Bengals vs. Chargers score: L.A. fends off Joe Burrow's comeback attempt to earn key road victory

The Chargers are now 7-5 on the season

The Los Angeles Chargers have moved to 7-5 on the season after heading into Cincinnati and handing the Bengals a 41-22 loss. L.A. had control of this game early as Justin Herbert and Co. jumped out to a 24-0 lead by the midway point of the second quarter. Herbert had three passing touchdowns over that stretch and it appeared like the Chargers were going to roll to the victory.

However, the Bengals would show signs of life as the first half came to a close, scoring two touchdowns to cut the lead to 11 at the break. That was part of a 22-0 run by Cincinnati sandwiched in between halftime that brought them within two points of the Chargers. Zac Taylor's defense then came up extremely clutch over the next two possession, forcing L.A. to punt twice. On a second-and-2 play at the start of the fourth quarter, however, Joe Mixon fumbled the football, which was picked up by corner Tevaughn Campbell and returned 61-yards for the touchdown. That broke the game open in favor of the Chargers, who would end the game on a 17-0 run. 

Herbert finished with 317 yards, three touchdowns and an interception while completing 26 of his 35 passes. Mike Williams was on the receiving end of the majority of Herbert's yards as he finished with 110 on the day. Keenan Allen caught five of his eight targets for 34 yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, Joe Burrow -- who injured his throwing hand in the midst of this game -- threw for 300 yards, a touchdowns along with a two interceptions while completing 60% of his passes. 

Why the Chargers won 

Herbert and the Chargers offense looked like they were going to cruise to the victory in this game after they built up a 24-0 lead through the first quarter and a half. They largely did that by taking advantage of the size mismatch with their receivers on Bengals corners as the deep ball was a key piece to its offense early. On their first two touchdowns drives of the day, Williams had two receptions that went for 41 and 47 yards, respectfully, that flipped the field in favor of Los Angeles. The third touchdown came courtesy of a 44-yard reception by Jalen Guyton. 

While the Chargers did allow the Bengals to get back in this game by surrendering a 22-0 run, they were able to close things out in the fourth quarter. The big swing was that fumble recovery by Campbell to get L.A. back up by two scores, but they were also stout defensively throughout the final possessions of this contest. After the scoop-and-score, they forced a three-and-out, picked off Burrow in the end zone, and forced a turnover on downs.  

Why the Bengals lost 

Naturally, you're not going to win many football games when you allow your opponent to open up the contest with a 24-0 run. You do have to give Cincinnati some credit for making this a ballgame, but there were too many mistakes to truly expect any other result than a loss here. 

Early turnovers -- a Burrow fumble and interception -- on their opening two possessions were directly answered with points by the Chargers, which dug them into their first half hole. Even when the Bengals did start to break through and get into the end zone, they couldn't get out of their own way. After Burrow connected with Tee Higgins for a 29-yard touchdown, they initially tried to attempt a 2-point conversion. It was on that attempt where they had a systematic collapse where they called a timeout, were then called for a delay of game penalty, and ultimately opted to just kick the PAT, which failed to go through the uprights. 

After they rallied to come within two points of tying the game, they again had trouble protecting the football as Mixon fumble broke the game back open (more on that below), while Burrow also had a key interception in the end zone. In all, the Bengals had four turnovers that resulted in 16 points.  

Turning point

This was the back-breaking moment for the Bengals and eliminated any sort of hope they had for completing the comeback. With 13:53 left on the clock in the fourth quarter, Mixon took a second-and-2 run to the right and seemingly lost control of the football. The bobbled ball hit the ground and was picked up by Campbell, who returned it 61 yards for the touchdown. 

This turnover came as the Bengals were driving and had the ball at the Chargers' 34-yard line. They were down just two points at the time, so they were in striking distance of a field goal to take a one-point lead or eventually cash in for a touchdown to create and an ever bigger advantage for themselves. However, that scoop-and-score gave the Chargers a two-possession lead once again and helped spark a 17-0 run to wrap up the ballgame.  

Play of the game

This is one of the more interesting interceptions that you'll see all season. On Cincinnati's second offensive possession of the day, Burrow completed a dime to Ja'Marr Chase for what looked like was going to be a runaway touchdown. However, Chase bobbled the reception, the ball tipped into the air and was snatched by Michael Davis with one hand. Not only did that eliminate the Bengals from what looked to be an easy touchdown, but the Chargers proceeded to drive 73 yards down the field for a score of their own following the pick.  

What's next

From here, the Bengals will stick around in Cincinnati and await the San Francisco 49ers for a home matchup in Week 14. Meanwhile, the Chargers will head back out west and gear up for a two-game homestand that begins with a contest against the New York Giants. 

[Dec 5, 2021 at 3:57 pm ET · Tyler Sullivan]

Huge turnover there by Joe Burrow. Second guess is probably to run it instead of trying to fit it into tight coverage.  

[Dec 5, 2021 at 3:37 pm ET · Tyler Sullivan]

I'm not sure why the Chargers decided to go for 2 originally. An extra point would've made it a two-score game.

[Dec 5, 2021 at 3:36 pm ET · Tyler Sullivan]

Back-breaker. Joe Mixon fumbles and the Chargers pick it up and take it into the end zone for a touchdown.

[Dec 5, 2021 at 3:27 pm ET · Tyler Sullivan]

Opportunity lost for the Bengals there. Couldn't capitalize on the key stop by the defense and the Chargers are getting the ball back after just 1:43.