Chargers, Broncos Battle For Control Of AFC West

A month ago, the Chargers were buried and all but finished for the season.

A 34-23 loss at home to Denver was their third in five games to open the year and created a 3½ game hole in the division.

Making matters worse the loss came off a bye week for San Diego and gave their only legitimate challengers in the AFC West a leg up in the first tiebreaker to decide the divisional crown.

Fade out, fade in and the Broncos have yet to win another game while the Chargers are riding a four-game win streak since that Monday night contest.

The Chargers will get another chance at the Broncos as Denver hosts San Diego at Invesco Field on Sunday.

A Bronco victory would provide a lift to a sagging team that is one loss away from matching its four-game skid of last season, when they were eclipsed by these same Chargers on the last game of the year for the divisional crown.

It also would give Denver two victories over the Chargers on the season, wrapping up the first tiebreaker and forcing San Diego to finish the year with a superior record to win the AFC West.

A Charger victory would essentially confirm preseason expectations that all but handed them their fourth straight division title. Their winning streak would extend to five games with the Chiefs, Browns, Titans and Redskins remaining on the schedule.

They would be 7-3 with the December slate of games just ahead, which is worth noting. Norv Turner’s Chargers are 9-0 in December during his tenure in San Diego.

Weighing heavily against the Broncos in Sunday’s game is the health of their starting quarterback.

Kyle Orton has a left ankle sprain and missed his third straight day of practice Friday, according to published reports. Orton sustained the injury in the Broncos’ 27-17 loss at Washington and was replaced by Chris Simms.

Denver head coach Josh McDaniels said Orton is still a possibility for Sunday, but will wait for mobility tests on game day before making a decision.

If Orton does not play, Simms will start despite his poor play against the Redskins. Simms completed just 3-of-13 passes for a total of 13 yards and one interception.

It was the first time Simms had been on the field for any significant playing time since September 2006, when he suffered a ruptured spleen while playing for the Buccaneers. He had the spleen removed and was briefly on the field last season with Tennessee, completing 1–of-2 passes.

The Broncos should get a lift at home, where they are 3-1 this season, including an overtime victory against New England.

But it is their sixth-ranked defense that will have to control the tempo against the Chargers. Denver is 12th in the NFL in rushing yards allowed per game and fifth overall in passing yards.

A major contributor to the Broncos’ pass defense is Elvis Dumervil, who leads the league with 11½ sacks, including two of Philip Rivers in Denver’s win on Oct. 19.

Rivers remains the main engine that drives the Chargers with a passer rating that ranks seventh-highest in the NFL and third-highest in the conference. It was a balanced attack, though, that made a victory at home Sunday against the Eagles remarkably comfortable.

Despite a near comeback fueled by Donovan McNabb’s 450 passing yards, a productive running game with LaDainian Tomlinson, who contributed a solid if not spectacular 96 yards on the ground, allowed the Chargers to maintain their lead throughout the game.

Tomlinson also scored twice on had a long run of 20 yard and had a modest five-yard gain from the wildcat formation.

In a victory over the Raiders in early November, LT scored from six yards out on a direct snap and this past Sunday, Legedu Naanee also spent some time in the wildcat.

Naanee is specifically suited to the formation with his collegiate years at Boise State as a quarterback, though he spent far more time catching the ball than throwing or running.

Vincent Jackson hauled in one touchdown pass against the Broncos last month and leads the team with seven scores this season.

The Eagles double-teamed the 6-foot-5 target and Denver will not be able to ignore Jackson, but that provides Rivers with open looks to Antonio Gates, Malcom Floyd and Naanee. All three caught passes Sunday with Naanee getting his first career regular season TD.

Special teams play could determine the game’s outcome.

In the teams’ previous meeting, Eddie Royal scored on a 93-yard kickoff return and on a 71-yard run to the end zone on a punt return. Darren Sproles responded with 77-yard punt return for a touchdown return of his own.

Titles are not won in November, but Sunday’s victor will solidify their chances of a postseason run in January.

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Chargers’ Run Game Lost In Witness Protection

It hasn’t quite gone the way of the flying wedge, but it’s getting close.

If it were a television episode, it would require an update on the fate of the courageous heroes. Out on the town on a Saturday night, and there would be no need for it to avoid publicity seekers, gawkers, or paparazzi.

It’s the Chargers running game, and while not yet extinct, it’s about as effective as a leather helmet.

A once proud unit that featured LaDainian Tomlinson chewing up yards and spitting out touchdowns behind the human blocking sled of Lorenzo Neal is now an afterthought which can barely break the line of scrimmage.

Where game sheets once revealed stats like 192 now are barely visible with numbers like 22.

That 192, you may ask, was LT’s rushing total against the Giants in 2005. Of course, that was under the cloud-of-dust style of head coach Marty Schottenheimer and a season in which a younger-legs Tomlinson gained more than 1,400 yards on the ground and produced 18 rushing touchdowns.

In the Chargers’ 21-20 victory at the Meadowlands on Sunday, Tomlinson’s 22 was the leading output for a ground game that generated a total of 34 yards. LT didn’t even have the biggest run of the game: that honor went to quarterback Philip Rivers, who got loose for 15 yards in the fourth quarter.

The Chargers’ running game is less about keeping the opposing defense honest and more of a reminder they actually might hand it off now and then.

Out of 53 total plays, the Chargers ran the ball 15 times against the Giants on Sunday. LT had 12 carries while Darren Sproles and Rivers each rushed one time. Oh yeah, there was also the poorly executed end-around by Vincent Jackson that resulted in a four-yard loss.

That came on a third and five and brought punter Mike Scifres out to kick the ball away—twice. The first was a beauty that would have pinned the Giants at their own two, but was erased by Mike Tolbert’s holding penalty.

In eight games this season, the Chargers have eclipsed the 100-yard rushing plateau in just two contests, and that came in recent back-to-back victories over the Chiefs and Raiders. They have not had a 100-yard rusher yet this season, with the high being a 71-yard output by Tomlinson at home against Oakland.

An intriguing shift in that game was the wildcat formation, dubbed “Wild Frog” in reference to LT’s Horned Frog days at TCU. Tomlinson scored from six yards out in that game as the Raiders looked confused.

But the wild frog remained buried in the playbook against the Giants.

It is impossible to say whether or not that would have breathed life into their virtually non-existent ground game, which is dead last in the NFL in yards rushing per game and yards rushing per attempt.

For LT, it is tough to accept those figures, but his perspective extends beyond statistics.

“Sometimes, for selfish reasons, I want to have a good game,” Tomlinson told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I want to have 100 yards; I want to have a touchdown. Sometimes it doesn’t work like that. Yeah, I’m going to look back and feel disappointed because I didn’t have the numbers. But at the end of the day, we won the game.”

“Things have changed. We haven’t had the kind of rhythm in the running game we’re used to having,” said Tomlinson, who had his third lowest career rushing day. “It’s disappointing. At the same time, we’re 5-3 and I’m going to keep playing hard.”

Winning essentially renders all stats meaningless, and Rivers is doing his share to keep fantasy owners happy. All three Charger touchdowns were the end result of strikes by Rivers, one to tight end Kris Wilson and a pair to Jackson, including the game-winner with 21 seconds left showing on the game clock.

With Rivers in the pocket, the Chargers will be in every game they play this season—a campaign they’re looking to extend into January.

Credit also must go to a once-on-its-heels defensive unit that has hit back in the last couple of games, as coordinator Ron Rivera has begun to unleash his safeties in a variety of blitzing packages. Contributing, too, has been Shawne Merriman who has four sacks this season, but all in the last two games.

It was Merriman, who shut down a Giants drive with four minutes to go in the fourth quarter by sacking Eli Manning. He struck again with a sack of Manning to end the game.

But putting each game entirely in the hands of Rivers will make it difficult for the Chargers to grind out the minimum five and possibly as many as seven victories needed to make the playoffs. Their rematch in Denver in two weeks will be against a squad that was rated No. 1 in total defense through Sunday.

Up next on the schedule are the Eagles, who are 10th in the league in total defense.

At some point, they will have to run the ball, as just two rushes for first downs on Sunday (and that includes Rivers’ scramble) would indicate. Center Nick Hardwick is practicing, and he will help, but no date has been set for his return from ankle surgery.

It may be as simple as will and effort from two proven game-changers in Tomlinson and Sproles.

But for the pair of Chargers running backs, who currently are as productive as two dudes in an empty bus station, getting them out front with the football will be necessary at some point if the team wants to make a run to Miami.

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The Blame Game: Fault With Chargers, Not Fans

It’s apparently come down to this—it’s the fans’ fault.

The substandard play of the San Diego Chargers has been laid at the feet of the 60,000 or so paying customers, who show up on game day.

Called out, too, are the million or so folks who live in the greater San Diego area and pull up a collective chair with friends in front of their TVs after dropping a few ducats at the local convenience store.

It’s your fault.

No matter that not one of you has missed a tackle or dropped a pass or called for the wrong play on fourth-and-one.

It’s your fault.

You’re not mad enough. You’re not demanding enough. You don’t hold your team to a high enough standard. You’re not East Coast so you don’t get it.

What a load of dung.

But if you listen to national radio types or read misguided columnists or endure the annual slamming of the soft and sunny West, you’d think you’re to blame.

Think of that the next time you see Malcom Floyd boot a ball on a possible game-winning drive.

Point the finger at yourself the next time Ray Lewis blows through the line to put the final touches on a loss.

Apologize to anyone within earshot the next time the sad state or the San Diego Chargers takes the field and puts forth a half-assed effort.

It could be Sunday in Kansas City, so be prepared.

Be ready to raise your hand like they used to do on a basketball court when the referee whistled a foul. Remember that? When people actually took responsibility for their own actions?

Now, the finger more often gets pointed outward and apparently it is being directed at you.

Don’t buy it: not for a minute.

As San Diego fans, you’ve been hearing it for years.

The weather is too nice. There are too many distractions. You’re too laid back.

So the word has gone out to get mad and not take it anymore.

But here is the most salient fact: The team has failed you and not the other way around.

Norv Turner is a sub .500 head coach. He was in Oakland; he was in Washington. And now, his San Diego team loses more than it wins.

Shocker!

Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union Tribune unearthed these positively nauseating facts.

The team is 11-12 since losing the AFC title game to the Patriots in 2007. The Chargers are 19th out of 32 teams in regular season games over the last 18 months. They’re not any better than the 49ers.

But it’s the last item that should make anyone associated with the Chargers to cough up a bolt. They’re only three games better than the Raiders over that span.

That’s right, the Raiders.

This is the same team that has been an absolute mess since a loss in the 2002 Super Bowl. The team that has run coach after coach out of town while calling one a liar. The team whose current head coach beats up his assistants.

The Chargers are barely better than the Raiders and given the results from Week One to now, they actually might be worse.

No, the fault of this spiral has not been the fans, but a franchise that has been solely focused on whether or not they can settle their butt into a nicer leather chair than the nice leather chair into which they currently settle their butt at the Q.

Sure, a new stadium would be nice, but so would a new downtown library or a rail system that actually served a city that is the nation’s ninth largest.

The fans have been fine; a group that has proven it will show when there is a product worth seeing. The city went nuts when the team made the Super Bowl. They’ve rocked the Q during Chargers playoff runs since and baseball never had louder crowds than those that supported the Padres in 1998.

But you get slammed because there are other things to do. The weather is nearly perfect so you go outside. There are a number of fine breaks so you’re in the water and waiting for a swell.

Perfect. Keep it up.

It’s the Chargers’ problem to fix, not yours.

It’s Norv’s job to shake himself from his misguided notion of a running game and turn the offense completely over to Philip Rivers and the pass.

It’s Ron Rivera’s job to figure out a way to get more out of his defense.

It’s AJ Smith’s job to make personnel adjustments and it’s the Spanos’ job to insist their employees put a winning product on the field.

As for the fans, it’s your job to get excited about a winning team. If not, there’s something better to do. Remember, it’s San Diego.

But the current sad state that is the Chargers is clearly not your fault.

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For Turner and Chargers, Manhandled Is Just a Loss

Some are fans of selective memory, while some advocate amnesia.

Others might even refer to bad losses as turning the page.

Chargers head coach Norv Turner prefers denial.

“I would not use that word,” Turner said to reporters when asked if the Steelers had manhandled his team. “I don’t think that’s fair.”

In war, love and often, too, in football, all is fair and yes, coach, your team was manhandled.

Beaten, bullied, shoved, and pushed around even.

And had it not been for Philip Rivers finding his rhythm in the second half against a sagging Steelers defense, the score would have more accurately reflected how one-sided Sunday’s 38-28 loss was for the Chargers.

So, what do Turner and his Chargers do next?

What exactly is the encore to a routine schooling by the defending Super Bowl Champs with the surprising and AFC West-leading Denver Broncos coming to town up next on the schedule?

Certainly those claims of the Chargers being one of the NFL’s elite have been thoroughly discredited with losses already against last year’s best (Pittsburgh) and possibly this year’s (Baltimore).

The idea of being clear favorites in their division has been largely ditched to the curb as well.

Funny how quickly things change once games are actually played and it’s no longer merely a list of names in a fantasy league.

The Chargers have issues and it’s not just the fact they’ve been relegated to the second tier of teams in the AFC.

At 2-2, they are one-loss away from being in exactly the same spot they were a year ago and dropping their fifth game of the 2009 campaign would put them seriously arrears of the Broncos.

Doesn’t that sound familiar?

And don’t for a minute think they’ll close a yawning divisional deficit if they haven’t found their identity by December.

That bolt’s not striking twice.

Which basically means their next game is a must-win.

Of course, there are no must-wins until a team is facing elimination.

But if the Chargers were to lose to the Broncos in their next game, they would be at no less than a 2 1/2-game disadvantage.

That would also give the Broncos a leg up on the first tiebreaker with the second installment of the season series in Denver on Nov. 22.

Yeah, it’s a must-win and the bye could not have been better timed.

There have been plenty of woeful excuses made about the injury reports filed by the Chargers this season, but the week off will certainly help.

LaDainian Tomlinson might actually be at full speed Oct. 19, while Shawne Merriman could see improvement from a groin injury as well.

Aside from the notable losses of Jamal Williams and Nick Hardwick, Stephen Cooper, Luis Castillo, Jacques Cesaire, Malcom Floyd, Travis Johnson, and Ogemdi Nwagbuo have all been slowed by minor injuries and will see limited practice time.

Finding it necessary to put the injuries aside, though, as all teams must face the problem, are Turner and the rest of the Chargers’ brain trust who must rediscover this team’s identity and direction.

One direction they are clearly not going is forward, when they run the ball at least. The teams ranks dead last in rushing yards.

Want another depressing stat? The Chargers occupy the NFL-cellar in third-down efficiency.

Darren Sproles is clearly not an every-down, grind-it-out running back. The return of LT should help, but until “two-one” actually gets on the field and produces, that is best left unsaid.

Where the Chargers excel, however—and this is no secret—is in the passing game. Wasting effort trying to establish the run while Rivers and his wideouts have proven they can move the ball in sizable chunks is ludicrous.

Sproles up the middle worked once. Ray Lewis proved it’s a call to be used sparingly.

The Chargers need to swap out the flavor of Kool-Aid and shift to a pass-first, run-second oriented team, kinda like the Cowboys in the early 90s. The scheme should be familiar. Turner was the offensive coordinator.

Fixing the offense, though, could seem a minor tweak when compared with a defense that has been spotty in the seasons’ first four games. The leak-now, burst-later unit allowed Ben Roethlisberger to throw for 333 yards and his ground units to consume 177 yards.

Teams that can’t stop the run, can’t win at any level and the Chargers are currently ranked 28th in rushing defense.

Maybe it’s time Ron Rivera phoned his old boss Buddy Ryan to see if he can employ some exotic tricks.

And possibly Turner is on to something when he said it’s unfair to claim the Chargers were manhandled by the Steelers.

If his players can buy into that, maybe they’ll believe they still belong.

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Chargers Unafraid to Run Despite Modest Gains

The Chargers may be channeling their aviator past with a 21st century iteration, but elements of the ground game are still readily apparent.

And whether the through-the-trenches chores are handled by LaDainian Tomlinson or Michael Bennett or Darren Sproles, “Air Turner” is merely a part of the service that moves the football for these San Diego Chargers.

No worries.

Philip Rivers will get his yards – he threw for 303 in Sunday’s 23-13 victory over the Dolphins – and the receivers will get opportunities to stretch their legs (Vincent Jackson, five catches, 120 yards, Antonio Gates, five/64 and Malcom Floyd, 2/65).

But Turner’s philosophy is really no different than a host of other head coaches, who have tried to make a living in the National Football League.

To have success over the long term, in this case an NFL season, teams have to run the football and balance that with a good mix of passes and play action.

So despite his option to direct Rivers aloft, losing the ability to run effectively would not only make Turner’s Chargers one-dimensional, it would put more pressure on a patchwork offensive line and not less.

Sunday’s game served prime examples of Turner looking to establish his ability to run and continue to hand the ball off regardless of perceived success.

Out of 63 total plays for the Chargers, Rivers made 33 pass attempts and was sacked twice while they rushed the ball 28 times. Positive yards skewed heavily to the passing game as Rivers eclipsed the 300-yard plateau for the second straight game, completely dwarfing the output by Chargers running backs.

Sproles led with 41 of the team’s 69 yards gained on the ground and only two of the team’s 17 first downs were achieved on a running play.

The Chargers’ lone offensive touchdown was scored on the ground, though, as Rivers’ unlikely five-yard scamper gave the team a 10-6 late in the third quarter. They would lead the rest of the game as Nate Kaeding added two more field goals and Eric Weddle iced it with a 31-yard TD interception return of a Chad Henne pass.

Despite the fact the Chargers have not rushed for at least 100 yards in any of their three games this season while giving up an average of 142 run yards in each of those games, Turner has clearly indicated he will continue to strike a balance.

On 15 first-down plays in Sunday’s first half, the Chargers ran eight times while passing on seven occasions. That increased in the second half, due in part to the fact they milked clock in the fourth quarter. The Chargers ran the ball on first down 10 times in the second half while attempting three first-down passes.

In maintaining that balance, though, Rivers was eventually able to strike downfield. After a three-and-out possession on their initial second-half drive, Rivers hit Floyd on the first play of their succeeding drive that was good for 47 yards.

A short pass to Antonio Gates worked for another 19 yards and Rivers ultimately ran it in for the score.

Their propensity to throw deep was evident again in the Chargers’ next drive as Rivers hit Jackson on a 55-yard bomb. That drive ended with a Kaeding field goal.

Another drive that featured a mix of short passes and runs produced another three point s from Kaeding before Weddle’s pick six.

The Chargers have proven they can move the ball in large chunks by throwing the ball but are also not afraid to balance that attack with the run, despite their modest success.

Problems have arisen, though, in their near inability to convert deep pushes into the red zone into touchdowns. Kaeding has converted eight of nine field goal attempts this season, but seven of those have been inside 30 yards.

That is contrasted by just four red-zone TDs.

A healthy LT should help increase those numbers, but he still hasn’t returned from an ankle injury. That puts the load on Sproles and Bennett, neither of whom has shown the ability to be an every-down, 100-yard rusher.

Results aside, though, Turner will unlikely abandon the running game any time soon. That also could very well mean that he’ll need to be satisfied with trotting Kaeding onto the field in return for points.

At some juncture, though, and hopefully very soon with a game in Pittsburgh this coming Sunday, Turner will allow Rivers to let it fly inside the red zone.

 

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The Loss of Jamal Williams Is Bigger Than Losing Merriman Last Season

Healthcare is not just a concern in Washington.

For every senator looking to debate a particular issue or sort through the din of misinformation, there is an NFL general manager, head coach and trainer hoping to answer the simple question.

Can my guy play or not?

There is not a football team that doesn’t face that most basic of questions on a regular basis and the Chargers have already fielded their share on the young season with possibly one injury looming larger than the others.

That would be Jamal Williams, who has been lost for the season with an elbow injury.

There are other maladies facing the Chargers, certainly. Center Nick Hardwick has had ankle surgery and is expected to be out at least until the team visits Denver on Nov. 22.

LaDainian Tomlinson has been nursing a sore ankle since the season opener in Oakland and has yet to practice. LT has said he won’t play until he’s 100 percent, not willing to repeat the mistake of last year.

Lesser hurts and/or illness have also affected the roster, including key starters Stephen Cooper, Eric Weddle, and Kris Dielman.

But the loss of Williams is a tremendous blow. As big as losing Shawne Merriman last year with the possibility of creating an even greater drag on the team’s ability to slow down the opposition.

Not only is he lost for the year, which eliminates any patchwork or Band-Aid fix to bridge the gap to mid-November as they can do with Hardwick. But Williams is the axis of the Chargers defensive line around which the other pieces operate.

No Williams at anchor, no pressure on the edge, as teams will quickly learn that the place to attack the Chargers is up the middle.

That worked last week for the Ravens and coming to town are the Dolphins, whose Wildcat formation needs no introduction. The Chargers couldn’t stop it a year ago and the Colts did little to slow them down last week as Miami controlled the ball for 45 minutes.

A lack of explosiveness, though, could only produce 23 Miami points against the Colts so the Chargers may be able to turn to their offense to carry the load come Sunday.

But finding someone to slow down Ronnie Brown, the focal point of Miami Wildcat, or any featured NFL running back, will be paramount.

As Turner has pointed out, there is nothing gimmicky about their offense and that was apparent Monday against the Colts as Brown routinely found the soft spot of the Indianapolis defensive front or changed pace with an inside handoff to Ricky Williams.

And where did they direct most of those runs? Right up the middle, and right where Jamal Williams was not last Sunday, will not be again this Sunday or any Sunday for the rest of the season.

A three-time Pro Bowler and a two-time All Pro, Williams did not miss a game last year while starting 15. He also registered 46 tackles, which led Chargers linemen.

At 33, Williams may not get to the quarterback as often as he once did, but his ability to handle a double-team and hold the point of attack at the line of scrimmage has allowed leading tacklers Cooper and Weddle to fill the gaps on run support.

Last week, Willis McGahee and Ray Rice combined to rush for 115 yards as the Ravens picked on Ogemdi Nwagbuo, a former practice squad player who has logged his first six NFL tackles in two games this season, but also a rotation of Luis Castillo, Jacques Cesaire and rookies Vaughn Martin and Andre Coleman.

Coleman has since been released and re-added to the practice squad, but the Chargers have signed veteran Alfonso Boone, who is in his ninth NFL season. Boone appeared in 15 games for the Chiefs last season but also worked under Rivera in Chicago.

With Travis Johnson out Sunday with a groin strain, the depth chart remains thin so the addition of Boone could prove critical for the Chargers to establish some consistency and allow Rivera to utilize his defensive strength, which are the linebackers.

A year ago, Merriman was advised to have knee surgery. He ignored the opinions of four different doctors, played a few series in the opener and had the procedure anyway.

The defense spent half a season looking for an identity and it cost coordinator Ted Cottrell his job.

Rivera should be able to adjust more quickly with the loss of Williams but that doesn’t mean the Chargers defense will be any more effective.

He will have to identify one large body to occupy the middle or rotate a nose-tackle-by-committee to slow down the run.

Otherwise, the Wildcat on Sunday will just be another installment of a season-long, running-game nightmare the Chargers will have to solve.

 

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San Diego Chargers: Towering Receiving Corps Produces Monumental Headaches

Given the NFL’s decision to settle tie games with a half court game to 11, the Chargers will be favorites to seize victory in any extra period.

By posting up Antonio Gates with inside help from Vincent Jackson, Malcom Floyd, Chris Chambers, and Legedu Naanee off the bench with possibly Darren Sproles to run the offense, and it’s one round ball squad that will be tough to beat.

Look for them to dominate at the “Hoop it Up Tournament” down by the pier, too.

The thing is, the NFL’s competition committee hasn’t quite signed off on the idea of its players jumping center at the end of four quarters.

Likely, as well, the Chargers aren’t so keen on their talented receiving corps doing anything shy of relaxing in their downtime with basketball being particularly blacklisted.

Remember Ryan Leaf playing some pickup ball down at Robb Field? Bad idea, man.

Still, the go-big group the Chargers employ on Sunday’s is causing fits in opposing secondary’s and dropping linebackers into coverage is only mildly successful.

So what is a defensive coordinator to do when Gates, at 6’4″, Jackson, and Floyd (both 6’5″) and Chambers (5’11”, but 210 pounds) all flood the pattern?

Apparently very little, as the Ravens found out when Philip Rivers torched them for 436 yards.

Their solution, though, was to take away Rivers’ precious time in the pocket. And it worked.

Baltimore harassed the Chargers quarterback sufficiently by sacking him twice, forcing him into a pair of delay of game penalties, and most costly, two interceptions which resulted in 10 points for the Ravens.

Very costly as the Chargers only lost by five in Sunday’s contest.

Sounds like a prescription to victory for the Dolphins, who visit San Diego this Sunday. Except, Miami does not bring the pressure that John Harbaugh’s Ravens squad delivers, a team that is currently looking to be the class of the AFC if not the NFL.

The Dolphins can consume plenty of time, run a number of plays, and largely make a defense look confused with their multiple looks, fueled largely by their Wildcat scheme. But like many spread attacks that lack enough firepower on the ends, the Dolphins can produce yards between the 20’s but are less successful in the red zone.

That was evidenced in the Colts’ 27-23 victory over the Dolphins on Monday night as Peyton Manning struck big early and struck again late with another big play to steal the game.

They didn’t produce enough points to put the game away.

Miami’s Wildcat could cause problems for a San Diego defense that has been on its heels lately, as both the Raiders and Ravens executed their offensive game plans with surprising ease.

Halftime adjustments by Chargers defensive coordinator Ron Rivera succeeded in both games to put the team in positions to win.

They rallied in Oakland, but failed against Baltimore.

But it will be the Miami defense that will be looking to adjust Sunday as the Chargers continue to exploit their size advantage and learn the not-so-subtle nuances of arguably the most potent aerial attack this side of New Orleans.

The talents of Gates are no secret; he of the five Pro Bowl invitations and three All-Pro nods, but the book is only just coming out on Jackson. In his fifth season out of Northern Colorado, Jackson has quickly become one of the first options for Rivers and has emerged as the Chargers’ primary big-play threat.

A 1,000-yard plus season a year ago that was sprinkled with seven touchdown receptions has already been followed by nearly 200 yards in the first two games this year and a pair of TD catches.

Perhaps no catch was bigger or more evident of his ability as an elite NFL receiver than the 35-yard bomb he hauled in Sunday while draped by no fewer than three Baltimore defenders.

That catch was on a 3rd-and-18 play. On three other occasions, Jackson and Rivers hooked up to successfully convert third downs including a 38-yard pickup on the last drive.

Lesser known, but emerging in the quickly evolving Chargers passing game, are Floyd and Naanee.

Floyd flashed some game-changing skills with a 45-yard reception on a post in Sunday’s first half while Naanee was good for eight yards with a catch to put the Chargers deep in the Ravens’ territory and within sight of another come-from-behind victory.

Naanee in his third year and just 22 catches on his NFL belt, showed some inexperience on that catch, though. Instead of running straight ahead for a likely first down, he tried to fake a defender and was tackled from behind.

Two plays later, the game was over when Ray Lewis flattened Sproles in the backfield.

The jumbo package displayed by the Chargers is certain to create a number of matchup problems for opposing NFL defenses this season and next up are the Dolphins.

It also should allow them to complement and exploit the unique talents of Sproles, who despite Lewis’ Hall of Fame caliber tackle, provides an explosive and significant extra gear to the club.

But with the ball in the air, the call in San Diego is to go big.

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Chargers Play a Familiar Tune With Victory Over Raiders

Gertrude Stein was clearly wrong about Oakland.

It is precisely there—a place that often gets noticed for the wrong reasons—where the Chargers go to get a victory.

Any place else Monday night, and the team would be practicing this week with the task—yet again—of trying to make up ground, tread water, fill in the hole.

But the Raiders are tonic for a Chargers’ team like none other.

The last 12 games between the two teams have produced 12 positive results for San Diego, a streak that was also matched by the Patriots’ late-game rally over the Bills Monday night.

It’s a rivalry that’s about as current as the Raiders’ multipurpose stadium. Is any other NFL team hosting games on a baseball diamond still?

The Raiders have not won a game in the home-and-home seasonal series since the Bill Callahan era in 2003. A year earlier, they were routed in the Super Bowl and no claims of excellence have made them a factor since.

And, as is often the case in cruel running jokes such as this, on Monday night, the Raiders probably should have won, but didn’t.

The Chargers, slated as prohibitive favorites to win the AFC West, if not challenge for the conference crown, sleepwalked their way through 58 minutes of football as if it were exhibition game No. 5.

As hosts in the regular season opener and nightcap of a primetime television doubleheader, the Raiders were the team that was prepared for the lights.

Aside from the expected erratic passing game in the controls of JaMarcus Russell, the Raiders were otherwise crisp in their execution, while employing a running game that gained yards and a defense that made the Chargers look absolutely ordinary.

It was a game that all the Raiders had to do was keep close because even Russell, for as inaccurate as he mostly was, could complete one deep ball, and he did.

That pass badly torched the Chargers’ secondary and gave the Raiders the lead with two minutes and change to go.

But they’re the Raiders, and the Chargers rallied when Darren Sproles squirted through for a game-winning touchdown run with 18 seconds to spare.

Where would the Chargers be without Sproles? More on that later.

Head coach Norv Turner, general manager A.J. Smith and the rest of the Chargers’ coaching staff need to send a case of their favorite beverage to the schedule warden for penciling the Raiders in for Game One.

Make that two cases.

If the Chargers had opened in Baltimore, Miami, or Tennessee—even Denver—then avoiding the loss column would have been highly unlikely.

The Raiders controlled the line of scrimmage, at times, on both sides of the ball and specifically showed they will be able to make some noise defensively this season with the addition of Richard Seymour, who played both end and tackle Monday night.

Along the other sideline stood a team that more often appeared to be in need of a couple more weeks of two-a-days.

Quarterback Philip Rivers seemingly struggled with the concept of the play clock and more than once was flagged for delay of game.

His notoriously competitive nature was on display again and may have cast a shadow over the game had he not engineered a game-winning, and possibly season-saving, drive at the end.

Rivers’s 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty for taunting was familiar, but so was the fourth-quarter comeback.

And familiar, too, was the result over the Raiders—the anticipation of which played on the face of a supremely calm Turner, who seemingly took each misstep by his team as mere inconveniences.

More problematic will be the losses of offensive linemen Nick Hardwick and Louis Vazquez, both of who left Monday night’s game with injuries and could prove difficult to replace.

Rising again, though, to float the fortunes of his team was Sproles, whose $6.6 million franchise tag is looking to be every bit the stimulus the Chargers will need this season.

On the game-winning drive, Sproles, along with Antonio Gates and Legedu Naanee, provided Rivers with the requisite clutch plays to help the Chargers march 89 yards to a 24-20 victory.

Sproles contributed with three huge plays on the drive: a 15-yard reception for a first down and a pair of five-yard runs to cover the final 10—the last through a hole that only Sproles was likely to find.

That 1-0 mark the Chargers now possess looks a lot closer to their .500 record of a year ago than the double digit victories expected from this team.

Unless, of course, they play the Raiders, in which case they’d find a way to win every game.

 

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Chargers Must Win the Super Bowl Or Leave Town

There is no next year.

This isn’t about building for the future.

It’s not about taking stock and assessing team depth, either. Save that for the rest of the division.

The Chargers have to step out, lay waste to the West, get to the Super Bowl, win it, and put the official seal on the franchise’s 50th anniversary season.

And they really don’t have any excuses.

Lance Alworth deserves it. Dan Fouts deserves it. The legacy of Sid Gillman deserves it. Hell, Bud Whitehead deserves it. No question the fans deserve it.

Fly under the radar? Forget about it.

The national media has latched on to the fact the Chargers are primed for a deep run through the postseason, fueled in no small part by a tremendously weak AFC West division.

But the Chargers are not simply the best of the bad. They are among the elite teams in the AFC, the conference which currently holds the balance of power in the NFL.

This is no idle musing.

From quarterback to long-snapper, the Chargers are as talented as any roster in football.

Don’t think so? Go man for man, from starter to practice squad, and ID a team that’s better.

Of course, that claim was levied last year and the team staggered to a record of 4-8 before rallying with four straight victories to claim their third straight AFC West crown.

While a .500 mark could possibly win the division by a comfortable margin, another uphill climb through the playoffs likely won’t provide any greater results than last season’s second-round exit.

Too many games and too many trips to cold weather cities.

Which means the Chargers should go all the way this season.

That’s right should, because this is the NFL where there are no guarantees.

Turning perception to reality will require an attention to a few details, none of which have been lost on a team that is fully aware their time is now and not later.

 

The Chargers cannot take a 4-8 record into Dallas on Dec. 13

A year ago, the Chargers were four games under the .500 mark. They were trailing the Broncos by three games in the division before they stepped into their 13th contest of the season by hosting the Raiders.

Losing to the Raiders is as unlikely as Republicans supporting healthcare reform, and the Chargers rolled. Not one of their next three opponents—Kansas City, Tampa Bay or Denver—was a playoff team, and the Chargers ran the table to make it back to the postseason.

This year’s finishing quartet of the regular season? Home games against the Bengals and Redskins with a Christmas Day treat in Tennessee in addition to their visit to the Cowboys’ new home. Four wins are unlikely.

So a sense of urgency in September is a no-brainer. The practice schedule is over, fellas.

The Chargers could easily open this season at 5-2 before they head back east to face the Giants in the final year of their stadium. A 6-1 mark is well within their grasp.

 

Protect Philip Rivers

Billy Volek is a nice guy, a solid backup player and one of the better second-string QBs in the NFL, but one whose role is best served wearing a ball cap.

Nothing against Volek, but this team is all about Philip Rivers.

Head coach Norv Turner can talk all day about a power running game. A healthy LaDainian Tomlinson will certainly provide a huge boost to the Chargers, but there is no more important player to this team than Rivers.

His strides in the league have been tremendous—enough to jettison Drew Brees three years ago and secure Rivers a $92-million contract extension a few weeks back that will keep him in San Diego until he is 34.

The highest-rated NFL passer last year, Rivers will take another step forward in his development and be blessed with plenty of targets. The Chargers will start a rookie at right guard in Louis Vazquez, but will rely heavily on left tackle Marcus McNeill to protect the blind side.

Lose Rivers, lose it all.

 

Turn Shaun Phillips loose

Sure, Shawne Merriman is back. Yes, he’s “Lights Out.” And he’s intimidating (just ask Tila Tequila). But returning the defense to the force it was will require more than a healthy Merriman, who may have more than a double-team to worry about.

On the other side of the field is Shaun Phillips, who led the team in 2008 with 7.5sacks but too often was used in coverage under defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell. That changed somewhat with the promotion of Ron Rivera at the midpoint of last season, and will evolve further this year as Rivera uses a more aggressive and varied scheme to get to opposing quarterbacks.

Phillips is poised for another double-digit sack season.

 

Get the ball to Vincent Jackson

LT is in the backfield and the stock of Darren Sproles is highly valued as a buy, but moving the ball through the air is central to the Chargers’ success this season.

They have their man in Rivers under center, with a range of options that includes three-time All Pro Antonio Gates at tight end and one-time Pro Bowler Chris Chambers at wide receiver. It’s the man split wide to the other side, though, who will make the biggest difference for Rivers and the Chargers.

That would be Vincent Jackson, who completed his first 1,000-yard season a year ago and snagged a career-high seven TD receptions. Look for those numbers to tick upward as Rivers looks to Jackson as the go-to big-play man for the Chargers this season.

 

Utilize LT

While Rivers has become the focal point of the offense, too many times Tomlinson has been relegated to glorified role player, and which has been especially evident in the Turner era. There is too much talent in the former MVP to decoy him or use him simply as a counter-punch.

The raps are that he’s 30 and hasn’t had an injury-free season in the last couple of years, but the man is motivated, appears healthy and is a multiple asset. There is no current player who combines as many offensive skills as Tomlinson.

 

No late fades

It was only a preseason game and the field was littered with down-the-depth-chart guys fighting for their jobs, but the Aug. 29 loss at Atlanta was hauntingly familiar.

The Chargers had outplayed the Falcons all night and were seemingly on-target for a W, but watched the opposition drive downfield and score with seconds to play. That wasn’t first-stringer Matt Ryan at the controls either, but journeyman reserve Chris Redman.

Remember the 2008 opener against Carolina? Again, it was practice, but those rehearsals should have included drills on sealing the deal.

 

It may have taken 50 years, but the Chargers’ time is now. The fans would like to keep you around.

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Is The Chargers’ Future Varying Shades Of Blacked Out?

How exciting will the Chargers be this season?

 

Apparently not enough to attract a sellout crowd for Saturday’s exhibition opener against the Seahawks. Without the appropriate allotment of tickets sold the stay-at-home folks will be blacked out in the home market.

The live telecast, at least.

Airing at 10:30 p.m. will be a replay of the Chargers game on local Channel 8. The NFL Network, which also has broadcast rights to the Chargers game, will honor the blackout and carry a rerun of Friday’s Broncos/Niners contest a bit earlier in the evening at 7.

But come game time, it will be no-go on the small screen in San Diego.

In what could be a prelude to the upcoming season, the expense of attending a pro football game has fallen victim to a flat economy.

The club hasn’t failed to sell out an exhibition game and subsequently shut out the local TV crowd since 2006. For a regular season home game, the last time local Chargers fans needed to scramble for alternate viewing was 2004.

Saturday is a wash and the exhibition finale at Qualcomm Stadium may also be as the Sept. 4 game with San Francisco still has seats available.

Exhibition games are one thing. Sure, the team can rationalize a less-than capacity crowd in August, especially in San Diego where alternatives abound and with a fan base that can easily be deterred.

But with the economy still in a down cycle, the prospect of dropping a minimum of $54 a ticket has become a tougher decision to make.

“I think we’re just not immune to it,” Chargers chief operating officer Jim Steeg told the AP. “We’re sitting here in San Diego, with the U.S. economy, the California economy, the housing bubble, all that sort of stuff that we’ve got the eye of the storm here. That’s really what it comes down to.”

Looming ahead on the calendar is the Sept. 20 regular season home opener against the Ravens, which like the vast majority of the eight-game home schedule, is not sold out. Only for the Nov. 15 game, when the Chargers host the Eagles, are local TV fans guaranteed a live telecast.

That game, incidentally, sold out before the addition of Michael Vick.

But the AFC West divisional tilts against the Broncos, Chiefs, Raiders, as well as games against Cincinnati Miami and Washington may not be a part of San Diego County living rooms this fall.

The Chargers should be able to generate its own share of enthusiasm to elevate ticket sales and possibly lift future local TV bans, though fans have been left hanging the last few seasons so there are skeptics.

Which sets up an interesting experiment that could determine local viewing habits: Will the Chargers be able to outflank a flagging economy?

As for Vick, he won’t be suiting up for the Chargers this season but one former teammate believes the three-time Pro Bowler will put up some numbers, specifically when the Eagles visit Atlanta on Dec. 6

“He’s going to have some ESPN SportsCenter highlights if he plays in that game,” Chargers guard Kynan Forney said. “He’s going to show up and show out.”

Of course, everyone is expecting for Vick to run some form of the Wildcat with the Eagles as Donovan McNabb’s job does not appear to be in jeopardy.

And last year’s boutique formation should have plenty of copy and paste versions this season with even the Chargers taking their turn with it during training camp.

Speculation has run from the team using it once or twice this season to a handful of times and possibly even as a wrinkle to get a first down.

While head coach Norv Turner is no conservative when it comes to offensive football, he apparently has less enthusiasm for the Wildcat than may be expected primarily because it reduces the role of two key players.

“It puts the guy who led the NFL in QB rating (Philip Rivers) about five yards from me on the sideline, and (star tight end Antonio) Gates goes in and plays tackle,” Turner told CBS Sports.com. “That tells you how excited I am about it.”

The Chargers have utilized LaDainian Tomlinson and Legedu Naanee as feature backs in the formation, but it has been as much for the benefit of the defense as the offense.

Coming to town on Sept. 27 are the Dolphins, which burned the league including the Chargers last season with the Wildcat.

Naanee appeared in all 16 games last season, making eight catches for 64 yards. The depth chart is crowded above him with Vincent Jackson, Chris Chambers and Malcom Floyd figuring to handle the bulk of the wide receiver chores in 2009, but he’s attracted attention from one key player.

“He looks really good,” quarterback Philip Rivers said. “He’s made some really good catches. He’s a strong, physical guy.”

The Wildcat wouldn’t be much of a stretch for Naanee, who was a quarterback at Boise State.

LT raised the probability to 95 percent that he’d play Saturday, but Turner would offer no insight.

“There really isn’t any (update),” Turner told the San Diego U-T on Friday morning. “We’re going to talk about it (Saturday), get to the stadium and see where we’re at.”

Ruled out for Saturday’s game are rookie linebacker Larry English (hamstring), linebacker Stephen Cooper (ankle), defensive end Ryon Bingham (arm) and right guard Louis Vasquez (foot). Doubtful is defensive end Jacques Cesaire with a calf injury.

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