'TNF' takeaways: Chargers respond with huge comeback win over Broncos

Later in the quarter he scrambled for a first down on a 3rd-and-10 deep in his own territory to retain possession for the Chargers. That drive turned into a 90-yard touchdown drive to help put the game away.

Jim Harbaugh won the coaching matchup with Sean Payton

He not only won it, he won it decisively. 

Harbaugh's best coaching move came at the end of the first half when he called a timeout to force Denver to punt the football just before halftime. 

That resulted in the Broncos taking a fair catch interference penalty, setting the stage for an untimed down that resulted in the NFL's first successful free kick since the 1976 season. 

It ended up being an absolutely massive play in the game. The Broncos thought they were in complete control, and a situation where they felt there was no chance they could allow points they ended up giving the Chargers three free points. That loomed large late in the game when the Chargers' last touchdown turned it into a 10-point game. 

Part of Harbaugh winning the coaching matchup was also Payton losing it. 

Which he did in the fourth quarter when he punted from mid-field with only five minutes to play, down by three points and facing a 4th-and-5 situation. The next time his team saw the football they were down by 10 points with just a little over two minutes to play in the fourth quarter. 

Chargers playoff hopes increase, but Broncos might be sweating 

The Chargers did not officially clinch a playoff berth with Thursday's win, but they is close. At this point the only way they would miss is if they lose their remaining two games and the Bengals, Dolphins and Colts all win their remaining three games. 

That does not seem likely, and it seems that Harbaugh's first year in Los Angeles is going to result in a return to the postseason.

The Broncos are also still in a fairly good position, but they missed a big opportunity to clinch their first playoff berth since 2016 by letting this game slip away.

Now they have to play at a Cincinnati Bengals team next week that could suddenly have a lot to play for (assuming they beat the Cleveland Browns this Sunday), and then finish the regular season against the Kansas City Chiefs in a Week 18 game. The Chiefs might not have anything to play for in that game, but if they do the Broncos could be facing quite the daunting challenge just to get in the playoffs.