Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Bolts put in their place


Philip Rivers
Reality set in for the 2012 San Diego Chargers this past Sunday. After winning the first two games of the regular season over below-average teams (Oakland Raiders and Tennessee Titans), the Chargers were pounded, 27-3, at home by the Atlanta Falcons, a club which many perceive as one of the elites in the NFL. What reality has set in, one may ask? Simply put: Despite its 2-0 record heading into last Sunday’s game, San Diego clearly isn’t one of the best teams in the NFL right now. If anything, one could make the argument the Chargers are a mediocre squad not much better than the 1-2 Raiders.
Although San Diego’s offense showed its ineptitude to protect the football, what was most alarming was the blockers’ failure to protect quarterback Philip Rivers, who was under relentless pressure throughout the contest. According to U-T San Diego’s Michael Gelhken, left tackle Jared Gaither, who this past offseason signed a lucrative contract to protect Rivers’ blind side for this year and beyond, is once again practicing for the first time since late July. Gaither had been out of action completely for the last two months due to some mysterious back issues. The hope is he’ll return this coming Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs and perform to the outstanding level that he exhibited during the final five games of last season. In other words, let’s hope he actually earns his paycheck.

Meanwhile, Chargers fans have to be concerned about the cornerback position—and the secondary in general. Yes, there’s probably not a defense in the NFL that could stop the outstanding trio the Falcons possess in tight end Tony Gonzalez and receivers Roddy White and Julio Jones, but allowing the three to haul in 19 receptions for 213 yards and two touchdowns is just downright unacceptable. Then again, it’s not easy for the secondary when the defensive front allows a top-10 quarterback such as Matt Ryan to stand in the pocket without fear of getting smashed. The Chargers' first-round pick from this past April, outside linebacker Melvin Ingram, needs to step it up and spend more time in the opposing teams' backfields.

The best news about last Sunday’s debacle was that the defeat was against an out-of-conference opponent. Still, for those of us who have the ultimate expectation for the Chargers, the loss was quite depressing. Hopefully the Lightning Bolts will restore their fans’ confidence by blowing the Chiefs out at Arrowhead Stadium this coming Sunday.

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