Justin Herbert and Chargers secure AFC's No. 5 seed with 34-20 win over Raiders

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert said he could tell from the noise his teammates made from neighboring meeting rooms on Saturday “that good things were happening.”

Los Angeles needed the Steelers to lose to the Bengals that night to have a shot at the fifth seed in the AFC playoffs. Cincinnati did its part by beating Pittsburgh, which provided the Chargers with a big opportunity Sunday.

They had some early red-zone troubles, but behind Herbert's 346 yards passing and two touchdowns, the Chargers secured that No. 5 seed with a 34-20 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Chargers (11-6) closed the regular season with a three-game winning streak under first-year coach Jim Harbaugh and will visit the fourth-seeded Houston Texans (10-7) on Saturday.

Had they lost, they would have faced Baltimore in the latest edition of the Harbaugh Bowl. John Harbaugh coaches the Ravens and has never lost to his younger brother.

“I'm very proud of the way the team played, starting with the quarterback,” Jim Harbaugh said. “I'm not going to say unbelievable because I believe it and I see it every day. But there were throws that he was making ... that were like handoffs. They were right where you would put it if you were handing the ball off on a running play. Just incredible game by him.”

Las Vegas, which had won back-to-back games, finished 4-13 with coach Antonio Pierce on the hot seat. Pierce twice said “no comment” when asked about his future.

This was the Chargers' first victory at Las Vegas since 2020 and their first season sweep of their AFC West rival since 2018. That also was the last time the Chargers won at least 11 games.

Herbert showed off his arm and legs, taking off for a 41-yard run in the third quarter to set up a 2-yard touchdown pass to Will Dissly for a 27-13 lead.

His top target was Quentin Johnston, the second-year pro who set career highs with 13 receptions for 186 yards. Johnston had been criticized for dropping a key pass in a 30-23 loss to the Ravens on Nov. 25.

“He's playing the right football at the right time,” Herbert said. “He's confident. He's having fun. You can tell. He's feeling it, and whenever he's doing that, you've got to get him the ball no matter how it is.”

Ladd McConkey caught five passes for 95 yards, his 10th consecutive game with at least 50 yards to break the rookie record that Odell Beckham Jr. set in 2014. His 82 receptions for 1,149 yards are Chargers rookie records.

J.K. Dobbins rushed for 63 yards to finish with 905 on the season.

Aidan O'Connell passed for 214 yards and two touchdowns for the Raiders, and Jakobi Meyers caught nine passes for 123 yards and a TD. Meyers topped 1,000 yards for the first time in his six-year career, becoming the 11th undrafted free agent to accomplish that.

Brock Bowers had four catches for 50 yards and a touchdown to finish the season with 1,194 yards, falling just short of becoming the ninth tight end with 1,200 in a season.

The Chargers outgained the Raiders 473 yards to 264, but failed to score touchdowns on three of their first four trips to the red zone to keep the game close. Las Vegas led most of the first half and appeared set to take a 10-9 lead into halftime.

But O'Connell's dump-off pass to running back Alexander Mattison was intercepted by Chargers linebacker Daiyan Henley to give Los Angeles possession at the Raiders 30-yard line. That set up Herbert's 6-yard TD pass to DJ Chark and 2-point pass to McConkey for a 17-10 lead with 10 seconds left.

The Chargers never trailed again.

“When we got that pick, it sent a surge of energy because it was a little down going into that drive,” Henley said. “And then you see Justin Herbert, what he does when that ball is in his hands.”

This was quite a different feeling for the Chargers the last time they were at Allegiant Stadium. Las Vegas had its way with a 63-21 victory that led to the firings of coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco the next day.

Now LA is preparing for the playoffs while the Raiders — where Telesco is now GM — get ready for an offseason of major questions, beginning with whether Pierce is given another shot.

“I really like AP as a coach,” Bowers said. “We'll see what happens. It's up to certain people and not us. But I really liked playing for him and I thought he was a great coach.”

Chargers: RB Gus Edwards (ankle) and WR Josh Palmer (foot) did not play, and T Rashawn Slater (knee) was scratched after what was described by the team as discomfort in pregame stretches. G Trey Pipkins (oblique) left early in the third quarter.

Raiders: RB Ameer Abdullah (foot) and CB Nate Hobbs (illness) did not play.

Chargers: At AFC South champion Houston on Saturday. This is their first playoff appearance since 2022 and second since 2018.

Raiders: In addition to Pierce, they must decide whether to stick with O'Connell or make a change at quarterback.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Jakobi Meyers, middle left, is congratulated by tight end Brock Bowers after scoring against the Los Angeles Chargers during the first half of an NFL football game in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce reacts during the first half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh, left, walks on the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver DJ Chark Jr. (9) celebrates after scoring against the Las Vegas Raiders during the first half of an NFL football game in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Michael Mayer (87) is tackled by Los Angeles Chargers cornerback Cam Hart (20) during the first half of an NFL football game in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Los Angeles Chargers place kicker Cameron Dicker (11) celebrates with teammates after kicking a field goal during the first half of an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey (15) is congratulated by Scott Matlock (44) after scoring on a two point conversion during the first half of an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Daiyan Henley (0) celebrates with teammates after intercepting a pass against the Las Vegas Raiders during the first half of an NFL football game in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) celebrates with head coach Jim Harbaugh during the second half of an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) runs against Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Charles Snowden (49) during the second half of an NFL football game in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The unofficial national fruit of New Zealand isn’t native to the country – it’s South American. It isn’t exclusively found in New Zealand. And it’s not, perhaps surprisingly, the kiwi. It’s the feijoa.

Known as pineapple guava elsewhere, the fruit — a green perfumed oval with a polarizing taste — can be purchased in California or Canberra. Yet no country has embraced the feijoa with quite the fervor or the fixation of New Zealanders.

Due to its short shelf life, New Zealand — a nation of thriving fruit exports — has never been able to spin the feijoa (pronounced fee-jo-ah) into a global brand, as growers have done with apples and kiwi. But during the brief span of weeks each year when the fruit is ripe, the country goes feijoa wild.

The feijoa’s allure comes partly from how it’s acquired. In autumn, fallen fruit forms fragrant carpets beneath backyard trees and is swept into boxes, bags and buckets to be offered for free outside homes, in office breakrooms and on neighborhood Facebook groups. There's such abundance that some feijoa lovers take pride in never having paid for one.

“It’s sort of non-commercialized. We turn up our noses at the idea of buying them in the shop,” said Kate Evans, author of the book Feijoa: A Story of Obsession and Belonging. “You just sort of expect to get them for free.”

In suburban Wellington, Diana Ward-Pickering said she had given away “thousands” of feijoas from her five backyard trees this season: in a box on the sidewalk, to neighbors, to coworkers, to her daughter’s eyelash technician — in short, to any friend or stranger who wanted some.

On a recent Sunday, Ward-Pickering selected a feijoa from dozens on the ground, halved it with a spoon, and scooped the pale, creamy flesh into her mouth.

“Delicious,” she said. But while she could eat a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of the fruit in a sitting, she said, even her appetite couldn't keep up with the sudden and generous bounty that arrives each April.

“There are people who can’t afford to pay for them,” Ward-Pickering said. “We happily give them away.”

Not everyone’s an enthusiast, and every New Zealander has an opinion. What devotees of the fruit savor as a distinctive texture, flavor and smell, is gritty, soapy or sour to others.

Diana Ward-Pickering’s daughter, Lizzy, gingerly slurped a piece of feijoa into her mouth and grimaced.

“It’s giving snot,” she said. “My mind has not changed.”

But for New Zealanders abroad who love the fruit, feijoas are a nostalgic taste evocative of a kiwi childhood. Evans, who admitted to once paying 3 Australian dollars ($1.90) for a single feijoa at a market in Australia, said that in 12 years living overseas she often saw expatriates asking the same question online: Where can I find feijoas?

How a fruit that hails from the Brazilian highlands, Uruguay and a corner of Argentina first came to New Zealand remains something of a mystery, Evans said. But what’s known is that feijoas have been in New Zealand for just over 100 years, probably originating from California, via Australia.

The trees grow “extremely well” in New Zealand, growers say, due to the soil, subtropical climate and relative lack of destructive insect species.

In spite of New Zealand’s booming backyard feijoa economy there’s still demand for them in stores, where they are currently sold for about 9 to 10 New Zealand dollars ($5-6) per kilogram. There are about 100 commercial feijoa growers in New Zealand almost solely supplying the domestic market, including for popular beverages such as feijoa cider, kombucha and juice.

But exporting the fruit is “tricky,” said Brent Fuller, spokesperson for the New Zealand Feijoa Growers Association. “They’ll keep in the chiller for two or three weeks, but that’s about it.”

Research is underway to increase the shelf life of the fruit. But with the name feijoa still unknown abroad, it remains for now an institution of New Zealand's autumn.

“It’s something that kind of bonds us and gives us an excuse to talk to people around us,” Evans said. The kiwi, she added, has been a lucrative export for New Zealand.

“But we don’t love it the way that we love feijoas.”

A box outside a house offering free feijoas is seen in Wellington, New Zealand, Sunday, May 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlotte Graham-McLay)

Feijoas offered for free in a box are seen outside a house in Wellington, New Zealand, Sunday, May 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlotte Graham-McLay)

A man rakes feijoas from the roof of his shed in Wellington, New Zealand, Sunday, May 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlotte Graham-McLay)

A feijoa hangs from a backyard tree in Wellington, New Zealand, on Sunday, May 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlotte Graham-McLay)

Feijoas is seen outside a house in Wellington, New Zealand, Monday, May 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlotte Graham-McLay)