Tag: Chargers vs. Bengals

Will the Chargers-Bengals matchup be on in your area?

Find out if you will get the matchup between the Los Angeles Chargers and Cincinnati Bengals on national television.

The Los Angeles Chargers (6-5) are set to get Week 13 underway against the Cincinnati Bengals (7-4).

Those in the red area on the TV map will get the game on CBS, courtesy of 506 Sports.

If you’re in the periwinkle (blue) area, you will get the matchup between the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts. Those in the green area will see the Philadelphia Eagles take on the New York Jets. If you’re in the yellow area, you will watch the Minnesota Vikings take on the Detroit Lions.

Ian Eagle and Charles Davis will have the call.

Los Angeles is currently a 3.5-point underdog to Cincinnati. Sunday’s matchup will begin at 10:00 am PT.

Throwback Thursday: Chargers give QB Joe Burrow warm welcome to NFL

Relive the last time the Chargers and Bengals met.

The Chargers are set to take on the Bengals on Sunday after meeting just a season ago.

Los Angeles last faced Joe Burrow in his professional debut as he was fresh off winning the Heisman Trophy and a national championship at LSU.

Despite the success in college, L.A. gave Burrow a warm welcome to the NFL.

The Chargers’ defense, headlined by the duo of Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, held Burrow to 23 of 36 passing for 192 yards with just one touchdown. They sacked him three times and picked him off once.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles’ offense was engineered by Tyrod Taylor, while Justin Herbert was then on the sidelines as a spectator.

Taylor finished 16 of 30 for 208 yards. Joshua Kelley ran five yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

The Bengals were down 16-13 with the opportunity to tie up the game, but kicker Randy Bullock missed a 31-yard field goal due to a calf cramp with just two seconds remaining.

The week after, Herbert was trusted into the action against the Chiefs, and it was then when a young star was born.

How Chargers need to fix struggling third-down defense

The Chargers have a third-down problem on defense that needs to be resolved quickly.

After turning the Rams into the NFL’s best defense in just one season, there were expectations that Brandon Staley would have the same success with the Chargers.

However, it has not been all sunshine and rainbows.

Los Angeles has statistically been bad against the run all season, but something that has hurt the team the most in weeks prior is the defense’s inability to get off the field.

The Bolts are currently 31st in opposing third-down conversion percentage at 48.91%. Washington is the only team worse at 51.37%.

Last week, the Broncos converted 8 of 11 third downs, with the majority of them coming from beyond seven yards.

This is one that came on Denver’s final touchdown drive. Teddy Bridgewater connected with Courtland Sutton for a 12-yard gain on a 3rd-and-7.

Even after rushing five, Bridgewater has enough time to find Sutton, who Tevaughn Campbell contests. However, Campbell is unable to get his hands on the football.

A few plays later, the Broncos converted on 3rd-and-10.

Javonte Williams sold it like he was going to chip, it created a lane for him on the outside, and there were no defenders near the vicinity to prevent him from getting beyond the marker.

Moving forward, each level of the defense needs to play a part in aiding to be more efficient on third downs.

Consistent pressure is a must, both inside and off the edges. That should include more of Joey Bosa lined up along the interior, where he has proven to wreak havoc.

On the back end of the defense, some of it is personnel, as the Chargers are without Asante Samuel Jr., the team’s most impactful cornerback this season, who is out with a concussion. His return remains to be seen.

Nonetheless, corners need to play their leverages better, be in a position to contest balls thrown before or at the sticks, and execute.

Furthermore, missed tackles in open space can not happen, and penalties must be eliminated.

Heading into Week 13, the Bolts face a Bengals team that is 16th in the league in third-down conversion at 40%.

While not necessarily the best in this category, Cincinnati still poses a good offense, which is why aggressive and assignment sound defense on third downs will be crucial in order to give Justin Herbert more opportunities.

First injury report for Chargers ahead of matchup vs. Bengals

The Los Angeles Chargers had two players who did not practice and two limited participants on Wednesday.

Following the loss to the Broncos, the Chargers returned to work preparing for the Week 13 matchup against the Bengals.

Here is a look at Wednesday’s injury report:

The Chargers had two non-participants: safety Alohi Gilman and cornerback Asante Samuel Jr.

Guard Matt Feiler and safety Trey Marshall were limited participants.

Samuel remains in concussion protocol, while Gilman continues to deal with his quad injury. Both player’s availabilities this weekend are in doubt.

Los Angeles is hopeful Feiler will be back after missing last Sunday’s loss to the Broncos with an ankle injury.

In other related news, nose tackle Linval Joseph can be activated off the COVID-19 list on Thursday. However, the team will likely determine if he will play based on how his shoulder is feeling.

8 Bengals who pose biggest threat to Chargers

Highlighting key Bengals players who could make it difficult for the Chargers.

The Los Angeles Chargers take on the Cincinnati Bengals this Sunday at 10:00 a.m. PT.

Here are a few Bengals players who the Bolts must hone in on to increase their chances of coming out victorious in Week 13.

QB Joe Burrow

The Chargers roughed up Burrow in his professional debut, limiting him to just 193 passing yards and picking him off. Since then, he’s grown into one of the more efficient passers, even after missing most of his rookie campaign with a knee injury. Engineering the No. 6 offense in terms of scoring, Burrow is completing 69.3% of his passes, with 22 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

RB Joe Mixon

It appeared that the Chargers were starting to perform well against the run consistently, but then they came back to life against the Broncos, allowing 147 rushing yards on 33 carries. Now, they’re set to face a back that’s coming off a career performance. Mixon rushed for a career-high 165 yards and two touchdowns on 28 attempts. He has found the end zone 13 times this season.

WR Ja’Marr Chase & Tee Higgins

One of the Chargers’ issues recently has been the cornerback play. Unfortunately, the team won’t catch a break, going against a young, ascending duo. Chase has 50 receptions for 906 yards and nine touchdowns, while Higgins is coming off his best performance of the season, finishing with six catches for 114 yards and one score.

DT D.J. Reader

The strength of the Bengals’ defense is against the run, allowing just 93.7 rushing yards per game. Leading the group in this department is Reader. Reader, Cincinnati’s highest-graded defender by Pro Football Focus (83.4), has 18 run stops. However, he is just as effective at getting after the quarterback, amassing 19 pressures.

EDGE Trey Hendrickson

There are plenty of premier pass rushers in the NFL, but one that seems to fly under the radar is Hendrickson, who is on a tear this season. Hendrickson has 10.5 sacks (fifth), 53 pressures (second), an 18.5% pressure rate (first), five turnovers from pressure (first), and three forced fumbles (third). In addition, he has the most consecutive games with a sack in Bengals history (7).

S Vonn Bell & Jessie Bates

The Bengals have a secondary that features two stud safeties capable of stressing offensive coordinators. The hard-hitting Bell has 21 run stops, two forced fumbles, and a career-high five tackles for loss. Bates, on the other hand, will make quarterbacks pay if they throw deep, possessing the range and play-making ability.

Chargers run defense has tall task against Bengals

The Chargers have struggled with slowing the run. That needs to change in a hurry as they meet the Bengals in Week 13.

After appearing to be trending upward against the run, the Chargers took a step back in last Sunday’s loss to the Broncos – allowing 147 carries on 33 carries.

One of the primary reasons for the woeful performance was due to personnel.

Rather than rolling with the team’s best run defenders from the week prior, Breiden Fehoko and Joe Gaziano, Jerry Tillery played most of the snaps out of any interior defender (89%).

As for Fehoko and Gaziano, the two played just 24% and 11% of the snaps, respectively. While they were on the sidelines, Tillery struggled, which led to gaping holes for Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams.

Furthermore, L.A. was without veteran Linval Joseph who’s missed the last two games due to an injury and after testing positive for COVID-19.

Justin Jones, who has been a key component for the unit since his return after the Chargers’ bye week, gave his thoughts about the unit’s performance.

“We weren’t settled down in that first quarter,” Jones said. “That first quarter, I feel like they had a lot of rushing yards. The defense, as a whole, had to settle in. The defense had to figure out what our identity was going to be for that game.

We just had to get our groove and get into our rhythm. The next three quarters after that, the rushing yards really weren’t affecting us. But, that first quarter really put us in a hole. It put our offense in a hole, as well.”

The Chargers can’t afford to make the same costly mistakes against the Bengals this weekend. Joe Mixon has been a highlight of their success rate in the team’s last two contests.

Mixon was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week after his best performance of the season in the win over the Steelers, in which he ran for 165 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries.

“He’s a really good back,” Jones said. “It’s a really good challenge for us up front and a really good challenge for us as a defense. We’ll come and play together. We need to go out and establish our identity from the first play. I feel like it is going to be a battle.”

Point spread, over/under for Chargers vs. Bengals in Week 13

The Los Angeles Chargers open as underdogs to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13.

The Los Angeles Chargers (6-5) are currently 3.5-point underdogs to the Cincinnati Bengals (7-4) heading into Week 13 of the regular season. The over/under is set at 50.5, per Tipico Sportsbook.

The Chargers most recently fell to the Broncos by the score of 28-13.

Los Angeles started slow, falling behind 14-0 to Denver before finding success before the half after Derwin James’ interception and Justin Herbert’s passing touchdown to Austin Ekeler to cut the deficit to seven.

With momentum riding their way in the third quarter, the offense failed to capitalize, as Dustin Hopkins missed a 52-yard field goal and Patrick Surtain II picked off Herbert on back-to-back drives.

On the other hand, the Bengals are coming off an imposing victory over the Steelers, 41-10. Pittsburgh was run over by Joe Mixon, who had 165 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries. Furthermore, the first-team defense dominated, holding the Steelers to just 141 total yards.

Last season, the Chargers beat the Bengals in the season opener, 16-13.

Sunday’s contest between Los Angeles and Cincinnati will begin at 10:00 a.m. PT and be televised on CBS.

Chargers CB Casey Hayward named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Chargers cornerback Casey Hayward was dominant in the season opener.

Chargers cornerback Casey Hayward has been named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in the 16-13 win over the Bengals.

Hayward led the team in tackles (12) while adding two passes defensed, and was covering wide receiver A.J. Green in the end zone late in the fourth-quarter when it was wiped out due to an offensive pass interference.

This marks the first time that Hayward has earned this honor during his nine years in the league.

Hayward will have a more difficult task this upcoming Sunday as he is set to go up against an elite Chiefs offense, which features receivers wideouts Tyreek Hill, Mecole Hardman and Sammy Watkins.

Recapping Tyrod Taylor’s debut as Chargers’ starting quarterback

Chargers quarterback Tyrod Taylor’s first start didn’t leave the most ideal impression.

For the first time in 14 years there was another starter under center for the Chargers, as Tyrod Taylor was the one calling the shots this past Sunday against the Bengals.

Los Angeles pulled away with the victory in a low scoring affair, marking Taylor’s first win as the Bolts’ starting quarterback.

But despite starting the 2020 season win column, it doesn’t necessarily exemplify how Taylor played.

Expected to have more of a polarizing look due to the significant scheme changes, the Chargers offense with Taylor at quarterback wasn’t necessarily dynamic against the Cincinnati defense.

Behind Taylor, Los Angeles moved the ball for spurts but scored only one touchdown and struggled to sustain drives. They finished 6-of-16 on third-down conversions and failed twice on fourth down.

As a passer, Taylor completed 16-of-30 passes for 208 yards.

Taylor’s completions were almost all to wide-open receivers, with the majority of them coming within 15 yards. His longest competition was for 37 yards when he linked up with wide receiver Mike Williams near the right sideline.

Taylor had his woes throwing the football, as he overthrew or completely missed his targets when he had the opportunity to link up with them. Along with that, he would lock onto his first or preferred read, leading to forced throws and staring down receivers with a late trigger.

With his legs, Taylor was nearly nonexistent. He ran the ball six times for only seven carries. Coach Anthony Lynn credited the Bengals for being able to contain his quarterback.

His mobility, though, allowed him to evade pressure on a few occasions. That would have not been the case with Rivers, who was not known for being able to use his legs to his advantage.

Another positive from Taylor’s performance is that he took care of the football. The Chargers made the point that they wanted to win the turnover battle this season, which they did.

Taylor’s outing has some fans concerned moving forward, especially since he connected with star receiver Keenan Allen only four times for 38 yards.

However, Sunday was the first time any of these players played in this offense during a live football game. It will take a little bit for everything to all come together.

Taylor’s a completely different quarterback, stylistically, from Rivers and that’s something his skill players will have to adjust to.

Taylor may not put up performances like Patrick Mahomes, Russell Wilson, Lamar Jackson or Deshaun Watson, but I believe we will see improvement with his play translating to more offensive success as the season progresses.

Injury updates on Chargers’ Drue Tranquill, Justin Jackson, Trai Turner

Chargers coach Anthony Lynn spoke on the status of three players who had injuries.

The Chargers were without a pair of starters in the season opener against the Bengals, most notably guard Trai Turner.

Turner, who was ruled out of the game with a knee injury, had a chance to play Sunday but he was ultimately held out.

Coach Anthony Lynn said the team decided to play it safe with his knee injury, adding that he likes his chances better of playing this weekend against the Chiefs.

While Turner was out from the action, Tyree St. Louis got the start at right guard. St. Louis, at times, struggled. But he held his own for the most part, particularly in the run-blocking department.

Los Angeles, who already lost a key defensive player in Derwin James, saw another one go down early on in the contest.

Linebacker Drue Tranquill suffered a broken fibula, per coach Anthony Lynn. Lynn wouldn’t rule him out for the season, but Tranquill will be out for a while.

After Tranquill was carted off, Nick Vigil took his spot while Denzel Perryman rotated in.

Lynn said he’s looking at many linebacker combinations, but it sounds like rookie Kenneth Murray will stay at middle linebacker.

“We can move Kenneth because he’s so athletic, but do you want to move him to another position? That’s new learning,” Lynn said.

Another player that was ruled out late in the game was running back Justin Jackson, with a quad injury.

“We’re not sure how severe that is. We’ll try to work him in practice some time this week if he can. It will be a day-to-day deal,” Lynn said about Jackson.

No matter the health of Jackson, rookie Joshua Kelley proved that he is capable of manning the spot as the second running back with his performance on Sunday.

If Jackson is forced to miss some time, Los Angeles could bring up a player like Darius Bradwell off the practice squad for depth.