Chargers clinch playoff berth with win over Indianapolis

Los Angeles won 20-3 in a game the defense dominated. The Chargers sacked Colts QB Nick Foles seven times and intercepted him three other times. Indianapolis gained 173 yards and gained 3.5 yards per play.
The offense wasn't sensational but did enough against an inferior opponent. Herbert was 24-of 31 for 235 yards and an interception. He didn't throw a touchdown for the second game in a row, the first time Herbert's had two consecutive games without a touchdown pass in his career.

The Chargers won both games and have won three in a row, all on the strength of a defense hitting its stride. During the three-game winning streak, the defense is allowing 11.3 points per game.

That will come in handy in the playoffs. As ESPN's Bill Barnwell noted on Twitter, Los Angeles is likely to finish as either the fifth or sixth seed. The team will have a tough QB matchup wherever it falls in the AFC, much tougher than what the team faced on Monday night.

Los Angeles (9-6) finishes the season with games against the Los Angeles Rams (5-10) and Denver Broncos (4-11). With that schedule, the stars are aligning for the Chargers to get hot at the right time.

That should strike fear in the rest of the AFC. Herbert is 431-of-634 for 4,254 yards 21 touchdowns and 10 interceptions this year despite dealing with a fracture to rib cartilage suffered in Week 2.

He battled through that injury, missing only one game. As if the season hasn't been brutal enough, it's almost time for Herbert to start developing his own playoff scars.