The Chargers earned a solid 27-21 win over the Chiefs on Friday night in São Paulo, Brazil.

Here are five takeaways from Week 1.

1. Chargers come up clutch

It was a situation the Chargers had been in numerous times in recent years.

A fourth-quarter lead, the Chiefs on the opposing sideline and an AFC West battle hanging in the balance.

But on this night — more than 6,000 miles from home — the Bolts wouldn’t be denied.

“It’s monumental,” said Chargers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh. “September 5th will go down in some Charger lore, in my opinion. It was a big win.”

Keenan Allen added: “Big win. 1-0 to start the season, 1-0 in the division. It was a home game for us so always good to get a win to get a win against the Chiefs.”

Truth be told, the Chargers had hung with the Chiefs, considered the class of the NFL for nearly a decade, perhaps more than any other team in recent memory.

As the second half waned on Friday night, the Chargers saw their lead cut to 13-12, only to respond with a touchdown.

And when the Chiefs cut it to 20-18? Another touchdown drive.

A late Chiefs field goal cut the lead to six points before the Chargers offense put the game on ice.

In fact, the Chargers never trailed Friday night in Brazil.

Each time the Chiefs threatened to seize momentum for good, Harbaugh’s squad had more than enough juice left in the tank.

It culminated with a six-point win that snapped Kansas City’s record streak of 17 consecutive wins in one-possession games.

The Chiefs have won nine straight AFC West titles, and a Chargers Week 1 win is only a small step to try and end that streak.

But the Chargers vanquished a seven-game skid against Kansas City, and did so on their own terms with effort, hustle and clutch plays.

A long season remains for the Chargers, but they couldn’t have asked for a better start in Week 1.

“I just want to stack the games. The season doesn’t end with this game and we know we’re going to have to play that team again,” Derwin James, Jr. said. “But it helps. Being 1-0 in the division is very big for our team.”

Quentin Johnston added: “We had one mission coming out here to Brazil, and that was to win.”

Justin Herbert said: “It was an important one because it was the first one.”

2. Herbert leads the way

If you’re making a list of the reasons why the Chargers won Friday night, put Herbert at the top of it.

“Justin was phenomenal today in every way … it was incredible quarterback play today,” Harbaugh said.

Trey Pipkins added: “He’s a dog. We all know he’s a dog. We’d do anything for him. He’s the hardest worker on the team and he shows it every time he goes out there. We trust him to make plays. As long as we do what we need to do, we know he’s going to make a play.”

Herbert was lethal through the air in Brazil, completing 25 of 34 passes for 318 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.

But he put the game on ice with two minutes to go when he scrambled to his right for 19 yards to move the chains on third and 14.

Herbert, who slid to stay in bounds and keep the clock moving, finished the night with 32 key rushing yards.

“Just making sure I got the first down, stayed in bounds,” Herbert said. “Just making sure that we did everything we could to get that first down, milk the clock and end the game with the ball.”

Harbaugh added of Herbert: “He does everything great. There were two great quarterbacks out there tonight. No turnovers, two great teams, two opposing wills. It was a great challenge and our guys were ready, willing and able for it. Justin on two healthy ankles and full speed, he’s hard to deal with. He’s a problem.”

Keenan Allen caught a touchdown from Herbert while Quentin Johnston had two scores from Herbert.

Allen was asked what Herbert means to the Chargers.

“Everything,” Allen said.

James made sure to point out the effort and commitment Herbert put in this offseason after a Wild Card playoff loss in Houston.

“The way No. 10 put us on his back, he’s been working since that last playoff game,” James said. “I know he’s going to carry us this year.”

Herbert certainly did in São Paulo.

3. Harbaugh lauds defensive effort

The Chargers defense was ready for the challenge Friday night.

Jesse Minter’s group was stellar in the first half and then hung tough to secure a season-opening win.

“When they made a play, we didn’t panic,” James said. “We stayed together and put the fires out.

“That’s a tough team, a Super-Bowl caliber team that is going to make plays,” James added. “They’re never out of it so we knew we had to play them to the end.”

Patrick Mahomes, as he does, made his usual eye-popping plays: a timely scramble here or a perfectly lobbed pass here.

But the Chargers rattled him at times, too, especially in the first half.

The Chiefs didn’t convert on any of their first seven tries on third down, a stretch that included a sack from Daiyan Henley in the red zone.

“It was about setting the tone and what the season is going to look like moving forward,” Henley said. “It’s about making plays when they matter, making plays when they count. That was just one in the road to many.”

Kansas City, which ranked second in the NFL win third-down conversion rate in 2024 at 48.47 percent, converted just five of 14 third downs in Week 1.

“I thought our defense played tremendous,” Harbaugh said. “Patrick Mahomes made some incredible plays, we knew they weren’t going to give us the game, we were going to have to go win it and our guys were up for the challenge.

“Just played really good football. You’ve got to play really good football against the Chiefs, and we did,” Harbaugh added.

4. O-line steps up

The Chargers used all hands on deck along the offensive line in Week 1.

Although Mekhi Becton was questionable to play with an illness, the right guard gutted it out to start and play the majority of the game.

When Becton needed a break, Jamaree Salyer stepped in at right guard.

“It wasn’t a playoff game but he was ill, kind of Michael Jordan to me when he had his 103-degree temperature,” Harbaugh said. “Mekhi was ill and then he got the adrenaline pumping, said he was going to play and he went. He just gave it everything he had.

“There was a couple of plays where he had to come out and Jamaree Salyer, those two did some rotating in there. Both did a great job,” Harbaugh added.

The line was anchored by Joe Alt, who was stellar at left tackle.

“Maybe the best and most improved player on our team, and he was so good last year. Been noticing it for a while. He had a great game,” Harbaugh said.

The rest of the group — Zion Johnson, Bradley Bozeman and Pipkins — helped the Bolts pile up 394 yards of offense.

Herbert credited Bozeman for leading the charge at center against a stout Chiefs defense.

“The offensive line did a great job today,” Herbert said. “We’ve watched so much film over the past couple of weeks and Boze really got those guys prepared for everything they were going to bring.

“They got us a couple times, but we didn’t let that stop us, we kept attacking, kept communicating,” Herbert added. “Those guys up front … they fought from the first play to the last and that’s exactly what we need from those guys.”

Harbaugh added: “Just thrilled with the offensive line play. Some real gravel in the gut. Proud of them.”

5. Playing to win

Looking for an underrated play in the Week 1 win?

Look no further than with just under six minutes left in the third quarter.

With the Chargers up 13-12, the Bolts faced fourth-and-1 at their own 35-yard line.

Harbaugh got aggressive and went for it, handing off to rookie Omarion Hampton for a 4-yard gain.

Eight plays later, Herbert hit Allen for an 11-yard score that put the Chargers up 20-12.

“On that 4th-and 1, big 4th-and 1 in our territory,” Harbaugh said. “Give the ball to Omarion Hampton and he was not going to be denied.”

Another key play?

The Bolts faced third-and-1 from the Chiefs 25 with just under six minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Up 20-18, the Chargers desperately needed a touchdown to make it a two-possession game.

Enter tight end Tyler Conklin, who snuck under center and rushed for 2 yards to move the sticks.

Herbert hit Johnston for a clutch touchdown on the ensuing play.

“You can’t go 2-0 unless you’re 1-0,” Harbaugh said of his team’s effort. “Our guys really prepared for it, they worked extremely hard and just throughout the course of the game you could tell our guys weren’t going to be denied.”