This duel had been anticipated since Jim Harbaugh was named at the helm of the Los Angeles Chargers, that is to say the one where he would once again find on the other side of the field his brother John who manages the Baltimore Ravens.
For the third time in as many confrontations, it was the older brother who had the best, as the Ravens recorded a 30-23 victory over the Chargers on Monday night.
It was the first brotherly duel since John led the Ravens to victory in Super Bowl XLVII in 2013. At that time, Jim was leading the San Francisco 49ers who lost 34-31.
In fact, in three confrontations, Jim had never seen his team take the lead against his brother’s.
The situation changed on Monday since from the first offensive sequence of the match, Justin Herbert cut through the Baltimore defense and he himself put the finishing touch with a touchdown following a five-yard run. The Chargers took a 7-0 lead after nine plays and 70 yards.
The Ravens’ response also came from the quarterback. Trailing 10-0, Lamar Jackson broke through the end zone on the ground. Baltimore played aggressively at the end of the half. Inside the 20 in his territory, John Harbaugh decided to go for it on a short fourth down. Mark Andrews accepted the handover and crossed the missing yard to get the first down.
This play took on its full importance a few moments later. With 24 seconds left on the clock, Jackson connected with Rashod Bateman in the end zone with a 40-yard pass. The receiver made a spectacular play to beat his coverr and catch the pass to give his team a 14-10 lead.
The Chargers’ offense allowed Cameron Dicker to cut the lead to just one point with a 52-yard field goal with no time left on the clock.
The two teams traded field goals in the third quarter and from then on John’s offense had the advantage over Jim’s defense. Mark Andrews scored a touchdown to give the Ravens a seven-point lead at 12:32 of the fourth quarter. The two-point conversion was missed.
After an excellent run by Derrick Henry to get the first down, including fending off two rivals with the extension of his arm as he has done so brilliantly over the years, it was his teammate Justice Hill who sent the Chargers to the carpet. The running back found a gap and raced 51 yards for a touchdown.
Despite Gus Edwards’ late game touchdown against his former team, the Ravens scored their eighth victory this season. Only the Pittsburgh Steelers (8-3) are ahead of them in the American North Division standings due to Baltimore’s additional defeat.
John and Jim Harbaugh met at center field after that game for a quick hug.
“I just told him he was a great coach and he had a really good team. And that I loved him,” John shared in a press conference after the game.
John will certainly be proud of his players who bounced back from the loss to the Steelers. Henry had 140 rushing yards on 24 carries. In total, the Ravens had 212 rushing yards. Jackson finished the game with just six incomplete passes. He rushed for 177 yards.
For the Chargers, Justin Herbert had 218 yards, but he saw several of his receivers drop balls. Ladd McConkey led his team with six catches on as many attempts for 86 yards. Conversely, Quentin Johnston did not catch a single one of the five balls thrown in his direction.
Jim will have to monitor the health of his running back JK Dobbins. He left the game in the second quarter with a knee injury. He had 40 yards on six carries against the Ravens, the team that drafted him in 2020.
The Chargers (7-4) are in second place in the American West division, just ahead of the Denver Broncos (7-5).
The Ravens will face the Philadelphia Eagles (9-2) in their next game, while the Chargers will visit the Falcons (6-5) in Atlanta.
