Chargers report card
By: MIKE SULLIVAN - Staff Writer | ∞
Quarterbacks: C
Philip Rivers gets an "A" for guts, but said his injured knee didn't affect his play. He threw two interceptions and admitted that one was a "poor decision." You can't make poor decisions when a Super Bowl berth is on the line and you're playing an undefeated team.
Running backs: B-minus
LaDainian Tomlinson couldn't get out of the gate and left after two series because of his injured left knee. Michael Turner got the bulk of the work and had 65 yards on 17 carries. Darren Sproles produced the top run with a 26-yard burst. FB Lorenzo Neal was back for the first time since breaking his fibula on Dec. 9.
Receivers: B
Chris Chambers and Vincent Jackson again had big games to wrap up stellar postseasons. Chambers caught seven passes for 90 yards, and Jackson had six receptions for 93 yards. Chambers admitted he ran the wrong route on a would-be touchdown pass that he caught out of the end zone in the first quarter when the Chargers settled for a field goal. TE Antonio Gates (two catches) again was a nonfactor while playing with a dislocated toe.
Offensive line: C
Rivers was sacked only once while dropping back to pass 38 times on a day when he couldn't afford to be hit often. The running game, though, didn't clicking on all cylinders. And what about Junior Seau flying through the left side of the line to drop Turner for a 2-yard loss on a crucial third-and-1 from the 4? Seau's play was the biggest of the game, as it forced the Chargers to settle for a field goal instead of trying to take the lead.
Defensive line: C-minus
The line saw a lot of Laurence Maroney in the fourth quarter, but too often it was the back of his jersey, as he repeatedly ripped off big gains. Luis Castillo recorded a sack while Igor Olshansky had half a sack to go with seven tackles.
Linebackers: C-minus
The lights were on, but it was hard to spot Shawne "Lights Out" Merriman making plays. He rarely visited Tom Brady in the Patriots' backfield. Shaun Phillips shouldn't be in the position of having to cover Jabar Gaffney. The proof was on Gaffney's 12-yard scoring pass. Stephen Cooper had six tackles.
Secondary: B-minus
Brady threw three interceptions in a game for the first time since the Chargers pulled the same trick in last year's playoff game. Antonio Cromartie, Drayton Florence and Quentin Jammer intercepted passes, with Jammer (three passes defensed) playing a superb game. Dangerous Randy Moss had just one catch for 18 yards.
Special teams: B
Four cheers for Nate Kaeding, who set a team record with four field goals in a postseason game. But his kickoffs in the windy conditions left a lot to be desired. Mike Scifres' booming leg was silenced by the wind, with a 38.0 average on five punts. Sproles averaged 21.0 yards on four kickoff returns.
Coaching: C
The Chargers played without some offensive weapons, and it showed in their red-zone production, as coach Norv Turner had limited play-calling options. Defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell's unit stopped Moss but couldn't get off the field over the final 9:13 of the game.
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Noodles wrote on Jan 21, 2008 5:30 AM:I disagree completely. The reason the defense fell apart is due to one thing. Time of possession. You can blame the defensive run stopping issues due to tired players. If the offense had held on to the ball longer and did something other than kick field goals and commit turnovers, the defense would have played better.
Jose wrote on Jan 21, 2008 12:13 PM:As for the D, I'm on the same page with Noodles for the most part. I believe the D got winded. The 12 yard scoring play where Shaun Phillips was mismatched with Jabbar Gaffney hurt especially (not to lament much but that's where Donnnie Edwards excelled oh well as they say).
I think the coaching grade should be more like C-/D+ for not gambling in a must win contest (reminded me of how the Jags played vs Pats). If the Bolts failed to score a TD inside the 10, the Pats would've had to take over in poor field position with the Chargers D on fire in the 1st half. I beleive our momentum would've favored us since the Pats didn't find themselves until late in the 4th quarter.
I'm curious as to the interpersonal dynamics between Norv and Rivers about his starting and the contiunation of his playing. It seems to me Rivers didn't want to sit out and maybe Norv just let him start despite reservations (but then again who is to say).
Guts are admirable but when a player's selfish interest in playing/winning despite his physical limitations it works against him in particular and the team in general (Rivers C-).
The grade for Running Backs should be a B not B-. The offensive game calling leaned more toward passing. The backs especially MT didn't get as good a blocking as was needed to garner more yards...gutsy effort anyway. Darren Sproles wasn't utilized much at all...more effort should've been made to give him the ball and get him more involved. Sproles had the best run of the game for the Bolts. Too bad strategy did not follow up with what worked.
Still as a team, the Bolts matched up better and did better than the Pats previous opponents in regular and post season and especially so since their week 2 blow out game vs Pats.
Screaming for vengeance wrote on Jan 21, 2008 12:32 PM:This Charger team is on the rise they are only going to get better. A very good season with a tweak or two in the off season & we`ll be ready to dominate in the coming season. Thanks for the fun ride.
boltssbbound wrote on Jan 21, 2008 5:33 PM:B-minus for the secondary? Are you crazy? They held Brady to a QBR of 66. That was an A+ effort.
Sam wrote on Jan 21, 2008 6:22 PM:The Defense played about as well as you can against Brady and the Pats. 21 points and three picks to statistically the greatest offense of all time. If they take the lead 16 or17 to 14 it's a different game. Offensive red zone was the problem...THE DEFENSE PLAYED HUGE. Say what you want about that last drive (I also agree with fatigue and just some great catches by Faulk) but the defense gave the O every opportunity to put up some 7's and put pressure on the Pats...
BoltDan wrote on Jan 22, 2008 9:02 AM:The grade on Coach should be D or less. I can't believ we got rid of Marty for this... c'mon. Marty knows when you are down by two scores not to give the ball back. He also knew how to score in the "GOLD"zone... not the red zone for Norval... this game has to go squarly on the coach. If Rivers and all the guys play their heart out and get you into the Gold Zone then you must score. Even two of the four trip s were TD's it would be a different game... settling for 3 is not an option...NORV!
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