kimani vidal

In four days, the Chargers’ defense went from rattled to relentless.

The Minnesota Vikings were the victims, unable to move the ball Thursday night against a unit that looked shaky and unsure of itself in a humbling loss to Indianapolis the previous Sunday.

That, along with the consistently excellent play of quarterback Justin Herbert and a solid ground attack, paved the way for a 37-10 victory by the Chargers before a national audience.

The game marked the first time the Chargers scored 30 points or more. They didn’t punt all game, something that hadn’t happened since Week 16 of 2021. They had 29 first downs to 12 by the Vikings.

The performance looked much closer to one the Chargers might have turned in last season, when they led the AFC by allowing just 18.5 points per game. In the previous three games, the Chargers had allowed an average of 30.6.

The Chargers turned in the defensive gem without the services of All-Pro safety Derwin James Jr., the team’s leading tackler who left in the first half with an ankle injury. His backup, Tony Jefferson, was hobbled by a hamstring injury, leaving the duties to rookie R.J. Mickens, who had an interception early in the fourth quarter.

The decisive victory propels the Chargers into their mini-bye on a high note, washing away some of the bad taste of three losses in the previous four weeks. Their next game is at the one-win Tennessee Titans on Nov. 2.

That means the Chargers will have more time to heal, vital for a team so banged up.

The Chargers rushed for 207 yards, the most since coach Jim Harbaugh’s first two games with the team last season. Running back Kimani Vidal ran for 117 yards and a touchdown.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert throws during the second half against the Vikings on Thursday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

The emphasis on the run was far more Harbaugh’s style than the 55 pass attempts Sunday in the 38-24 loss to the Colts, when the Chargers spent all game trying to claw their way out of a ditch.

Herbert threw for 227 yards and three touchdowns.

Minnesota was hurting at quarterback with Carson Wentz playing with a brace on his left, non-throwing shoulder. At various times, he was holding his limp arm and wincing on the sideline. He was under near-constant pressure from the Chargers’ pass rush.

Late in the fourth quarter, Wentz was leveled from the blindside by blitzers Cam Hart and Troy Dye. The quarterback lay on the ground in what looked to be excruciating pain for a moment, got up, ran to the sideline and flung his helmet in frustration.

Rookie quarterback Max Brosmer finished the game for the Vikings, who dropped to 3-4. J.J. McCarthy is nursing an injured ankle but is likely to return at quarterback soon.

Chargers safety R.J. Mickens (27) shows his excitement after intercepting a pass from Vikings quarterback Carson Wentz in the second half Thursday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

Khalil Mack, wearing a brace on his injured elbow, was a nightmare for Vikings blockers and spent much of his time in the Minnesota backfield.

As well as the Chargers played, they got off to a terrible start. On their second snap, Herbert threw a short pass to his left that apparently was intercepted by diving cornerback Isaiah Rodgers and returned for an 18-yard touchdown.

The play was nullified, however, when replays showed the football move when Rodgers hit the ground before climbing to his feet.

Having survived that scare, the Chargers took advantage of their new life with a 14-play drive capped by an eight-yard touchdown reception by rookie Oronde Gadsden II.

Herbert has been pressured and hit more than any NFL quarterback, yet he got much better protection Thursday night, thanks in no small part to the return of left tackle Joe Alt.

Also key was the ball carrying of Vidal, promoted from the practice squad in Week 6 because of injuries to the top two Chargers running backs, Najee Harris and Omarion Hampton. Herbert got some big yardage on scrambles as well.

Vidal would score a touchdown in the second quarter, as would Ladd McConkey, and the Chargers had a 21-3 lead at halftime.

In a bit of near-synchronicity, this came four days after the Chargers trailed Indianapolis, 23-3, at halftime.

Just about everything went well for the home team in the first two quarters, with Herbert completing 14 of 18 passes for 191 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The only blemish was an errant 49-yard attempt by kicker Cameron Dicker, his first miss of the season.

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Chargers leaned on a lot of backups Sunday, but with the game against the Miami Dolphins on the line, they turned to Mr. Reliable.

Cameron Dicker kicked a 35-yard field goal with five seconds remaining to lift his team to a 29-27 win, the final points in a game that included six lead changes.

It was the fifth field goal of the day for Dicker, who has never missed from 40 yards or closer.

Chargers safety Derwin James Jr. clinched the win with an interception on the final play, Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s third pick of the day.

The sparse crowd had erupted minutes earlier when Tagovailoa hit Darren Waller for a seven-yard touchdown, reclaiming the lead with 46 seconds on the clock.

But Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert answered with a lightning-quick drive downfield to set up the winning field goal.

The Chargers, ravaged by injuries, effectively leaned on their reserves to help pave the way for their first victory in three weeks.

Reserve running back Kimani Vidal rushed for 124 yards and turned a short pass into a touchdown. He was promoted from the practice squad last Wednesday after the Chargers lost rookie first-round pick Omarion Hampton to an ankle injury. Earlier this season, the team lost veteran running back Najee Harris to a torn Achilles tendon.

Chargers running back Kimani Vidal scores a touchdown in the third quarter Sunday against the Dolphins.

(Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)

The performance marked the first 100-yard game by Vidal, drafted in the sixth round out of Troy University by the Chargers in 2024.

It was the second consecutive week the 1-5 Dolphins were burned by a little-known running back, as Carolina’s Rico Dowdle trampled them for 206 yards in Week 5. Miami came into the game with the NFL’s worst run defense.

On Sunday, the Chargers made seven trips to the red zone but failed to make the most of those, with two touchdowns and five field goals.

Giving the visiting defense all it could handle was Miami’s De’Von Archane, who had a 49-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and a four-yarder in the fourth. The Dolphins repeatedly fed him the ball down the stretch and scored on the touchdown catch by Waller, but they couldn’t hold off Herbert’s final drive.

Stopping the run has been an issue for the Chargers, too, as Washington’s Jacory Croskey-Merritt ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns against them the week before.

The Chargers won their first three games of the season, running the table against AFC West opponents, but lost the next two games at the New York Giants and home against the Washington Commanders.

Not only had the Chargers lost their two top running backs, but they have had to reshuffle their offensive line multiple times because of injuries. They have designed their offense to get the ball out of Justin Herbert’s hands quickly, as he has been hit more than any quarterback in the league this season.

That was the case in the first half of Sunday’s game as well, as Herbert was hit four times — and sacked once — by the Dolphins, who registered just 18 quarterback hits in the first five games combined.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert scrambles during the second half against the Dolphins.

(Lynne Sladky / Associated Press)

But the Chargers came alive in the second half, overcoming a 13-9 halftime deficit, with a five-yard touchdown reception by Ladd McConkey, a seven-yard scoring catch by Vidal, and a fourth field goal by Dicker.

The Chargers, without injured receiver Quentin Johnston, leaned more heavily into rookie tight end Oronde Gadsden II, whose father played receiver for the Dolphins for six seasons.

The younger Gadsden caught seven passes Sunday but also had a fumble that set up Achane’s first touchdown.

Even before Keenan Allen returned to the Chargers last week, he was already having an influence in the receiver room.

As a rookie, Ladd McConkey studied Allen’s practice film on his team-issued iPad, trying to absorb lessons from one of the league’s best route runners — the very player whose rookie records for receptions and receiving yards McConkey would eventually surpass.

“You sit in team meetings, pull up your iPad and just watch,” McConkey said. “Watching his one-on-one stuff from previous years, when he was here. I’m going to check this out, see what he’s got.”

Now, the 33-year-old Allen and 23-year-old McConkey are inseparable on the field. Throughout practice, McConkey picks the veteran’s brain — something he says “would be dumb if I didn’t.”

“He’s been doing it at a high level for a long time, so any knowledge I can get, I’m going to take it,” McConkey said. “He’s very decisive and smart… He knows how to win using leverage. He doesn’t just run past you — he can set you up at the top, stick and he has great hands.”

The prospect of the two playing in the same offense excites McConkey, who says any doubts about their chemistry can be set aside because “in this offense, we can all move around.”

“We can all rotate in different positions and scheme it up the way they want,” McConkey added. “That’s something that’s really good about our receivers, and we’re all very versatile.”

It was the first day the two were able to participate in the same 11-on-11 session, with McConkey returning from an undisclosed injury that sidelined him for several practices and Allen just coming back last week.

Offensive coordinator Greg Roman said Allen’s presence has already made a difference, noting, “We always knew he was a great player, but now that he’s here, he’s proven it once again… Keenan creates flexibility for us and also makes us stronger.”

“Our training staff is doing a great job acclimating him, getting him up to speed,” Roman said. “We’re taking it slow, in a gradual manner… Getting into football shape.”

Running back rotation

At times last season, when healthy, the Chargers rotated as many as three-deep at running back.

With Najee Harris — expected back at some point — and first-round pick Omarion Hampton projected to handle the bulk of the carries, there’s still an opening for a third back in Roman’s system.

With Hampton sitting out Sunday’s preseason game against the New Orleans Saints, plenty of reps were up for grabs. Roman called it a “wide-open competition.”

“There’ll definitely be a rotation no matter what happens,” Roman said. “We’ll try to keep guys fresh throughout the game. I think the days of one running back taking every rep are going the way of prehistoric creatures.”

That leaves the spot up for grabs between second-year back Kimani Vidal — who started Sunday and finished with six carries for 16 yards — and undrafted rookie Raheim Sanders, who had 10 carries for 42 yards and a touchdown.

“He [Sanders] did a great job, kind of created some things on his own,” Sanders said. “Leaned on the defense in the fourth quarter… A lot of it [drive] was him pounding the rock. He did a really nice job for his first game.”

Sanders faces an uphill climb, though. Vidal is coming off a rookie season in which he worked his way from a fringe roster hopeful to contributor, making the 53-man roster and appearing in 10 games.

At practice, the two continue to fight for a good share of reps, with Hassan Haskins mixed in.

Etc…

Quarterback Trey Lance sat out full-team drills Tuesday, which Roman said was simply a rest day after Lance played most of Sunday’s game — stressing it was not injury-related… Guard Mekhi Becton has now missed two full weeks of practice as he continues to “work through something.”