Chargers review: ‘We’ve been in search of a game like this’ win over Bears

Well, well, well. The Chargers proved Sunday they could put everything together all at once. Here’s what we learned, what we heard and what comes next after they thumped the Chicago Bears, 30-13, and made a case that a midseason course correction was still possible:

WELCOME BACK, FELLAS

Quarterback Justin Herbert looked like himself again against the Bears after struggling to overcome a fractured middle finger on his left, non-throwing hand during losses to the Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs. He completed his first 15 passes against Chicago for 142 yards and three touchdowns.

Running back Austin Ekeler looked like himself again after struggling with a significant ankle injury suffered during the Chargers’ season-opening loss to the Miami Dolphins back on Sept. 10. Ekeler’s return to relevance included seven catches for 94 yards and one touchdown.

Outside linebacker Joey Bosa looked like himself again after dealing with nagging toe and hamstring injuries that limited him to roughly half of the snaps in games against the Las Vegas Raiders, Cowboys and Chiefs. He sacked quarterback Tyson Bagent among his four tackles Sunday.

Tight end Donald Parham Jr. looked like himself again, slotting into the spot of injured starter Gerald Everett and catching four passes for 43 yards and one touchdown. His 11-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter featured several tacklers trying and failing to bring him down.

Punter JK Scott backed up an excellent game in Week 7 against the Chiefs, when he averaged 52.2 yards per punt, with a 44-yard average in Week 8 against the Bears. He had slumped for several games, but punted confidently and effectively for the second straight week on Sunday.

“We’ve been in search of a game like this,” Coach Brandon Staley said. “I felt like our guys really earned it in all three phases (offense, defense and special teams). From the first practice of the week to the last whistle, I thought that our guys really played together and played the right way that gets you a win like that.”

QUENTIN CONNECTION

Through the season’s first six games, it seemed rookie wide receiver Quentin Johnston was an afterthought in the Chargers’ offense. It looked like he was only a last-choice option for Herbert, barely playing more than half of the snaps in any single game to start his pro career.

Sunday, Johnston caught five passes on six targets from Herbert for 50 yards, modest totals, to be sure. But they also were career highs for the first-round draft pick out of TCU. He hadn’t caught more than two passes in a single game until Sunday, and Herbert hadn’t targeted him more than three times.

With veteran Mike Williams sidelined by a knee injury for the rest of the season and with Joshua Palmer hobbled when he aggravated a knee injury in the first half, Johnston seemed like a natural option for Herbert beyond Keenan Allen. Perhaps it’s the start of an enduring connection between the two.

“He’s a stellar athlete,” Herbert said. “He’s one of those guys that whenever you get the ball to him, something special is going to happen. I knew that it hadn’t gone our way, connecting with him in the first couple of games, but I knew if we were patient, we were going to get him the ball and something good is going to happen. He stepped up big-time today and we’re expecting big things from him.”

NOW THE NEGATIVES

OK, so the Chargers moved within one victory of the .500 mark at 3-4. But two of their victories have come against rookie quarterbacks. They defeated Bagent and the Bears in only his second NFL start and his third appearance after a standout career at NCAA Division II Shepherd University in West Virginia.

The Chargers limited him to 25 of 37 completions for 232 yards with two interceptions.

On Oct. 1, outside linebacker Khalil Mack sacked Raiders rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell a career-high six times in the Chargers’ 24-17 victory. The Chargers needed Asante Samuel Jr.’s interception of an errant O’Connell pass near their own goal line to preserve their victory, though.

WHAT COMES NEXT

The Chargers face the New York Jets (4-3) next week on Monday Night Football from East Rutherford, New Jersey. It’s the third of six scheduled prime-time games for the Chargers. A victory would give the Chargers a 4-4 record heading into the second half of the 17-game regular season.