INGLEWOOD — Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said he wanted it loud at SoFi Stadium.
It was loud.
He wanted a home-field advantage Sunday night.
He got it.
Harbaugh wanted exposure for his up-and-coming team.
He got that, too, and it wasn’t all he had hoped for Sunday night.
The Chargers built a 27-6 lead by the early minutes of the third quarter, but then watched it all slip away as the Cincinnati Bengals rallied to tie it 27-27 in the fourth before winning it 34-27, thanks to J.K. Dobbins’ 29-yard touchdown run with 18 seconds remaining in the game.
The victory extended the Chargers’ winning streak to four in a row.
The Chargers are 7-4; the Bengals are 4-7.
Chargers fans roared Sunday when Justin Herbert threw touchdown passes of 29 and 26 yards to tight end Will Dissly and Quentin Johnston and when Dobbins vaulted into the end zone from 1 yard out. They stood in many sections and roared when the Chargers’ defense needed a key stop, and got it.
On a night when the Chargers honored the greats of their past, including running back LaDainian Tomlinson, it sure felt like they had found an advantage at home at SoFi Stadium. The fans cheered the Chargers’ victory last Sunday over the Tennessee Titans, but this was different.
Of course, it helped that there was plenty to cheer for, starting with a 24-6 lead by halftime that featured Herbert’s two touchdown passes, Dobbins’ 1-yard scoring run and three sacks of Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow. Outside linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu had 1.5 sacks, sharing one with safety Derwin James Jr.
Cameron Dicker’s 19-yard field goal made it 24-6 on the final play of the half.
It was all Harbaugh could have hoped for to start Sunday’s game, the first in a series of four against quality opponents. After the Bengals, the Chargers face the Baltimore Ravens (7-4), the Atlanta Falcons (6-5) and the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (9-1).
By halftime Sunday, it seemed the Chargers were well on their way to dispatching the Bengals, who seemed incapable of pressuring Herbert or adequately protecting Burrow. Herbert completed his first seven passes and was 10 for 14 for 183 yards and touchdowns at the break.
Burrow, standing behind a leaky offensive line, completed 12 of 17 passes for 111 yards. He led the Bengals to scoring drives that resulted in field goals of 26 and 27 yards by Evan McPherson in the first half. The Chargers ended the half by converting on drives that resulted in two touchdowns and a field goal.
There was plenty of football still to be played, but it seemed the Chargers needed only to continue doing what worked. The list of adjustments the Bengals needed to make was a lengthy one if they hoped to rally and make a game of it in the second half, starting with slowing down the sizzling Herbert.
The Bengals countered Dicker’s 53-yard field goal with Burrow’s 4-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal with 5:27 left in the third quarter. Burrow then brought the Bengals within 27-20 by converting another fourth-down play, hitting Tee Higgins for a 42-yard touchdown.
The Chargers’ invincible defensive aura had been dented.
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Burrow brought the Bengals back on a 17-yard touchdown pass to Chase with 12:21 left in the game. The Chargers appeared headed for a score, but Herbert fumbled after a 7-yard gain to the Bengals’ 24-yard line, setting up the Bengals’ scoring drive that tied it at 27-27.
McPherson missed field goals of 48 and 51 yards in the closing minutes.
More to come on this story.