Chargers Thread

OAOB

I felt pretty sorry for Mathews near the end, he doesnt get many games like that and obviously was trying to gain as many yards as he could. Stupid mistake by him i know but grear effort. My worry is he's a confidence player and only having mccoy chew him out after that game could affect him. It was great seeing hardwick go over to him during the timeout and give him a quick pep talk, good leadership by him

Justin10

Keenan Allen is just such a smooth runner.
Vincent Brown also had a big game.

Manti did a good job with the play calling.
Hopefully he can be our Cooper against Manning :-D

Mathews will be fine, he is blossoming under this scheme and getting away from the unfair criticism compared to the halfs backs we could of ended up with. He needs more TDs though.

Great to see Nick Hardwick enjoying his football so much.

Also while the Broncos might be thinking of of 16-0 if our offence plays like that, and havr the time of possession in out favour we can beat Denver no question in my mind.

Leslie91

Check this out lads, can't say I was disagreeing with the call at the time but......., I've heard this discussed on the SD radio too, very interesting.

http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/78191/thank-you-for-not-coaching-week-6

Here's the piece that is interesting to us;

Congratulations to kicker Nick Novak for hitting a long kick under pressure to wrap up San Diego's impressive victory over Indianapolis. But he never should have had the opportunity.

Why did Mike McCoy send his field goal unit out to even attempt this kick? It doesn't follow. Punting shouldn't be an option. You give the Colts good field position with a stuff, but you give them even better field position with the extra eight yards provided by a missed field goal attempt. Even ignoring that, there's one simple question to consider here: Is it easier to convert on fourth-and–1 foot than it is to kick a 50-yard field goal?

Of course it is! On third- or fourth-and-1 over the past five years, teams have converted 68.8 percent of the time. That's almost surely a conservative estimate, since the Chargers didn't need the full yard and had been gashing Indy on the ground all night. The Chargers probably convert on a Philip Rivers sneak or a Le'Ron McClain handoff about 75 percent of the time in that spot. Kickers have hit field goals between 50 and 52 yards over that same time frame 64.7 percent of the time. Novak had been 6-for-12 on kicks of 50 yards or more, but he was playing in calm conditions at home, so maybe 65 percent is the estimate. The move worked out for McCoy, who has done a great job with the San Diego offense this year, but it wasn't the right call.

OAOB

It was a hard call at the time, wasn't sure myself what i thought they should do. To be honest the positives of going 2scores up justified the larger risk and thankfully Novak made it

setanta74

Its called balls out coaching. You have an opportunity to win the game with the kick so its better to keep destiny in your own hands. I liked the call and the faith he put in his kicker. Novak must feel a million dollars this week because of it.

Easy to say that of course because he pulled it off but I 100% think it was the right call.

A punt can be returned or sliced out of bounds or even blocked and we could have fumbled or be stopped on the 4th and 1.

Lets get Novak to the playoffs and see just how much better than Nate he is ;-)

Leslie91

setanta74 wrote: »

Its called balls out coaching. You have an opportunity to win the game with the kick so its better to keep destiny in your own hands. I liked the call and the faith he put in his kicker. Novak must feel a million dollars this week because of it.

Easy to say that of course because he pulled it off but I 100% think it was the right call.

A punt can be returned or sliced out of bounds or even blocked and we could have fumbled or be stopped on the 4th and 1.

Lets get Novak to the playoffs and see just how much better than Nate he is ;-)

I was amazed at the outrage on the radio at the decision, most everyone was in agreement that it was the wrong call. Huge risk/reward trade-off.

setanta74

Im genuinely shocked the majority thought it was the wrong call. I dont understand that. Maybe they have been institutionalised by the last few years of conservative play calling by Norv. We see top coaches all accross the league making the gutsy calls..BB in New England being an example. Thats where we want to be again.

Anyway its not as if we were behind at the time. We were actually winning regardless so The Colts would still have had to drive down the field for a TD. You could also say McCoy put faith in his kicker and his defence as backup if the kick was missed.

Go McCoy!!!..I like the cut of your Jib and Wisenhunts too!

Leslie91

setanta74 wrote: »

Im genuinely shocked the majority thought it was the wrong call. I dont understand that. Maybe they have been institutionalised by the last few years of conservative play calling by Norv. We see top coaches all accross the league making the gutsy calls..BB in New England being an example. Thats where we want to be again.

Anyway its not as if we were behind at the time. We were actually winning regardless so The Colts would still have had to drive down the field for a TD. You could also say McCoy put faith in his kicker and his defence as backup if the kick was missed.

Go McCoy!!!..I like the cut of your Jib and Wisenhunts too!

I defo think it was ballsey to go for the FG, more ballsey than punting for sure and a tad more ballsey than going for the 1st down.

He would have been crucified if he chose to punt. If he went for the 1st down and did not get it, he'd have been questioned too of course.

If it were me I'd prob have tried to convert the 4th down. But then again it's not like a 50 yd FG is impossible. But we have had 2 blocked. All in all it was a hard call to make, thankfully it went well for all concerned.

OAOB

Punting was definitely not an option, FG or going for it on 4th down were the two positive options. I'd imagine if we were only up by 3 he'd have tried convert 4th down. I'm not hugely convinced by Novaks leg strength but that 50yarder had plenty to spare. I actually thought he was a little too close to the posts for comfort on some of his earlier FGs

Leslie91

Got the below from here (a way around the UT paywall) - https://groups.google.com/forum/?hl=en&fromgroups#!forum/alt.sports.football.pro.sd-chargers

Love reading stuff like this!!!!!!!!!!!.


Could a January game be a New Year's realization?

A casual glance at the AFC would say yes.

The Chargers' chances of winning their division, of course, appears
borderline impossible. The Broncos and the Chiefs each hold three-game
leads over them in the AFC West, and the former is Vegas' pick to be
Super Bowl champion.

But if you scan the rest of the conference, that second wildcard spot
seems as up for grabs as pinata candy. Is it ridiculous to think that
San Diego would be the one scoop it up?

Aside from the division leaders, there is no team in the AFC with more
than three wins. Denver and Kansas City are co-leaders (the West is the
only AFC division with two teams tied for first), meaning if the season
were to end today, one of those teams would grab the first wildcard, but
the other is wide open.

The Ravens, Jets, Browns and Titans are all 3-3, and Tennessee is
without starting quarterback Jake Locker. The Dolphins are 3-2, but play
San Diego in Miami in December.

A lot would have to go right for the Chargers to find themselves suiting
up for a 17th game this year, but come to think of it...they kind of
have a lot going for them.

Their next game, for instance, comes against 0-6 Jacksonville, the first
of two winless teams remaining on the schedule (the other being the
Giants). Four of their final five games, meanwhile, will be at Qualcomm
Stadium.

A road game vs. the 1-4 Redskins team is two and a half weeks away,
while December includes home games vs. the 4-2 Bengals and the 2-4 Raiders.

Leslie91

OAOB wrote: »

Punting was definitely not an option, FG or going for it on 4th down were the two positive options. I'd imagine if we were only up by 3 he'd have tried convert 4th down. I'm not hugely convinced by Novaks leg strength but that 50yarder had plenty to spare. I actually thought he was a little too close to the posts for comfort on some of his earlier FGs

I'm the same, i.e. not convinced by Novak's leg. That 50 yarder was the best kick I've seen him make, it cleared the crossbar by miles (relatively speaking), he'd normally be squeaking them over. But he was kicking real well mon nite and apparently there was zero wind.


OVER 30,000 views here now lads, how cool is that?

Justin10

At least we are in the hunt for a playoff spot and hopefully that is the same when we play Denver.

Novak 50 yard kick was sweet as a nut. I woukdnt trust him a lot but he keeps doing what he did Monday then happy days.

One thing that annoyed me Monday was the giving up of 3 points before the half. We played sooo soft. Letting the colts easily into field goal range.

Molly

Delighted with the result. Wright looked good, Matthews was great except for going out of bounds, Allen was fantastic, only criticism was I feel he dropped a potential TD pass from Rivers and Rivers was just crazy smart. Not his best game throwing but he bossed the game. The bad was Gates and a couple of uncharacteristic drops and some of the blown coverages were crazy.

On an unrelated note I'm going to the Pats and Dolphins game the weekend after next. Will be tough to refrain from loudly cheering on the Dolphins. Hopefully SD play a game in Foxboro in the next few years..

Leslie91

Molly wrote: »

Delighted with the result. Wright looked good, Matthews was great except for going out of bounds, Allen was fantastic, only criticism was I feel he dropped a potential TD pass from Rivers and Rivers was just crazy smart. Not his best game throwing but he bossed the game. The bad was Gates and a couple of uncharacteristic drops and some of the blown coverages were crazy.

On an unrelated note I'm going to the Pats and Dolphins game the weekend after next. Will be tough to refrain from loudly cheering on the Dolphins. Hopefully SD play a game in Foxboro in the next few years..

V cool Molly. Wearing the Bolts to Foxboro would be brave indeed. I was there for our game in 2007 reg season (http://www.footballdb.com/boxscore/2007091615) and the abuse was mad. One of my pals on the day was wearing a Merriman jersey and got steroid abuse left right and centre. See can u get your hands on some Dolphins gear and give it loads for the fish!!!.

That "drop" in the EZ by Allen would have been an amazing catch, I felt Philip underthrew it just a tad. I wouldn't put that one on Keenan.

Leslie91

For the week/time that's in it thought this Keenan Allen article was a good read, check out the video snippets he has links to.

http://www.boltsfromtheblue.com/2013/10/17/4847204/san-diego-chargers-vincent-jackson-keenan-allen-wr-rookie

Molly

Leslie91 wrote: »

V cool Molly. Wearing the Bolts to Foxboro would be brave indeed. I was there for our game in 2007 reg season (http://www.footballdb.com/boxscore/2007091615) and the abuse was mad. One of my pals on the day was wearing a Merriman jersey and got steroid abuse left right and centre. See can u get your hands on some Dolphins gear and give it loads for the fish!!!.

That "drop" in the EZ by Allen would have been an amazing catch, I felt Philip underthrew it just a tad. I wouldn't put that one on Keenan.

Yeah, not saying it was an easy catch, but it certainly was catchable. From what I remember it just went through his hands.

Justin10

Was very low but ye was catchable. Something Acee said, is he does miss some passes like that.

He is such a talent. Can really see why people rated him the best receiver in the draft.

Leslie91

Molly wrote: »

Yeah, not saying it was an easy catch, but it certainly was catchable. From what I remember it just went through his hands.

I dunno I was sure it kinda hit the ground before reaching his hands i.e. was a tad underthrown, the guys mention it/maybe even show it in the site I put a link to above.

Justin10

Leslie91 wrote: »

I dunno I was sure it kinda hit the ground before reaching his hands i.e. was a tad underthrown, the guys mention it/maybe even show it in the site I put a link to above.

From what I remembered of it, I would go along with Molly.

Either way he looks pure class, route running is fantastic. Keep it up TT

setanta74

That was a very hard catch but it was the only real place Rivers could have put it. I wouldnt blame either of them. It was a great attempt at a play by both of them. Meachem wouldnt have even bothered to run into the endzone for example. Theres a lot of pressure on our rookie WR to help carry the team. I hope the media and fans in SD cut him some slack when things go wrong.

theRB

Pretty happy with that result. Rivers' pass completion % was great, thought the defensive front 7 were strong(albeit against a weak offensive line) and no TDs allowed in 2 games now. The important thing now is to beat the Redskins in 2 weeks time and make sure we are 5-3 playing Denver in Qualcomm.

OAOB

Good to get the win but our red zone offence is not good, need to work on it if we want to compete with play-off bound teams

Dohnny Jepp

I know it was against the Jags, but its great to see Mathews play good back to back games. His confidence will be sky high now and I think he's going to have a strong finish to the season.

Squidgy Black

Pretty happy with the way the OL performed even with the complete chaos after Dunlap and Rammers went down. Thought Keiser played a stormer too.

As has been said though, redzone offense was poor and needs to be worked on.

Leslie91

Great team win esp on O where we were close to having Kwame play G apparently (funny enough he might be a better G than NT cos he ain't good enough for me). Poor decision to only go in with 7 O linemen and have Remmers instead of Becton or Schilling. How is Remmers a better option already?

There's no doubt there is a real team spirit building. Love the way his teammates reacted when Ryan scored on the run inside the 5. He needs to be trusted more down there, he is so strong at impact that he has much better chance of getting in than Woodhead for example. Love Woodhead though, wow wot a signing he has been and not too $ either.

Thank God for the bye. Time to rest and heal. I fear for King now what with a 2nd concussion. Thought Fluker did really well at LT but I'd prefer him on the right if we've an option on left side. Coach Joe D is a wizard.

Justin10

Really solid team win, with the bye coming at the perfect time.

Great to see Keenen and Ryan continue the momentum they have.

Joe D absolute miracle worker.
Have to give a shout out to Green, continuing his avg of 20 yards per reception this year. :-)

Leslie91

Rochey18 wrote: »

Really solid team win, with the bye coming at the perfect time.

Great to see Keenen and Ryan continue the momentum they have.

Joe D absolute miracle worker.
Have to give a shout out to Green, continuing his avg of 20 yards per reception this year. :-)

Yeah I saw a hashtag on Twitter #freeKeenan a couple of weeks ago when it became clear how good he could be i.e. to try and get Whiz and Philip to involve him more. I see a #freeLadarius starting to appear now. He looks like he could be a real star too, and now that we are down on pass catchers it's time to get him more balls.

OAOB

Joe D is doing a great job but King getting two concussions in such close succession is a huge worry, if he doesn't recover well to this one we may have to look at IR'ing him for his own good. It would be a huge shame considering the level of play he's been at this year, been 10 times better than i thought he'd be.
If we were to lose him i think we'd have to look at Fluker at LT, it wouldn't suit him but he'd probably be a better option than anyone we'd pick up off the street. Fingers crossed King recovers.

Or maybe we could re-sign that Gaither guy who showed such potential 2years ago, wonder what happened that hard working, likeable guy:rolleyes::rolleyes:

Leslie91

Ha ha Gaither... what a waste of a life. I can't imagine what that lad is doing right now. Basically robbed the NFL of millions of dollars, probably sitting on his ass somewhere getting more miserable by the day. Awful shame.

slimpickens

Leslie91 wrote: »

Ha ha Gaither... what a waste of a life. I can't imagine what that lad is doing right now. Basically robbed the NFL of millions of dollars, probably sitting on his ass somewhere getting more miserable by the day. Awful shame.

Unfair.
I dont buy the "extremely low pain tolerance" accusations levelled against him.
Someone with low pain tolerance does not become an elite offensive tackle.