The Bolts are on the board in the win column.
The Chargers and Vikings played a thriller Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis, but the Bolts did enough down the stretch to secure a 28-24 win. The Chargers are now 1-2 on the year.
John Breech of CBS Sports handed out grades to every NFL team for Week 3 and gave high praise to the Bolts, who earned a ‘B+’ mark for their performance.
Breech wrote:
The Chargers defense hasn't come up with many big stops this year, but that changed in this game. The defense came up huge in crunch time with two big stops in the fourth quarter. Not only did they stuff the Vikings on a fourth-and-goal from the two, but Kenneth Murray also iced the game with an interception on Minnesota's final offensive play.
If the Chargers defense uses this game as a stepping stone, this team could soon be dangerous. Offensively, the Chargers did struggle on the ground without Austin Ekeler, but Justin Herbert more than made up for that by throwing for 405 yards and three touchdowns.
The Bolts defense allowed 475 total yards to the Vikings on Sunday but also delivered where it mattered the most.
Minnesota scored just one touchdown on four trips inside the red zone, with the Chargers denying potential game-winning scores on two straight goal-to-go situations in the final stanza.
And, as Breech mentioned, the offense was led by Herbert's first 400-yard performance of his career.
His main target was wide receiver Keenan Allen, who's massive day earned him Offensive Player of the Week honors from Peter King.
The NBC Sports columnist wrote:
The best day of a very good NFL career lifted the Chargers to a frenetic, nutty 28-24 win over the Vikings in a game both teams had to have. The day: 18 catches, 215 yards, one TD.
Allen set a single-game franchise record with 18 receptions and set a career-best with his yardage total.
Oh yes, the veteran also threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Mike Williams that was the first completion of his storied career.
The Bolts are back at home in Week 4 against the Raiders in their first division game of the 2023 season.
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