Steelers offense stifled by Chargers in rout as AFC North lead shrinks to 1 game

INGLEWOOD, Calif — A visit to the West Coast turned out to be anything but a trip to the beach for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Despite being embraced by thousands of Terrible-Towel waving fans who provided the feel of a home game, the Steelers were given a rude reception by the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday night at SoFi Stadium.

The offense sputtered throughout a 25-10 loss that was the third in four games for the Steelers, whose lead in the AFC North race has been reduced to just one game.

It was the fewest points of the season for the Steelers, whose previous low was a 17-point output against Seattle.

“We stunk it up tonight,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “We’ll be back.”

The Steelers have a 5-4 record heading into their matchup next weekend against 3-6 Cincinnati. Baltimore is 4-5 after winning its third consecutive game.

Aaron Rodgers had his worst game since joining the Steelers in free agency, and he needed a 27-yard touchdown pass to Roman Wilson late in the fourth quarter to avoid the lowest passer rating of his 21-year career. Until the Steelers got that touchdown in garbage time, Rodgers had a 19.5 rating. He finished at 50.6.

Rodgers completed 16 of 31 passes for 161 yards and two interceptions. He was sacked three times.

“We as an offensive collective were off today, and he’s certainly a component of that,” Tomlin said. “We have to be better. We didn’t feel like they did anything that we didn’t anticipate.”

Still, on the heels of the offense collecting 225 yards against Indianapolis, the Steelers finished with 221. It was the sixth time in nine games the Steelers didn’t crack 300 yards.

When they got the ball back with less than five minutes remaining and trailing 25-3, the Steelers had 156 total yards, were 0 for 9 on third down and 0 for 1 on fourth. The Steelers finally converted a third down on an 11-yard pass to DK Metcalf.

“A lot of stuff wasn’t working,” Rodgers said. “We were bad on third down. I was a little bit off. … I missed some throws, for sure. We weren’t getting guys open and (couldn’t) just put it all together. There were times guys were open, and I missed throws I usually make.”

Tomlin was agitated about questions pertaining to Rodgers’ performance. When asked how he would assess the play of the 41-year-old quarterback, he snapped: “How would you?” After a lengthy pause, Tomlin said, “Next.”

The Steelers overcame the lackluster offensive performance a week ago against the Colts because they forced six turnovers that they turned into 24 points. The Steelers didn’t have a takeaway against the Chargers, and Rodgers was intercepted twice and a muffed punt led to a field goal.

“We can’t continue to live and die by the turnovers as a defense,” outside linebacker T.J. Watt said.

The Chargers got a 15-yard touchdown pass from Justin Herbert to Ladd McConkey late in the first half, and a 2-yard touchdown run by Kimani Vidal in the second. McConkey caught four passes for 107 yards, and Vidal rushed for 95 on 25 carries.

Armed with a 12-3 halftime lead, the Chargers struck first in the second half with Cameron Dicker matching the 59-yard field goal that Chris Boswell made in the first half.

Dicker attempted a 55-yarder late in the third, but the kick hit the left upright to keep the Steelers’ deficit at 12 points.

Following the missed kick, the Steelers drove into the red zone for the first time. They reached the 10 before Rodgers threw three consecutive incompletions for a turnover on downs with 12:41 to play. On fourth down, he couldn’t connect with Metcalf in the right side of the end zone.

“I probably should have thrown it to the other side,” Rodgers said. “He was doubled. I should have thrown it more back shoulder or worked the other side.”

The Chargers countered with a 58-yard catch-and-run by McConkey that set up Vidal’s 2-yard touchdown run with 9:26 remaining for a 22-3 lead.

On the next drive, Rodgers threw a pass that hit Calvin Austin in the hands and was deflected to former Steelers cornerback Donte Jackson, who returned it to the Steelers 39 after a 21-yard gain.

The Chargers punted, but they got the ball back when Ke’Shawn Johnson muffed the ball, and Del’Shawn Phillips recovered at the 21. Dicker kicked a 42-yard field goal with 4:54 to play.

The Chargers possessed the ball for more than 37 minutes, taking advantage of the Steelers’ abbreviated possessions.

“You’re not going to win football games not converting third downs and losing the turnover battle,” Tomlin said. “We certainly were loose with the ball in several instances. We didn’t convert enough third downs, and that was the end result. There was nothing mystical about it. We’ll be back. We’ll be better. We have to be, but we certainly weren’t tonight.”

In the first half, the Steelers totaled just 85 yards and had three first downs, all of which came on a drive that produced no points.

Rodgers was 7 of 14 for 64 yards, an interception and 33.0 passer rating at the break. He also fumbled in the end zone, resulting a safety that provided the Chargers with their first points.

“I expect to play great every single week,” Rodgers said. “This was not my best performance. I got to play better for us to win. Whatever it takes. This is part of the season. There are ebbs and flows, ups and downs and we can’t ride the wave. I felt like our energy, it starts with me, wasn’t as great on offense. I felt like we were kind of struggling a bit, we couldn’t get a play to get going.”