Tag: Chargers vs. Buccaneers

Chargers PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 15 loss to Buccaneers

Spotlighting Pro Football Focus’ highest and lowest-graded Chargers players from the loss to the Buccaneers.

In Week 15, the Chargers were outmatched by the Buccaneers in their 40-17 loss.

Along the way, there were some standout performers and others who did not contribute as much.

Here are the best and worst performers from Sunday’s contest, according to Pro Football Focus’ player grades.

Top 5 Offense

OT Joe Alt — 75.1

WR Quentin Johnston — 73.2

OT Rashawn Slater — 69.6

QB Justin Herbert — 63.4

OL Jamaree Salyer — 63.3

Top 5 Defense

DT Poona Ford — 79.0

DT Teair Tart — 78.5

S Derwin James — 75.6

S Elijah Molden — 72.3

LB Junior Colson — 72.2

Bottom 5 Offense

RB Kimani Vidal — 45.9

WR Josh Palmer — 47.8

TE Eric Tomlinson — 49.9

TE Stone Smartt — 50.5

TE Tucker Fisk — 50.8

Bottom 5 Defense

CB Cam Hart — 26.0

LB Daiyan Henley — 35.7

EDGE Khalil Mack — 39.1

DT Otito Ogbonnia — 41.0

S Marcus Maye — 45.8

Statistical Breakdown: How the Chargers and Buccaneers stack up before Week 15 game

Here’s how the Chargers and Buccaneers stack up statistically on offense and defense ahead of Sunday’s matchup.

The Chargers and Buccaneers are set to square off this Sunday.

Here’s how Los Angeles and Tampa Bay stack up statistically on both sides of the ball ahead of the Week 15 matchup:

Offense

Category Chargers Buccaneers
Points per game 21.3 ppg (20th) 27.9 ppg (5th)
Passing offense 198.1 ypg (25th) 241.0 ypg (6th)
Rushing offense 111.5 ypg (19th) 138.3 ypg (7th)
Total offense 309.5 ypg (24th) 379.3 ypg (3rd)
3rd down conversions 38.37% (15th) 47.17% (2nd)
Red zone scoring 54.55% (19th) 68.63% (4th)
Sacks allowed 38 (23rd) 32 (16th)
Turnovers 6 (1st) 18 (20th)

Defense

Category Chargers Buccaneers
Points allowed 15.9 ppg (1st) 23.8 ppg (22nd)
Passing defense 206.1 ypg (8th) 253.4 ypg (30th)
Rushing defense 117.6 ypg (14th) 115.2 ypg (11th)
Total defense 323.7 ypg (11th) 368.5 ypg (28th)
3rd down conversions 35.03% (7th) 41.92% (23rd)
Red zone defense 41.94% (1st) 51.02% (10th)
Sacks 39 (5th) 35 (11th)
Takeaways 17 (10th) 16 (14th)

Who are the experts taking in Chargers vs. Buccaneers?

Find out who experts are picking between the Chargers and Buccaneers.

The Los Angeles Chargers are 3-point home favorites over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 15 of the 2024 regular season. The over/under is 45.5 points, per BetMGM Sportsbook.

That means oddsmakers are taking bets on whether the two teams will combine to score more than or fewer than 45 points.

My score prediction for the game is a 27-17 win for the Chargers, with a total of 44 points. So, if I were putting money based on my prediction, I’d bet the under.

As for game picks, analysts believe Los Angeles will get back on track after losing to the Chiefs last Monday night.

Expert Pick
Nate Davis (USA Today) Chargers
Jarrett Bell (USA Today) Chargers
Mike Clay (ESPN) Chargers
Matt Bowen (ESPN) Chargers
Pete Prisco (CBS Sports) Chargers
Bill Bender (Sporting News) Buccaneers
NFL.com Staff Chargers (4-1)
Bleacher Report Buccaneers

Sunday’s game will begin at 1:25 p.m. PT and be televised on FOX.

Chargers LB Kenneth Murray strings together strong performance vs. Buccaneers

The Los Angeles Chargers have their middle linebacker of the future.

The Chargers’ defense on Sunday was underwhelming to say the least, as they surrendered 38 points to quarterback Tom Brady and the Buccaneers.

Despite the outcome, there was a bright spot for defensive coordinator Gus Bradley’s unit, with that being rookie linebacker Kenneth Murray.

Murray was stout against the run, amassing 10 tackles on the afternoon. Along with that, he held his own in coverage, only allowing less than 25 yards on five targets.

Murray, the team’s first-round pick, has been a refreshing addition to the linebacker group and defense as a whole. He has embraced his role as the MIKE linebacker and has done a fine job picking up the slack in the absence of Drue Tranquill.

Through four games, Murray has 33 tackles while playing 97% of the defensive snaps. According to Pro Football Focus, he is third-best rookie linebacker.

He isn’t perfect by any means, as he still has overaggressive tendencies which can lead to him not making heads up tackles and over-pursue shifty running backs. But the flashes are legit and Murray will only get better with more reps.

USC Trojans football

Chargers withstand Buccaneers’ pass rush in 38-31 loss

The Los Angeles Chargers handled the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ pressure.

The biggest key matchup heading into the Week 4 matchup between the Chargers and Buccaneers was in the trenches.

Tampa Bay boasted one of the league’s most fearsome pass rushes, and Los Angeles was thin along the offensive line due to the absences of tackle Bryan Bulaga and guard Trai Turner.

The coaching staff knew that it could’ve been the deciding factor of the game, and answered with the perfect plan to slow down the blitzes defensive coordinator Todd Bowles deployed.

L.A. used a large amount of max protection, keeping tight ends and running backs in to serve as additional blockers. But the offensive linemen stayed intact throughout the entire contest.

In total, the unit only allowed two sacks to a defensive group that had 12 sacks in the first three games. To go along with that, only nine pressures were allowed.

A complete breakdown by each lineman, per Pro Football Focus:

Sam Tevi – 1

Forrest Lamp – 0

Dan Feeney – 3

Ryan Groy – 2

Trey Pipkins – 3

When quarterback Justin Herbert was pressured, his pocket mobility and poise helped mask them. Two of Herbert’s three touchdowns came while under duress.

Overall, the coaching staff did an excellent job of scheming the perfect plan against one of the NFL’s top pass rushes. Credit goes to offensive line coach James Campen, who has helped with the development of the guys up front.

While pass protection was strong, the running game was nonexistent, especially after running back Austin Ekeler left the game with a hamstring injury. The Chargers amassed only 46 rushing yards.

Buccaneers’ Bruce Arians, Tom Brady give high praise to Chargers QB Justin Herbert

The GOAT had nothing but great things to say about Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.

Chargers rookie quarterback Justin Herbert went toe to toe with arguably one of the greatest signal-callers to play the game Sunday, and he never flinched.

Even though Los Angeles suffered defeat to the Buccaneers, Herbert guided his team to 31 points against one of the league’s best defenses, completing 20 of 25 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns.

Herbert delivered darts to all parts of the field, all while missing two of his starting skill players. Under pressure, he was composed, continuing to show great pocket mobility and awareness.

Following his performance, Tampa Bay head coach Bruce Arians, who’s also one of the best in the business at developing quarterbacks, shared what he thought about the 22-year old Sunday.

“I told Anthony [Lynn] after the game, You’ve got a great one. That looked like [Patrick] Mahomes, where we had an all-out blitz, and he just kept retreating. Then he threw a dime down the field. For rookies to make plays like that, you know they’re special,” Arians said.

Tom Brady, Herbert’s idol growing up, also had high praise for him following the game.

“He was very impressive. He played great,” Brady told reporters after the game. “He’s got all the ability. He’s got a great arm. Moves really well. The team believes in him,” Brady said.

Herbert has been one of the positives, despite the 1-3 start for the Chargers. He has done enough to warrant himself as the starter moving forward. However, coach Anthony Lynn said Tyrod Taylor remains the team’s starter when he’s healthy.

Coach Anthony Lynn will have a decision to make before next week’s Monday night game against the Saints.

Watch: Chargers QB Justin Herbert’s best throws from loss to Buccaneers

Chargers rookie quarterback Justin Herbert proved that he should remain the starter.

There were very few positives from the Chargers’ loss to the Buccaneers Sunday. Among them was rookie quarterback Justin Herbert.

Facing a stout Tampa Bay defense, Herbert was lights out. The first-round pick completed 80% of his passes while adding three touchdowns, all while missing wide receiver Mike Williams and running back Austin Ekeler.

Two of his three touchdown passes were to wide receiver Tyron Johnson and tight end Donald Parham, both of whom had not caught a touchdown pass in their careers.

All of his touchdown throws displayed Herbert’s biggest strength, his tantalizing arm strength. The former Oregon product made a few impressive passes while under duress, showing outstanding pocket presence.

To relive Herbert’s performance, the video below captures his best throws:

https://embed.sendtonews.com/oembed/?SC=F89aL4SO9t-991823-7498&autoplay=on&V=2&format=json

What HC Anthony Lynn said following Chargers’ loss to Buccaneers

A lot of blame for the Los Angeles Chargers’ loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is being put on the coaching staff.

The Chargers dropped their third consecutive game on Sunday, losing to the Buccaneers by the score of 38-31.

Everything was in Los Angeles’ favor during the first half, as they led by 17 points at one point. However, miscues and a defensive meltdown backfired as quarterback Tom Brady orchestrated a major comeback.

The defense was stout in the first half, but they fell apart right out of the locker room. Brady was lights out, picking apart defenders at all areas of the field. As a result, he finished with 369 yards and five touchdowns.

Coach Anthony Lynn blamed the poor defensive performance on blown assignments, adding they gave up some explosive plays in the second half.

There were a few “what ifs” in this game and one them came with eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter when L.A. elected to punt on 4th-and-1 at their own 34-yard line, down by four points.

Lynn said he considered going for it, but he thought he had enough time left on the clock to punt it away. Tampa Bay turned the punt into three points, as Brady led the team 72 yards down the field.

“When we have them against the ropes we need to learn to knock them out,” Lynn said. “We had a chance to win. You go out there and get your butt kicked sometimes that happens, but in these games, we had a chance to win these games.”

One of the very few positives from the game was rookie quarterback Justin Herbert, yet again. Herbert finished with 20-of-25 passing for 290 yards and three touchdowns.

“I thought he played well, but we lost the game,” Lynn said. Anytime we lose a game, it’s not good enough, so I can’t say someone played outstanding and we go out and lose the damn football game.”

Lynn went more in depth what how he felt about Herbert’s performance. “I thought he handled the situation we put him in well. He made some great throws early, we took some shots, he stood in the pocket, he got rid of the ball and that’s what good quarterbacks do.”

Lynn was non committal following the game, but he will have a tough decision to make over the next couple of days as he will have to announce the team’s starting quarterback moving forward, with Tyrod Taylor close to being completely healthy.

“I can’t answer that right now. My mind is still on this game.”

Twitter reacts to Chargers’ 38-31 loss to Buccaneers

The Los Angeles Chargers blew a 17-point lead and fans were outraged with the final outcome.

It started out really good for the Chargers, but when it started to go downhill, they were unable to make up for the downward spiral. In the end, the Buccaneers came away victorious, 38-31.

It was another familiar sight for fans of Los Angeles, witnessing their favorite team look like they’re going to walk away with a win, but failing to hold strong.

Let’s take a look at how they along with the rest of social media reacted following the Bolts’ Week 4 loss:

Instant analysis of Chargers’ 38-31 loss to Buccaneers

A breakdown of the Los Angeles Chargers’ loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Chargers’ fate came down to the final drive, yet again. Unfortunately, the team was unable to string together a win, dropping their third consecutive game to the Buccaneers by the score of 38-31.

Here is our instant analysis from Los Angeles’ loss to Tampa Bay:

Injury Report

Running back Austin Ekeler suffered a hamstring injury late in the first quarter. Ekeler struggled to walk on his own and ended up having to be carted off. He never returned to the game, and his status remains to be seen.

Play(s) of the Game: All of Justin Herbert’s touchdown passes

Time to look back on throws of beauty.

Notable Number

10: Justin Herbert was 10 passing yards away from joining Joe Burrow on being the first quarterbacks to have 300 yards in their first three starts.

Quick Notes

There weren’t a lot of positives from this game, but one of the very few was Justin Herbert. Missing two starting offensive lineman, running back Austin Ekeler and wide receiver Mike Williams, Herbert still managed to finish 20-of-25 passing for 290 yards, three touchdowns and his lone interception that came on the final drive.

Tight end Donald Parham and Wide receiver Tyron Johnson each caught touchdowns on their first career receptions. It’s just the third time a pair of teammates have done so in the same game in the NFL in the last 40 seasons. They are the only pair of undrafted teammates to do so over that span.

Herbert continues to show drastic improvement with his pocket presence, as two of his touchdown throws were in the face of a rush. There were other instances of him diagnosing it and getting out of the pocket to make something out of nothing.

Herbert was sacked twice, but the offensive line did a great job against a Buccaneers pass rush that had six sacks last weekend.

The running game was nonexistent after running back Austin Ekeler went down. In total, the Chargers only had 46 yards rushing, with Herbert leading the pack with a measly 14 yards.

This was one of the worst defensive performances in the past couple of seasons. The defensive line was getting zero push, allowing the Buccaneers to average 4.3 yards per carry and giving quarterback Tom Brady plenty of time in the pocket to throw.

Blown coverages hurt the Chargers, but they had a few instances of getting beat on one-on-one opportunities.

The red zone defense was solid last weekend against the Panthers, but they struggled immensely, allowing Tampa Bay to convert four of their five attempts.

Sunday’s “what ifs” include “what if Joshua Kelley wouldn’t have fumbled in Chargers territory,” and “what if coach Anthony Lynn would have gone for it on fourth-down in the fourth quarter.”

Up Next

The Chargers will be on the road again to take on the Saints. The Week 5 matchup will be played on Monday, Oct. 12 at 5:15 p.m. PT.