The Los Angeles Chargers' playoff hopes were dramatically squashed during the final week of the regular season, as they lost in heartbreaking fashion to the division rival Las Vegas Raiders in overtime at Allegiant Stadium. And the stakes couldn't have been higher -- with a tie, both teams would've actually clinched an AFC postseason berth.
But that possibility was wiped out by playoff-caliber drama in overtime. With 39 seconds left in the game, Chargers first-year coach Brandon Staley oddly called a timeout, and at that time, it appeared as if the Raiders' offense was prepared to drain the clock and accept a 32-32 tie. But the clock stoppage prompted Las Vegas to push forward with a walk-off field goal attempt, and moments later, Los Angeles' season was officially over.
"I feel like we had the pieces [to win a Super Bowl] this year, but we were too inconsistent. As far as players and talent, we had it," Chargers running back Austin Ekeler told the Reiter Than You show on Thursday. "We were beating playoff teams. We were up and down, though, and that's what you can't do. You've got to have more consistency, that's what we need to find. Whether that's in our routine, the coaching, the players we bring in...
"If you're not consistent, you're going to get beat... You can't have those giant drop-offs -- the good teams are going to limit those. And at the end, I feel like we were a good team, and a good team is going to finish around the middle -- right where we were, and in the hunt. But if you're going to be a great team, you've got to overcome those, play like your back is against the wall, every game... That's the mindset I'm going to be instilling in our team next year..."
During the first month of the regular season, the Chargers looked primed to capture their first AFC West division title since 2009, with an impressive 4-1 record through five games. But inconsistency in all three phases prevented them from rattling off another three-game winning streak, and they dropped three of four down the stretch to finish the campaign at 9-8 overall.
Although the 2021 season ended in misfortune, Ekeler produced impressive stats as the Chargers' top running back. In 16 games, the 26-year-old rushed for 911 yards on 206 attempts, and joined Hall of Fame running back LaDainian Tomlinson as the only running backs in team history to score 20 times during a single season. Ekeler also racked up 70 catches for 647 yards.
The entire football conversation between Ekeler and Reiter can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow the Reiter Than You show on Twitter @sportsreiter and @CBSSportsRadio, and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.