3 Los Angeles Chargers to blame for costing Jim Harbaugh HarBowl revenge

Jim Harbaugh made his way back to the NFL after leading Michigan to a national championship in college football. After flirting with making the jump to the NFL for the past couple of year, Harbaugh chose to sign with the Los Angeles Chargers.

So far this season, Harbaugh led the Chargers to a 7-3 record. He's getting the most out of quarterback Justin Herbert, has an electric running game, and a stout defense. In Week 12, Harbaugh was on primetime once again to take on the Baltimore Ravens. That's right, to face his older brother John in the HarBowl. The Harbaugh brothers' teams have met twice, and John won both games.

Well now it's a perfect 3-0 for John, as the Ravens defeated the Chargers 30-16. While it looked like the Chargers were going to put up a fight, the Ravens' star power of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry was just too much to handle.

With this loss, the Chargers are now 7-4 on the year, and well behind the Kansas City Chiefs for first place in the AFC West. When it comes to who to blame, these members of the Chargers stand out.

3 Chargers to blame for losing Har-Bowl to Ravens

3. Jesse Minter, DC

When Harbaugh came over to Inglewood from Ann Arbor, Mich., he brought along his defensive coordinator Jesse Minter to take on the same role. Minter made a name for himself at Michigan, but did the same with the Chargers this year. Entering the game, the Chargers defense allowed an average 317.1 yards and a league-best 14.5 points per game. Minter is even receiving some hype as a potential head coaching hire this upcoming offseason.

But on Monday night, Minter had his first true test against a legitimately terrifying offense. And let's just say the Ravens won this battle.

Los Angeles' mighty rushing defense had no answers for Derrick Henry. Let's be real, they didn't face anyone the caliber of Henry this year. The favorite to win the Offensive Player of the Year award received 24 carries and took them for a total of 140 yards. Backup Justice Hill scored a 51-yard rushing touchdown after a misread from the Chargers defense. Jackson picked up 15 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown on eight carries. That's 212 yards and two touchdowns on 37 carries.

Jackson also had his way in the passing game, completing 16-of-22 pass attempts for 177 yards and two touchdowns.

This is a case of the Chargers facing a better team in the Ravens. But with the Chargers firmly in the playoff picture, Minter will have to use this experience to ensure it doesn't happen again when it's win or go home.

2. Kristian Fulton, CB

Last week, Chargers cornerback Kristian Fulton had a huge game against the Cincinnati Bengals, as he forced four incompletions. In Week 13 against the Ravens, he had the opposite performance.

In the second quarter, Fulton was responsible for allowing the Ravens to take the lead, which they would not relinquish for the rest of the game. While Fulton did a good job staying on pace with wide receiver Rashod Bateman, he turned the wrong way when searching for the football in the air. That allowed an opening for Bateman to catch the 40-yard touchdown pass from Jackson to take a 14-10 lead.

This happened on a drive in which Fulton had back-to-back defensive pass interference penalties, which included the play above. Not to mention, Fulton dropped what would have been an interception in the end zone.

While the defense has been a highlight for the Chargers this year, they had a rough outing. No one had a rougher outing than Fulton.

1. Quentin Johnson, WR

It really seemed like Quentin Johnston had turned the corner with the Chargers. His rookie season last year didn't go as planned, given how well he played during his time in college with the TCU Horned Frogs. The drops were a problem for Johnston, but it seemed like he cleaned things up. Entering Monday night, Johnston caught 22-of-37 targets for 354 yards and six touchdowns.

But facing off against the Ravens, Johnston had drop after drop after drop. Perhaps no drop was more egregious than in the fourth quarter. On a short route, Johnston had a wide open lane down the sidelines if he caught the pass from Herbert. The thing is, Johnston dropped it.

Johnston was targeted five times in the game, where he hauled in zero catches and dropped three passes. This isn't what you want from one of your top targets in the passing game, especially when facing off against a potential playoff opponent.