Los Angeles Chargers vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Box score, player stats and summary feat. Ladd McConkey and Mike Evans

In Week 14, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers traveled across the country from Florida to California to take on the Los Angeles Chargers. It was a critical game for two teams looking to inch closer to clinching a playoff spot.

Coming into this game, the Chargers were 8-5 and had a two-game lead over the Indianapolis Colts, who were eighth in the AFC standings. A win against the Buccaneers would virtually guarantee them a postseason berth, prompting them to treat it as a must-win game.

Tampa Bay was hoping to win to improve to 8-6 and stay atop the NFC South standings for at least another week. A victory for the 6-7 Atlanta Falcons over the 2-11 Las Vegas Raiders on Monday Night Football, coupled with a loss in LA would have seen the Buccaneers lose top spot in the division standings.

Given what was at stake, both teams were expected to give it their all and deliver an entertaining duel. And they did not disappoint. Here's how the game panned out.

Los Angeles Chargers vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers box score

Team	First Quarter	SecondQuarter	ThirdQuarter	FourthQuarter	Total
Los Angeles Chargers	7	10	0	0	17
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	7	6	17	10	40

Los Angeles Chargers players' stats

Quarterback

Player	Completions	Pass Attempts	Passing Yards	Passing TDs	INTs	Rush Attempts	Rush Yards	Rush TDs
Justin Herbert	21	33	195	2	1	0	0	0
Taylor Heinicke	1	1	5	0	0	0	0	0

Rushing and Receiving

Player	RushAttempts	RushYards	RushingTDs	Receptions	ReceivingYards	ReceivingTDs
Gus Edwards	8	23	0	0	0	0
Kimani Vidal	3	9	0	2	13	0
Ladd McConkey	0	0	0	5	58	1
Stone Smartt	0	0	0	5	51	0
Quentin Johnson	0	0	0	5	45	1
D.J. Chark	0	0	0	2	16	0
Joshua Palmer	0	0	0	2	10	0

Defense

Player	Tackles	Sacks	Interceptions
Troy Dye	6	1	0
Tarheeb Still	3	0	1
Elijah Molden	8	0	0
Kristian Fulton	5	0	0

Kicker

Player	PATs	Field Goals	Long	Points
Cameron Dicker	2/2	1/1	41	5

Tampa Bay Buccaneers players' stats

Quarterback

Player	Completions	Pass Attempts	Passing Yards	Passing TDs	INTs	Rush Attempts	Rush Yards	Rushing TDs
Baker Mayfield	22	27	288	4	1	2	25	0

Rushing and Receiving

Player	RushAttempts	RushYards	RushingTDs	Receptions	ReceivingYards	ReceivingTDs
Bucky Irving	15	117	0	2	-4	0
Rachaad White	15	64	0	2	17	1
Jalen McMillan	0	0	0	5	75	1
Mike Evans	0	0	0	9	159	2
Sterling Shepard	0	0	0	1	16	0
Cade Otton	0	0	0	2	24	0

Defense

Player	Tackles	Sacks	Interceptions
Lavonte David	10	2	0
Jamel Dean	2	0	1
Logan Hall	1	1	0
Zyon McCollum	4	0	0

Kicker

Player	PATs	Field Goals	Long	Points
Chase McLaughlin	4/4	4/4	43	16

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Los Angeles Chargers vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers game summary

The Buccaneers got off to a hot start as they embarked on a seven-play, 44-yard drive before Baker Mayfield and Jalen McMillan combined for a 26-yard touchdown pass.

The Chargers responded with a surgical drive that ended with Justin Herbert scrambling before finding Ladd McConkey in the endzone for a touchdown.

The teams exchanged field goals in the subsequent two possessions as the score remained level. The Chargers' stellar defense had a poor first quarter, but cornerback Tarheeb Still showcased why it's touted as one of the best units in the league.

He undercut Mayfield's pass to Mike Evans and ran it back 18 yards to give Herbert and the offense a short field to work with. They took full advantage of the opportunity as the quarterback and Quentin Johnson connected on a short pass before the wide receiver broke two tackles and dived into the endzone to give his team the lead.

On the Buccaneers' subsequent drive, LA's defense continued to assert its dominance as pass rusher Joey Bosa stripped the ball off Rachaad White and forced a fumble which cornerback Elijah Molden recovered near midfield to give Herbert and the offense good field position for the second straight drive.

However, this time, the Buccaneers' defense stood firm and forced a punt to keep their team within a touchdown. In the penultimate drive of the half, Mayfield led Tampa Bay's offense down to the Chargers' 19-yard line, but the drive stalled, forcing them to settle for a field and cut LA's lead to four.

The Chargers got the ball back with 37 seconds left on the clock and tried to get at least in field goal range. But a Logan Hall sack ensured the half ended with the home team leading by four.

While it was a close back-and-forth affair in the first half, the second was one-way traffic. After the Buccaneers' defense forced a three-and-out on the opening possession, Mayfield and Evans combined to help their team take the lead with a 58-yard touchdown.

LA's offense couldn't move the ball and had to punt it back to Tampa Bay, who embarked on a five-play, 61-yard drive that stalled at the home team's 24-yard line, forcing the visitors to settle for a field goal.

On the second play in the subsequent drive, Herbert tried to find Quentin Johnson with a deep pass, but the wide receiver couldn't track the ball, allowing Jamel Dean to pick it off.

Mayfield and Evans punished the Chargers quarterback for his error with their second touchdown connection of the quarter, which extended the Buccaneers' lead to 17.

The Chargers offense finally put together a decent drive and made it down to the Buccaneers' 34-yard line. They decided to go for it on 4th-and-6 but couldn't convert, giving the ball back to Mayfield.

The veteran quarterback engineered another exceptional drive before capping it off with a touchdown pass to Rachaad White to put the game beyond the home team's reach.

In the subsequent drive, the desperate Chargers turned the ball over on downs again near midfield, giving Tampa Bay's offense another opportunity to add to their lead.

They obliged and ran it eight straight times before their drive at LA's 26-yard line, forcing them to settle for a 43-yard field goal, which kicker Chase McLaughlin converted to extend his team's lead to 23 points.

A fumble on the first play of their final drive of the game capped off a dismal day for the Chargers, who suffered their biggest defeat of the season.