Starting offensive tackles Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt made their returns for the Los Angeles Chargers, and it produced the results Los Angeles needed.

The Chargers returned from an early bye week to beat the Denver Broncos in a crucial AFC West matchup that provisionally decided second place.

Denver was on a three-game winning streak fueled by a stingy defense, but the Chargers’ tackles returned to provide the offense with the tools it needed to dominate.

The NFL’s 31st-ranked passing offense entering the week had the confidence to run the ball 38 times against Denver, following the philosophy of offensive coordinator Greg Roman.

However, Los Angeles mustered just 3.4 yards per carry and one touchdown on the ground.

For the first time this season, the Chargers secured a win via the passing game.

Quarterback Justin Herbert was 21 of 34, passing for 237 yards and a touchdown. Nine different players caught passes for Los
Angeles and the Chargers were able to spread the ball around and avoid turnovers against the league’s third-best scoring defense.

A big part of the Broncos’ scoring defense being so good was their ability to hold opposing offenses to 159.8 passing yards per game in Week 6. Entering Sunday, the Chargers averaged 136 per game with a season-high of 179.

Now the Chargers are 3-2 before heading to Arizona to play the 2-4 Cardinals for the first-ever Monday Night Football game exclusively for ESPN+.

The Cardinals are allowing a dismal 147.8 rushing yards per game, which will widen a lot of eyes in the Chargers’ locker room and give running back JK Dobbins a chance to play for the first time since Week 2’s win at the Carolina Panthers To eclipse 100 rushing yards.

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