Chargers: Losing With A Bright Side

Really no surprise to anyone following the San Diego Chargers at last week's outcome.  The Denver Broncos did exactly as they were suppose too...don't make dumb mistakes or turn the ball over and you will be able to beat the San Diego Chargers.  And that is exactly what happened.

I had stated after the Jets game that there wasn't a "for sure" win left on the Chargers schedule and even the Jacksonville game on Monday night isn't a for sure win...in fact, I think the Jags will likely win.  Yes, the Jacksonville Jaguars that just fired their head coach with 5 games left to play.  But with a new coach could mean a new "winning" attitude in Jacksonville...something the Chargers don't possess.

But news from San Diego that has many fans excited is that, by all indications, if the Chargers don't make the playoffs Norv Turner will be fired..at the least.  Then GM AJ Smith might also get the axe and both of those things have "energized" the Charger fan base...at least to the point where there might be hope next season.

It isn't over for Norv yet and he has rallied in December before...he is going to need 5 straight wins and some help to save his job...but I don't know if this team can do it, especially with the teams left on the card...and besides, I can't wait for Norv to get fired...he has ruined the San Diego Chargers and made them a laughingstock of the NFL...again.

Chargers Lose Again, Weren't Competitive

I had actually sat down and was ready to get a post up on the past Chargers game yesterday but really had nothing new to say...2 days after the game has ended, I am in the same predicament.  The Chargers continue to lose games in the same fashion as they do each week this season...

Phillip Rivers...right when you think he might be turning the corner and making better decisions, throws two interceptions, with one being at a critical time of the game and was really unnecessary.  The offensive line is awful.  Ryan Mathews, the Chargers 2nd year runningback is doing what he has been known to do and that is fumbling.  Mathews, like Rivers, had a turnover at a point in the game when the Chargers could have made the game interesting.  Instead, with the Chargers lowly defense, the Bears would coast to an easy victory.

Norv Turner pulled a move that I blast coaches for all the time and that is a waste of a timeout...On a questionable play Norv decided to take a timeout to stop the clock and then after the timeout decided to challenge a questionable call which, anyone could have seen, would likely not be overturned...thus, using two timeouts at the same time.  If the play was that questionable, you should have just thrown the challenge flag and not even bother using the first timeout...some have said that the timeout needed to be called and the challenge was an afterthought...well then the coaches need to change their thinking...if you plan on using a timeout, just throw your challenge flag out on the previous play with no reason at all...what's the worst that's going to happen?  Oh yeah, you use a timeout which is what you wanted to do in the first place...

I was hoping that this Charger team would mirror a Charger team of 30 years ago when the Chargers made the playoffs as a wild card and was the team that made me a Charger fan.  That team, 30 years ago, struggled too in the regular season but not in the same manner as this team.  The 2011 Chargers look completely dysfunctional at this time...the secondary is a complete joke...Jammer who once was a shutdown corner is getting burned on a regular basis and Cason and Gilchrist couldn't cover a slug...together.  The defensive line is just as bad as the offensive line and the Chargers are never too shy to get plenty of penalties to help the opposing team.

Tim Tebow is next on the card for the Chargers and Tebow almost beat the Chargers, himself, in the quarter and a half he played earlier this year so I think he will be able to really pile up some numbers this week against a Charger team that has shown it can't stop anyone, anytime.

Chargers Lose 4th Straight, Nowhere To Go But Down

I was pretty sure the Raiders were going to win the game last night and watched about what I expected from the San Diego Chargers.

Sloppy play on both sides of the ball with both the Charger offensive and defensive lines getting pushed around for the entire game...the same thing the Raiders did in their two wins last season, so it came as no surprise to me.

With the Broncos beginning to surge and the Chargers fading, the Chargers could be in last place in the AFC West before Thanksgiving and the only way they avoid that is if they find a way to win a game...but that isn't likely to happen anytime soon.

As I said two weeks ago the Chargers will be fortunate to win 2 more games this season and it won't be next week against the Bears.  The play the Broncos after the Bears but Tebow only played a quarter and a half against the Chargers in their last meeting and came up one play short from a comeback...it won't be that tough for him next time.

There really is no need to describe the game(s) the Chargers lose anymore, it is the same each and every week...they have tons of stupid presnap penalties, no rush defense, no pass rush and their offensive line is horrible.  Phillip Rivers continues to play like garbage and after watching the game last night and the revelation that Rivers' record in game winning and/or come from behind drives is less than stellar the Chargers, once behind in the game stay behind.

Norv Turner continues to suck and hopefully this is the beginning of the end for him as the coach of the Chargers.

Chargers Losing Skid Continues

The San Diego Chargers may have avoided their typical slow start this season by jumping out to a 4-1 record...unfortunately it also might be their high water point of the season as well as the Chargers lost to the unbeaten Packers this past Sunday.

Its not really a surprise to anyone that the Chargers would lose to the Packers.  The Chargers are barely a mediocre team and at home, they were able to at least not be totally embarrassed, as has been the trend of the Chargers in high profile games.  Of course, though, the Chargers did have to display their incompetence to reassure everyone that they will certainly not be a team that will be a factor at any point this season.

We'll start with quarterback Phillip Rivers.  Many think that Rivers might have turned the corner after this past Sunday's game...I don't think so.  Rivers through back-to-back interceptions that were ran back for touchdowns and with the game tied at 7, the game was 21-7 in a blink of an eye.  Then to complete his league leading interception mark, Rivers threw the game ending interception to seal the Packers victory.

The defense, many think the Chargers defense is beginning to get better because the Charger d forced the Packers to punt, twice, in the fourth quarter.  The only problem with that, the Packers didn't punt once in the entire game prior to that and had scored a touchdown on every possession.  At no point was the Packer offense ever in jeopardy of stalling due to the Charger defense.

Penalities, the Chargers continue to get flagged for a ton of penalties, many of them pre-snap...totally correctable but never is.

The AFC West is such an awful division that which ever team claims the title will likely just be fodder for some vastly better wild card team.  I thought the Raiders would easily crush the Chargers but it looks like they may have some problems of their own...losing to the Broncos?  That can't be good.  I still think the Raiders should be able to beat the Chargers because they have the better offensive and defensive lines.  If the Raiders do indeed beat the Chargers it would make 4 straight losses for the Chargers and who were once 4 and 1 will move to 4 and 5 on the year with the possibility no playoffs looking them square in the face much earlier than usual.

Chargers Descent Continues, Chiefs Beat Chargers In OT

There seemed to be two camps for Charger fans going into Monday night's game against the Kansas City Chiefs.  One camp of fans still have optimistic hopes for the Chargers.  The loss to the Jets was just a bump in the road and the Chargers would correct their problems and the steam roll towards the Super Bowl would begin with a beat down of the Chiefs... a team that was once 0-3 and considered to be among the worst in the NFL, but was on a 3 game win streak and the winner would leave Arrowhead stadium with the AFC West lead.  The other camp of fans were those that thought the game against the Jets exposed exactly who the 2011 Chargers are and, that is, a fairly below average, to bad football team.  So when the Chargers literally had to take a few snaps and set up for the game winning field goal to end the game but instead, Phillip Rivers fumbled a snap, the Chiefs recover and promptly beat the Chargers in overtime...fans that were already prepared for the worst were not too shocked or stunned by the outcome.

No, as I posted last week, I am resigned to the fact that this Charger team is not any good.  Looking at their remaining schedule, where prior to the season I had the Chargers going 9-7, I think they maybe lucky to go 6-10.  Yes, going from 4-1 to 6-10 is what I think could very well happen.

Lets start with Phillp Rivers...there has to be something going on.  He looks absolutely horrible.  Even on the passes that he completes, many don't look very good.  His interceptions are as ugly as they look, badly overthrown passes and in some cases, like in the Jets, it looks as if he threw it right to the opponent.  Rivers then tops off his 2 interception game against the Chiefs with the game losing fumble with time running out.  I have continued to say that I like Phillip Rivers because he is a winner, but he is, at least for now, stripped of that title.  A "winner" would never make such a huge mistake to cost the game.

Then there's the defense.  The Chargers win the coin toss in overtime and go 3 and out, punt the ball and push the Chiefs into their own territory.  The Chiefs proceed to move the ball at will down the field and make kicking a game winning field goal look routine against the porous Charger defense.  Cheifs QB Matt Cassels, who is not noted for running, had a big gain as he ran through 4, 5 miss tackles from lowly Charger defenders.  The Charger defense offers barely any resistance even against some of the worst NFL offenses.

There seems to still be the two camps, but the camp where fans are still optimistic for this season is seeing its faithful dwindling and the camp that sees this season of Charger football as another disappointing one is beginning to grow.

Green Bay comes to San Diego this week and the early line was Chargers +5.5 and many Charger fans are saying to take the Pack and the points because it is going to be a beat down.  And my thoughts are just that as well.  The Packers, coming off a bye week and have looked mostly unstoppable.  Unless they look past the Chargers, they should have little problem beating the Bolts this weekend.