Chargers face Vikings on short week after slipping out of AFC West lead with 3rd loss in 4 games

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EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Chargers have a short week ahead of them, with the visiting Minnesota Vikings in town on Thursday. All the better for them to forget about their third loss in four games.

The team that opened the season with three consecutive victories over division opponents has fallen out of first in the AFC West. The Chargers have little time to dwell on what went wrong during a 38-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.

“From our whole team — courage, fight, our guys never quit,” coach Jim Harbaugh said. “That’s the big thing I take away. We’re going to need all that fight, all that courage on a short week.”

Injuries have decimated the Chargers in the early going this season. They were without offensive linemen Joe Alt and Trey Pipkins against the Colts. Alt could play against the Vikings after being out since Week 4, which coincides with the team's current slump.

"It’s always great when you can get back on the field after a game like this because you want to forget it as fast as you can,” said Khalil Mack, who returned from injury Sunday.

Justin Herbert. He did his best to rally the Chargers with three consecutive scoring drives in the second half but got sacked three times and hit 15 times behind a makeshift offensive line. He threw for a career-high 420 yards, but was intercepted twice, something that's rarely happened since 2022. He was the team's leading rusher with 31 yards on six scrambles.

The defense. It allowed the Colts to score touchdowns on their first three possessions, and gave up 120 rushing yards — the fifth straight game in which the unit has allowed at least 118. It let the Colts score a season-high 38 points on the Chargers' home field while Indianapolis cranked out 401 yards of offense. Derwin James led the defense with seven tackles and Mack had the lone sack of Colts QB Daniel Jones. “It was all on us,” James said.

Oronde Gadsden. He had seven catches for 164 yards — his first 100-yard game — and scored his first career touchdown on a 15-yard catch in the fourth quarter. He set a franchise record for receiving yards by a rookie tight end, bettering the old mark of 117 yards by Hall of Famer Antonio Gates. Gadsden was inactive for the first two games of the season. “When we needed him most, he stepped up big time,” Herbert said. “He’s done a great job all year and he’s going to continue to make big plays for us."

Offensive line. Herbert remains diplomatic in discussing the O-line but the lack of continuity due to injuries is forcing him to run for his life.

Pipkins (knee) and running back Omarion Hampton (ankle) are on injured reserve.

173 — the number of offensive line combinations the Chargers used in their first six games.

The Chargers (4-3) host the Minnesota Vikings (3-3) on Thursday.

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