SÃO PAULO — The social-media influencers showed up in droves Friday for the marquee matchup between the Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs, only the NFL’s second regular-season game played in the Southern Hemisphere.
They snapped selfies, did dances, tried to top each other with eye-catching outfits and elbowed for the spotlight.
As for Justin Herbert? He was Mr. Beast.
The Chargers’ quarterback dissected the Chiefs with surgical precision, throwing for 318 yards and three touchdown passes in a 27-21 toppling of the defending AFC champions — a franchise the Chargers hadn’t beaten since 2021.
“Just overall toughness,” Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said of Herbert. “I mean, just a complete stalwart. He took some big hits, gave a few shots himself.”
The crowning blow came on third and 14, with slightly more than two minutes left and the Chargers protecting a six-point lead. Herbert scrambled around the right end for 19 yards, punctuating the play with a triumphant slide that could have been a poster.
“Just making sure that we did anything we could [to] get that first down, milk the clock, and end the game with the ball,” the quarterback said.
He said his first option on that play was getting the ball to receiver Quentin Johnston, who had already turned in a masterful performance with touchdown catches of five and 23 yards.
This is the same Johnston who was so disappointing as a rookie, the 21st overall pick in 2023 who struggled to create separation and hang onto the ball when it got to him.
“The past few years, I’ve had a lot of ups and downs,” said Johnston, who finished with five catches for 79 yards. “At the same time, I used that to kind of fuel me.”
Chargers wide receiver Quentin Johnston reacts after catching a 23-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter against the Chiefs on Friday.
(Doug Benc / Associated Press)
Harbaugh tried to keep this victory in perspective — “We can’t be 2–0 unless we’re 1–0. And I know it’s only maybe 5% of our season. … We’ll move on with humble hearts” — but there’s no denying this was huge for a team that begins the season with three consecutive division games. The Chargers play at Las Vegas in Week 2, followed by a home game against Denver.
Seven of the previous eight meetings between the Chargers and Kansas City were decided by one score, and the Chiefs had won six of those.
Assisted by a smothering defense, Herbert upstaged Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes before a worldwide audience. It marked the first time the NFL streamed a regular-season game for free on YouTube, with previous games streamed on subscription-only sites or behind a paywall.
The league was breaking new ground and so were the Chargers, who had lost seven in a row to Kansas City and had waited for months to wash away the taste of a bitter first-round playoff loss to Houston.
But no lead is safe with the Chiefs, who led the league with 11 come-from-behind victories last season and had won an NFL-record 17 one-score games in a row.
Even when Kansas City struggled mightily in the first half, the Chiefs showed their quick-strike ability when they scrambled with the precision of a NASCAR pit crew and came away with a 59-yard field goal as the clock expired.
The Chargers played a role in that because rookie running back Omarion Hampton, who otherwise had a solid debut, ran out of bounds on third down with 54 seconds left. That was a gift to Kansas City, which didn’t have any timeouts left and would be getting the ball back.
Harbaugh took the blame for that.
“None of us smart coaches relayed the message to our young running back to stay in bounds,” he said. “Not [Hampton’s] fault at all. I told the guys at halftime, ‘Had I just told him, we win the game.’ And they say, ‘Hey, we did win the game.’”
Just as the Chargers wanted to put their disappointing playoff performance behind them, the Chiefs wanted to get out from under the dark cloud of a blowout Super Bowl loss to Philadelphia.
“When you don’t come out and play with the right mindset, you get beat,” Mahomes said. “The Chargers came out with the right mindset and we didn’t, so they beat us.”
Kansas City didn’t just lose the game but also lost speedy receiver Xavier Worthy on the third snap of the game when he left with a shoulder injury, towel draped over his head. He was hurt when he collided with teammate Travis Kelce.
Rumors were rampant heading into the game that Kelce’s fiancee, pop star Taylor Swift, would attend the game. There was no indication she was on site.
Chargers safety Derwin James Jr. celebrates after beating the Chiefs in Brazil on Friday night.
(Doug Benc / Associated Press)
The place was teeming with wannabe stars, though, people who showed up with a selfie-stick and a dream.
Amid the screen-agers, there was a familiar face with his Oakley glasses and irrepressible smile.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever gone out to a field pregame and just took a video,” Harbaugh said. “Because it was such a good atmosphere. I wanted to send it back to [wife] Sarah and the kids. First time I ever took a video — little hairs on my arm were standing up. It was great all the way.
“A-plus-plus.”
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