Chargers torment Aaron Rodgers in win over Steelers on Keenan Allen’s record night

INGLEWOOD — The game was all but won, but time was running out, so Keenan Allen approached Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh with a simple request. Let’s run something short and sweet for the franchise record, as Allen would later explain the circumstances around his franchise-record reception.

Harbaugh called on the headset to offensive coordinator Greg Roman, stationed upstairs in the coaches’ booth, to relay Allen’s play and get the go-ahead. Roman agreed wholeheartedly and, soon enough, quarterback Justin Herbert shoveled a pass to Allen on the right side for a 7-yard gain.

Allen’s 956th career catch with a little more than two minutes left in the Chargers’ 25-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday at SoFi Stadium topped the previous franchise record held by Hall of Fame tight end Antonio Gates, who was among the crowd of 72,174.

“I was on the sideline and (Harbaugh) said, ‘We’re trying to get it to you,’” Allen said after catching two passes for 19 yards. “I said, ‘Hey, just run the speed sweep.’ It’s the easiest catch I get. It’s like a guaranteed catch. They actually called me a genius. Like, ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’”

Allen’s record-tying and -breaking catches were a footnote on the Chargers’ third consecutive victory, a third dominating defensive clampdown in a row. Above all, they gave Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers from beginning to end, limiting him to 16-for-31 passing for 161 yards.

Chargers defensive backs R.J. Mickens and Donte Jackson intercepted Rodgers and outside linebacker Khalil Mack sacked him in the end zone for a safety in the first quarter. Rodgers was hurried and harassed and looked as uncomfortable as a four-time MVP could possibly look.

The Steelers were 0 for 9 on third-down conversion attempts until Rodgers led a late drive for a touchdown, completing a 27-yard scoring pass to wide receiver Roman Wilson that cut the Chargers lead to 25-10 with 2:57 remaining in the game. Pittsburgh ended up 2 for 11 on third downs.

“Oh, wow,” Chargers linebacker Denzel Perryman said. “I don’t pay attention to that stuff, man. I just want to worry about the next play. But, wow, I didn’t know that. OK, OK, the defense went out there and did their thing. Shout out to the defensive line. Definitely gave (Rodgers) pressure.”

Chris Boswell gave the Steelers a 3-0 lead with a 59-yard field goal with 10:25 left in the third quarter. The Chargers then went on a 25-0 run, with Mack starting things with his 35th career sack in three-plus seasons after they acquired him from the Chicago Bears before the 2022 season.

Cameron Dicker kicked a 32-year field goal and Herbert hit Ladd McConkey for a 15-yard touchdown pass and the Chargers were, if not exactly rolling toward victory then at least avoiding the many misfires and letdowns that plagued Rodgers and the Steelers during a lackluster first half.

Dicker kicked two field goals in the second half, including one from 59 yards that extended the Chargers’ lead to 15-3. Herbert and McConkey then set up Kimani Vidal’s 2-yard touchdown run that made it 22-3 in the fourth quarter with a spectacular 58-yard catch and run down the left sideline.

All that remained was for Allen to get his record. He had already caught one pass from Herbert for a 12-yard gain in the second quarter to tie Gates. But he was something of a forgotten man in the plays that would follow as Herbert, McConkey and Vidal handled the offensive work.

In the end, Allen agreed it was a unique way to break the record.

“A little bit,” he said. “Two catches were hard enough to get (Sunday).”

At that moment, with Allen’s teammates celebrating his record-breaking catch by mobbing him along the sideline and spraying water on him, it was difficult to remember that the game turned on a defensive play by Mack, another likely Hall of Fame candidate when his playing days are done.

Mack charged through the Steelers’ line to drop Rodgers in the end zone to narrow the deficit to 3-2 with 5:09 remaining in a lackluster first quarter. Rodgers lost control of the ball when Mack hit him from behind, but fell upon it to prevent a Chargers recovery and a touchdown.

“He’s a Hall of Famer,” Chargers linebacker Daiyan Henley said of Rodgers. “So, for us to do that, it’s not the easiest thing to do when you have a guy back there (that’s so accomplished). He’s a hell of a talent, obviously. We all know that. We just believed in the matchup up front.”

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