They were coming off a 63-21 loss at Las Vegas, a defeat that proved to be the final game for Brandon Staley as head coach and Tom Telesco as general manager. Both were fired the morning after the loss.
So how the Chargers responded against the Bills would be an early storyline.
And their response? They took a 10-0 lead less than two minutes into the second quarter, lost the lead by halftime but hung around to push Buffalo to the brink.
The Bills won on a 29-yard field goal by Tyler Bass with 28 seconds remaining.
Buffalo (9-6) entered needing to win for playoff purposes; the Chargers (5-10) are playing for nothing more than pride at this point.
The loss, coming in the debut of interim head coach Giff Smith, was their sixth in seven games.
The Chargers, who were 12.5-point underdogs, had taken a 22-21 lead with 5:26 to go on Cameron Dicker’s fifth field goal of the night, a 53-yarder.
Down 14-10 at the half, the Chargers pulled to within 14-13 on a 40-yard field goal by Dicker midway through the third quarter.
The score was set up by Alohi Gilman’s first interception of the season. The safety made up some ground and stepped in front of Stefon Diggs to pick off a pass Josh Allen hung in the middle of the field.
(Ryan Sun / Associated Press)
The Chargers’ offense moved deep into Buffalo territory and appeared to have a first-and-goal situation at the Bills’ four-yard line on a 13-yard run by wide receiver Quentin Johnston.
The gain was nullified, however, because Johnston was called for illegal formation when he failed to position himself at the line of scrimmage.
The Chargers were unable to prevent the Bills from extending their lead on their next possession, Allen scoring on a one-yard sneak to make it 21-13.
Two more Dicker field goals — from 47 and 45 yards — made it 21-19 midway through the fourth quarter.
The Chargers’ opening possession was a strong enough statement following the loss to the Raiders as they went 90 yards in 14 plays, though they were unable to reach the end zone.
Still, they took their first lead since a Week 13 victory at New England when Dicker booted a 20-yard field goal to finish the series.
Easton Stick led the offense by converting a pair of third downs —one with a 19-yard completion to Joshua Palmer and the other with a 23-yard pass to Stone Smartt.
The possession stalled at the Bills’ two-yard line when Stick threw incomplete on third-and-goal.
Stick continued his impressive start by then running one yard for the game’s first touchdown, putting the Chargers up 10-0 with 13:49 left in the second quarter.
The offense took over at the Buffalo 27-yard line thanks to the Chargers’ special teams. Rookie AJ Finley forced Bills’ punt returner Deonte Harty to fumble and Amen Ogbongbemiga recovered.
Stick threw three passes to tight end Gerald Everett to pick up 26 yards, giving the Chargers first-and-goal at the Bills’ one. The rushing touchdown was the first of Stick’s career.
He opened the game eight of 10 for 98 yards. Stick did throw an interception on the Chargers’ second possession, but the play was wiped out by a holding call on the Bills.
After netting only three first downs on its first three series, Buffalo struck quickly on possession No. 4 when Allen hit Gabe Davis for a 57-yard touchdown. The score cut the Chargers’ lead to 10-7 with 9:02 remaining in the first half.
Davis ended up matched against linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr., who was unable to stick with the wide receiver when Allen scrambled to extend the play.
Before the play, the Chargers’ defense had permitted only 66 total yards.
The Bills took a 14-10 halftime lead when Allen scored on a two-yard keeper 38 seconds remaining in the second quarter.