Chargers at Bills score: Buffalo defense bends but doesn't break to lead team to victory

Despite a valiant comeback effort late, the Los Angeles Chargers fell short Sunday against the Buffalo Bills, 27-17. Buffalo did their best to keep the Chargers alive as turnovers ended three consecutive Buffalo offensive drives. 

With a victory, Buffalo maintains their lead over Miami in the AFC East. It was not an overly impressive performance by Josh Allen but the defense was able to do enough to stifle the Chargers offense. Los Angeles went 3 of 16 on third downs in this game. It is difficult to sustain drives and score points when teams are unable to convert on third down. 

Why the Bills won

Buffalo was able to string together some plays, move the chains and score a few times. The defense played well, applied pressure to Justin Herbert and that was enough to overcome Los Angeles on this particular Sunday. It was not always pretty but the name of the game is "survive and advance." The Bills have themselves in a strong position to play postseason football and, at that point, regular season accomplishments become irrelevant. 

Josh Allen needs to do a better job of understanding when to just eat the football and live another down. He threw one interception, fumbled once and put two other passes in harm's way because he got rid of the ball as he was being sacked. 

Why the Chargers lost

It boils down to their inability to string together first downs. Joey Bosa recorded three sacks and the team forced three Buffalo turnovers. They were relatively clean from a penalty perspective. However, they were unable to get any momentum on the ground (24 carries for 76 yards) and that led to some difficult third down plays. The Chargers went 3-of-16 on third down conversions. If the offense is unable to stay on the field, they are not going to score points. 

Justin Herbert had his sixth 300+ yard passing game in ten games this season. He threw 51 passes in the loss. 

Play of the game

With 9:44 remaining in the second quarter, Buffalo was facing a second-and-8. Josh Allen lateraled the ball to wide receiver Cole Beasley who pulled back and fired a 20-yard strike to rookie wide receiver Gabriel Davis. Buffalo extended their first half lead, 14-6, and the game felt out of reach until a game of hot potato broke out in the fourth quarter. 

Beasley had attempted two passes in his career but completed neither. Davis caught his fourth touchdown pass of the season. 

What's next 

Three of Buffalo's five remaining games are on the road. Three of the final five games will be in primetime.  Three of the final five games come against teams with sub .500 records. After traveling to San Francisco next weekend, the Bills have a showdown with undefeated Pittsburgh. 

Los Angeles hosts Atlanta and New England in the coming weeks. Three of their final five games will be at home. The Chargers were one of eight teams with three wins or less coming into this weekend's games.