The Los Angeles Chargers came into Sunday night’s matchup with the Miami Dolphins holding a 6-6 record and clinging to their hopes of making the playoffs.
Although it may not have been the most impressive performance, the Chargers got themselves a 23-17 win to improve to 7-6 and move into seventh place for the final Wild Card spot in the AFC.
One thing that is striking about L.A. is that it doesn’t take many shots downfield despite having one of the game’s truly elite quarterbacks in Justin Herbert, who went 39 of 51 for 367 yards on Sunday.
On the other hand, Tua Tagovailoa was 10 of 28 for the Dolphins, and although he is still putting it together, he still takes some unnecessary risks at times.
This account summed it up eloquently on Twitter.
The Dolphins call plays like they have a QB with Justin Herbert's arm talent.
The Chargers call plays like they have a QB with Tua Tagovailoa's arm talent.
— Barry (@BarryOnHere) December 12, 2022
Another thing that is always striking about any games played at SoFi Stadium, whether the home team is the Chargers or Los Angeles Rams, is that there are often more fans of the road team than the home team in attendance.
For the record Dolphins fans are absolutely outnumbering chargers fans today at Sofi stadium
— Ouch (@whyPhinswhywhy) December 12, 2022
After running out to an 8-3 record, Miami has lost its last two games, and it has fallen two games behind the Buffalo Bills in the AFC East.
This reporter kept it real about how the Fins have been doing down the stretch of this season.
Chargers win, 23-17.
No other way to put it: The Dolphins are failing their December exams
— Marcel Louis-Jacques (@Marcel_LJ) December 12, 2022
Los Angeles Finally Stepped Up On D
This fan was impressed with the Chargers’ defense, which had been struggling all season.
Really did not think the Chargers had the corners or the LB play to play the Dolphins as well / better than the 49ers did. That’s about as impressive a performance as I have seen this year relative to what I expected going in.
— Derrik Klassen (@QBKlass) December 12, 2022
Coming into Sunday, L.A. was just 28th in passing touchdowns allowed, 29th in rushing yards allowed and 30th in points allowed.
Chargers now with a 59% chance of making the playoffs after beating the Dolphins tonight. Absolutely MASSIVE win! #BoltUp pic.twitter.com/VJ35bcTO8Y
— Steven Haglund (@StevenIHaglund) December 12, 2022
With this win, the Chargers have single-handedly kept their playoff hopes alive, and the rest of their schedule looks somewhat manageable.
NEXT: Dolphins HC Shares A Hilarious Justin Herbert Take