The Chargers nearly let one get away from them in Week 11 against the Bengals. Unlike in recent similar situations, the Chargers persevered and pulled out a victory this time around.
With Jim Harbaugh leading the team, this game felt different. The Bengals erased a 21-point deficit, but Los Angeles’ defense made a few crucial stops while the offense scored a game-winning touchdown.
Linebacker Daiyan Henley put in another stellar performance with a team-high 11 tackles on Sunday. After the game, he admitted that this year’s team feels different.
“This is a different team. This is not what the Chargers have been or what the fans here are used to… And the best part about it was that we rallied together.”
In previous years, the Chargers have lost several of these close, one-score contests. Not this time around, though.
Los Angeles improved to 7-3 with their fourth straight win and are in a great spot for the postseason. Offensive tackle Rashawn Slater, who is in his fourth year with the team, echoed a very similar sentiment.
“Resiliency. Poise. Mental toughness. That’s the culture around here now,” Slater said after the primetime victory.
This isn’t a team that is still run by incompetent coaching. Instead, the Chargers now have one of the best coaching staffs in the NFL led by Harbaugh.
Fans can feel the difference this season, and the players admit the same.