston on fourth and seven, but the drive stalled and Dicker’s 36-yard field goal trimmed the gap to 30-23.
The Chargers got another stop after kicking deep, though a personal foul on defensive tackle Justin Eboigbe was part of the sequence. Even so, Los Angeles forced a punt and burned all three timeouts in the process.
That left Herbert with little room to work when the Chargers got the ball back. On the third play of the drive, Uchenna Nwosu strip-sacked him and Derrick Hall recovered the fumble, effectively ending the comeback bid.
Darnold then kneeled twice to close it out, and Seattle walked away with the 30-23 win. The Chargers dropped to 0-4, while the Seahawks moved to 3-1.
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