Jon D. Gaede | BVN Sports
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The Los Angeles Chargers fall to 4-3 in the AFC West, now tied with Kansas City for second place behind Denver. There were some bright spots for the Charger offense, tight end Oronde Gadsden had a franchise rookie record performance with 165 yards on seven catches from Justin Herbert, plus a touchdown on the day.
The Colts offense scored on the ground and through the air, leading 20-3 at the half. Justin Herbert had a career high 420 yards on 37 of 55 passes for three touchdowns and two interceptions in the loss. Charger linebacker Khalil Mack was activated and did see action on Sunday.
“We haven’t been ourselves on defense, starting with myself as the captain and we’ve got to get it fixed,” said Charger Safety Derwin James.
Justin Herbert did find his favorite targets, Keenan Allen, Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston, often under duress or taking a hit while he threw. Ultimately, the Colts offense found early success against the Charger defense to establish the 20-3 halftime lead, then held off the Charger offense in the second. Colt running back Jonathan Taylor had 132 total yards and three touchdowns on the day. Quarterback Daniel Jones added two more through the air.
“We haven’t been ourselves on defense, starting with myself as the captain and we’ve got to get it fixed.”
Derwin James, Chargers Safety
The Charger organization honored Antonio Gates, one of their legends at halftime. The recent 2025 NFL Hall of Fame inductee was enshrined into the Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in August. He was joined by fellow inductees Eric Allen, Jared Allen and Sterling Sharpe. Gates played in both San Diego and Los Angeles Charger eras, spanning 2003-2018 seasons.
At the tender age of 17, Antonio Gates pursued his NBA dream of playing basketball at Kent State and hopefully a career in the NBA. Legendary coach Lew Saban wanted the agile 6’4” Gates to play football for him at Michigan State, but Gates wanted to play both sports at MSU.. Saban wanted football only, so Gates stuck with basketball. Ultimately, the Chargers signed Gates as an undrafted free agent in 2003 and the rest is NFL history.
“I should have listened to coach Saban, he told me I could have been a first round draft pick,” Antonio Gates said.
Antonio Gates is the only player to be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame without playing a single down of college football.
Antonio Gates had a record 116 career touchdowns as a Charger tight end, including 955 receptions for 11,841 yards and a 12.4 average. He was also an eight Pro Bowl selection. The Chargers presented Gates with his Hall of Fame “Ring of Excellence” in front of the home crowd at halftime on Sunday. LaDanian Tomlinson and other Charger legends were also on hand.