It was week 6, and the San Diego Chargers looked like the cream of the crop. Philip Rivers was sparking serious MVP discussion and the San Diego defense was playing beyond their perceived abilities. Despite having no bonified stars on defense and relying on aging veterans Dwight Freeney and Jarret Johnson, the Chargers defense was stingy…and then the Chiefs came to town.
Kansas City went into San Diego and used their own game plan against the Chargers: death by paper cuts, you could call it. Creating short third downs, converting them, and controlling the clock was the Chargers’ game plan all season, and the Chiefs executed it to a T. Pounding the ball for 154 yards, the Chiefs wore the Chargers down with exactly 39 minutes of possession and were 7-for-14 on third down conversions.
It was a back and forth game, with the Chargers playing efficiently on offense, giving themselves momentum with a Rivers-to-Gates score just before the half to put them up 14-10. Coming out of the half, the Chiefs got the ball and sucked out everything that the Chargers had in them with two clock eating drives. San Diego held the ball for a total of 1:02 on a three-and-out sandwiched in between KC drives. The deflating loss was capped off by a 48-yard Chiefs field goal late in the fourth, followed by a Rivers interception to seal the game.
Since the loss to Kansas City, the Chargers have been in a three-game free fall. Fast forward to this past weekend when Miami embarrassed San Diego, and things are looking even worse; a 37-0 drubbing in which Miami dominated every facet of the game. An early fourth and one attempt for the Chargers in Miami was pathetic with nearly every offensive lineman getting beaten off the ball. The failed conversion was an onus for the rest of the game, foreshadowing the rough loss.
So what happened, where did the scrappy Chargers we saw in the first part of the season go?
As fragile as it is to blame the skid on injuries, it’s been an unfortunate part of the 2014 season. Centre Nick Hardwick was placed on injured reserve just one game into the season with a neck injury, and since then it has been a revolving door of offensive linemen. Four different centres have snapped the ball this year including journeyman Doug Legursky who also went down with an injury after two games.
Staying on the offensive side of the ball, injuries have plagued the backfield as 1,000-yard rusher Ryan Mathews has been sidelined with a sprained MCL, Danny Woodhead broke his fibula in week three and is out for the year, and Donald Brown has been in and out of the lineup with a concussion. Losing Mathews hurt the power running game that San Diego developed late last year while Woodhead was a major factor in the short passing game, eating up yards on flat routes and hooks. The surprising presence of undrafted rookie Branden Oliver has helped, but the Chargers have still only rushed for 100 yards twice this season.
Defensively, every position group but the defensive line has just been ravaged with injuries. Former draft picks at linebacker Manti T’eo, Jeremiah Attaochu, and Melvin Ingram have only played a combined nine games, while the secondary has seen Brandon Flowers, Jahleel Addae and first round pick Jason Verrett take turns on the sideline. San Diego has really seen a loss in terms of physicality on the defense, and it shows. When playing Miami on Sunday, the Chargers were dominated at the second level and had trouble recognizing the ball carrier.
Injuries have hampered game plan execution, but it can’t be pinned solely on injuries. Even healthy players like wide receiver Keenan Allen have acknowledged this after the Miami game, stating that “there was a lack of execution everywhere.”
The lack of execution on the offensive line has hurt both the run and the passing game. When executing well, the ground game has created shorter third down conversions that were being converted at an impressive 55% clip between weeks two and six and went down to 33% in weeks seven through nine. The pressure on the quarterback has increased on a weekly basis, and Miami exposed San Diego’s inability to protect Philip Rivers. The lack of a consistent running game has forced the veteran quarterback to try to put the team on his shoulders. Starting in week two, Rivers engaged in the best five game stretch in the history of the NFL, recording a passer rating over 120 each week. Since the streak ended Rivers has looked out of sorts, throwing six interceptions over three games.
So what are some of the keys to the second half of San Diego’s season?
- Get healthy – The bye week is a perfect opportunity for the team to stop the bleeding. Most teams in the NFL were scheduled an earlier bye, but having it in week ten will be a blessing for the Chargers as getting healthy is one key to playing better football during the second half of the season.
- Establish a run game – The improved health of Donald Brown and return of Ryan Mathews in week 11 against Oakland will give the offense two more weapons. Mathews and Brown are both shiftier than Oliver who is more of a power back, and Brown is a threat to take it to the house on every play. Improved health in the trenches will give the line more solidarity and chemistry. If the injuries continue in the second half of the season we may see the Chargers struggle to win games and take a wild card spot in the tough AFC.
- Improved defensive fundamentals – Middle linebacker Donald Butler has acknowledged his poor play, “It is what it is, I’ve just got to play better” he said in an ESPN Interview. The potential returns of Manti T’eo and Melvin Ingram should help with the lack of a physical presence on defense, and the rest and practice you get during a bye week should improve the tackling.
One of the surprises of the first half of the season, San Diego has the potential to make a deeper run in the playoffs with an experienced Philip Rivers at the helm, and a confident coach in Mike McCoy. If the Chargers can fight off a second wave of injuries and play stingy defense like they did in the first half of the season they could be a spoiler down the road and formidable underdogs in the playoffs.
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