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.
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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.
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Two of those touchdown passes went to Quentin Johnston.
“He makes my job so much easier,” Herbert said. “He just makes plays.”
Seven of the previous eight meetings between these AFC West foes were decided by one score, and the Chiefs 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.
Chargers safety Derwin James Jr. celebrates after beating the Chiefs in Brazil on Friday night. (Doug Benc / Associated Press)
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.
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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.
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.
Read more: Chargers vs. Chiefs a family affair with Andy Reid’s son-in-law in L.A.’s corner
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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.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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