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Originally posted by Berserker76
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Same reason as all other teams that keep 2 or 3 on the roster. -
That's the kind of answer I would expect from Staley. Now for the other part. Why do you think they keep playing their future QB in garbage time?Originally posted by richpjr View PostComment
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From The Athletic.....why can everyone else see this massive problem except Charger management?
Mike Williams suffered a serious ankle injury and is expected to be out long-term. The Chargers passing offense already had just about zero gas. Now it’s even worse. I’d knock the coaching for not throwing deeper passes and even Justin Herbert for always checking down to Austin Ekeler for worthless plays (in reality), but what is the alternative? There is zero speed on this Chargers roster.Comment
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Lots of teams keep backup QBs that never play - not sure how that can be a surprise to you. Who is their future QB? It certainly isn't Stick. Now if you said the game was over and asked why Herbert was in the game and not one of the scrubs to mop up, it's clearly important to Herbert and they O is trying to get untracked. I would have pulled him on the last series but I understand why he was still in.Originally posted by Berserker76 View PostComment
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I can understand why we are struggling on O, but the D... Some pretty bad stuff below.
Are the Chargers a good football team? The answer remains unclear: Popper
By Daniel Popper
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — As the Chargers limp into their bye week, literally and figuratively, we are left with an elusive question.
Is this a good football team?
I do not have a sufficient or accurate answer for you, especially after Sunday’s 37-23 home drubbing at the hands of the Seahawks.
The Chargers are an injured football team.
The Chargers are an inconsistent football team.
The Chargers have fallen short of preseason expectations at 4-3.
The Chargers have, at times, been incomprehensibly stagnant on offense. They have, at times, been gashed for explosive plays on defense, both in the air and on the ground.
The Chargers also have, at times, been tantalizingly efficient on offense. They also have, at times, made game-winning splash plays on defense.
All these things are true. But they do not definitively answer our question.
Are the Chargers a good football team?
What I can say definitively is that the Chargers were not good on Sunday against the Seahawks.
Offensively, they could not run the ball — yet again — and that derailed the afternoon. The Chargers were held under 85 yards rushing for the sixth time in seven games. Their 238-yard performance against the Browns now appears to be nothing more than taking advantage of an awful run defense. They are averaging 64 yards across the other six games this season. On Sunday, two of the Chargers’ 10 first-down runs went for more than 4 yards. They had 8 yards or more to gain on 14 of their 21 second downs. They finished with 53 rushing yards.
“At the point of attack, it wasn’t good enough today,” coach Brandon Staley said. “There was not a lot of room to run the football today, and we got to do a better job coaching, and we got to do a better job playing.”
Quarterback Justin Herbert, who is still dealing with a rib injury he suffered in Week 2, looked out of sorts. He missed throws. He made poor decisions, like on his interception over the middle in the first quarter and when he inexplicably caught a batted pass in the backfield for an 8-yard loss in the fourth quarter.
Herbert had no run game to rely on. He was under pressure when he dropped back as a result. He turned it over twice on back-to-back possessions in the opening quarter, first on that interception and then on a sack-fumble.
“We were really one-dimensional,” running back Austin Ekeler said.
Defensively, the Chargers played like they have all season.
They made splash plays. Kenneth Murray Jr. had an interception after Asante Samuel Jr. tipped a pass on the Seahawks’ opening possession. Khalil Mack recovered a fumble after a dropped pitch in the second quarter. Austin Johnson and Morgan Fox had third-down sacks in the red zone. Sebastian Joseph-Day forced a safety with a tackle for loss on a run in the fourth quarter.
The Chargers also gave up explosive plays. Kenneth Walker III had a 74-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter — the fifth run of 40 or more yards the Chargers have allowed this season. Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith had two touchdowns of 20 or more yards, both to Marquise Goodwin. The first came on a third-and-15 in the first quarter. The second came in the second quarter on a go ball. J.C. Jackson suffered a significant knee injury on the play and could not make a play on the ball. The Chargers have given up 55 explosive plays — defined as any rush over 12 yards or any pass over 16 yards — this season, according to TruMedia.
“We’re not where we need to be,” Joseph-Day said. “That’s evident from what we saw today.”
The Chargers’ defense made too many mistakes on third down, allowing the Seahawks to convert on five of their nine attempts. That is not counting two third-down penalties that resulted in conversions — a pass interference on Jackson on a third-and-13 in the first quarter and an offsides on defensive lineman Jerry Tillery in the third quarter.
“Up and down,” Staley said of Sunday’s defensive performance.
But he easily could have been talking about the season overall on that side of the ball.
The Chargers spent a lot of money on this defense in the offseason. It has not coalesced.
Here is the truth: The Chargers have given up 182 points this season. Only the Browns have given up more.
“We’re going to take a long look at that in the bye week,” Staley said of the defense’s inconsistency. “Just getting the right combination of players out there playing the right combination of play calls, because I think there have been a lot of good moments from us. But our bad moments have been really bad, and we got to make sure that doesn’t happen, because it’s preventing us from being the defense we’re capable of being.”
The Chargers have allowed the second most points in the NFL through seven weeks. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea / USA Today)
The Chargers lost at home, 38-10, to the Jaguars in Week 3. Jacksonville is now 2-5. One home blowout can be viewed as an aberration. Two is a different story, especially considering the quality of the teams.
“The game of football, I don’t believe it’s always about who is the most talented, because if that was the case, we would have won,” Joseph-Day said Sunday. “I think sometimes it’s just about the details, and the grit and the fight. We have the grit. We have the fight. Right now it’s just the details.”
How do the Chargers clean up the details?
“It’s a sense of urgency for everyone,” Joseph-Day said. “Not just the players, but also the urgency that the coaches put on the players.”
Added Staley: “It wasn’t good enough, and ultimately it’s my responsibility. I got to do a much better job coaching.”
Injuries have mounted.
Bosa has missed four games and will not return until much later in the season.
Receiver Keenan Allen returned Sunday after missing five games with a hamstring injury but did not play in the second half. Staley said that Chargers did not want to “push” Allen’s hamstring.
Left tackle Rashawn Slater is out with a biceps injury.
Jackson missed two games because of ankle surgery and is now out for the foreseeable future with the knee injury.
Center Corey Linsley has missed multiple games.
Herbert is battling through his rib injury.
Receiver Mike Williams suffered a sprained ankle in the fourth quarter Sunday and is now likely to miss time.
Tight end Donald Parham Jr. has only played in two games.
Receiver Jalen Guyton tore his ACL in Week 3.
Running back Joshua Kelley is now on injured reserve after spraining his MCL.
Right tackle Trey Pipkins III is playing through an MCL sprain of his own.
Receiver Joshua Palmer has been dealing with ankle and knee injuries and missed Sunday with a concussion.
All these injuries make it difficult to assess this team. The Chargers have done well to mitigate the injuries in certain weeks. In other weeks, like Sunday, they have been woefully exposed.
“It’s just part of the NFL, and we got to deal with it just like everybody else does,” Staley said. “We make no excuses.”
Are the Chargers a good football team?
After the bye, they have 10 games to prove it — one way or the other.
“We just got to f—king pick it up,” Joseph-Day said. “That’s all I got to tell you.”
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The Chargers are still the No, 7 seed by virtue of the fact today's debacle was not a conference loss.Originally posted by richpjr View PostComment
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Popper answered his own question.Originally posted by richpjr View Post
If you are super inconsistent in all phases of the game and your defense has given up almost the most points in the league = YOU ARE NOT A GOOD TEAM.
ESPN Screename: GoBolts02Comment
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and yet, right now, they are the 7th seed so would be in the play-offsOriginally posted by Boltx View Post
so lets just hope Telesco makes some moves to at least TRY to replace the injured playersComment
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Now that I think about it, I'd rather not go into the playoffs only to be embarrassed. The way this team is playing, I'd rather be spared of the embarrassment.Originally posted by Bolt4Knob View PostComment
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This is the time to bring in some reinforcement players.
They have the bye week to get them in.
W.Fuller-WR
D.Williams-RT
B.Breeland-CB
R.Armstead-RB
T.Cohen-RBWho has it better than us?Comment
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While popper struggles to answer his own question maybe he has a bit better perspective on why there’s so much toxicity in the Charger fan base.Originally posted by Boltx View Post
they are especially putrid at home despite a 2-2 record. The two losses were blow outs to a bad and mid level team. One of the wins was the least entertaining football game I’ve ever had the displeasure of witnessing in person and the opener against the raiders was satisfying tempered by turtling. It’s a bad entertainment proposition and I’m seeing empty seatsComment
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