Tag: Jared Cook

Chargers vs. Ravens Highlights: Justin Herbert connects with Jared Cook for first score

Justin Herbert found Jared Cook for the Chargers’ first score of the game.

After an interception from Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, tight end Jared Cook got the first touchdown for the Chargers on the following drive.

Los Angeles’ offense has been quiet but this might be exactly what they needed to get started.

Kicker Tristan Vizcaino missed the PAT, and now he leads the NFL with five extra missed points this season.

Check out the Bolts’ first touchdown of the game:

The Ravens lead the Bolts 17-6.

Chargers QB Justin Herbert reaches major milestone vs. Raiders

Chargers QB Justin Herbert is in a league of his own.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert completed his 500th pass in Monday night’s victory over the Raiders.

Accomplishing this feat in only 19 starts, Herbert is the only quarterback in the Super Bowl era to reach 500 passes before his 20th NFL start. 

The milestone came from a four-yard pass to tight end Jared Cook just before halftime at SoFi Stadium. The completion was Herbert’s third touchdown pass of the night, giving Los Angeles a 21-0 lead over Las Vegas. 

The reigning AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year entered the Monday night matchup with six touchdowns and three interceptions.

Through the first two games, Herbert had thrown more interceptions than touchdowns; however, that changed in Week 3 when the former Oregon product threw for 302 yards and four touchdowns against the Chiefs. 

Herbert also joined quarterbacks Dan Marino and Patrick Mahomes in reaching 10 total touchdowns in his first three primetime starts.

Despite this only being Herbert’s second season, he is already seventh in franchise history in career passing yards and ranks sixth in career touchdown passes. Last season, the AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year made 15 starts and threw for 4,336 and 31 touchdowns for the Chargers. 

Herbert is making strides in arguably the most competitive division in the AFC, most recently defeating the Chiefs and the Raiders, totaling seven touchdowns and no interceptions through his last two games. 

Game Balls: 7 standouts from Chargers’ division win over Raiders

Highlighting seven individuals that had a big impact on the Chargers’ victory over the Raiders.

The Chargers knew that they would sit atop the AFC West with a win over the Raiders, which is exactly what they did, defeating Las Vegas in Monday’s showdown at SoFi Stadium, 28-14.

Which players had the biggest impact on the game?

A look at seven standouts from Week 4’s victory:

RB Austin Ekeler

When you have Justin Herbert under center, it’s hard to take the ball away from him. But it was clear that offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi wanted to establish a balanced approach, which he was able to successfully do, thanks to Ekeler and an offensive line with a 79% run block win rate. Ekeler finished the game with a career-high 117 yards on 15 carries (7.8 yards per carry). He powered a crucial fourth-quarter scoring drive that burned over five minutes of the game clock, which resulted in an 11-yard rushing touchdown to seal the deal. While his receiving volume was lower than usual, he still managed to take one of his three receptions into the end zone.

TE Jared Cook

It was only a matter of time until the team’s tight ends emerged in the passing game. Leading the team in receiving, Cook finished with six receptions for 70 yards and the game’s first touchdown. Cook was a key piece in critical situations, as he caught both targets on fourth down. Donald Parham also had a touchdown grab, and Stephen Anderson had a catch that went for 34 yards.

LT Rashawn Slater

Last week, I wrote an article explaining why Slater deserved recognition as the NFL’s best rookie. Yet another game and the former Northwestern exemplified why he is deserving of the label. Drawing the dynamic duo of Maxx Crosby and Yannick Ngakoue, Slater was poetic in pass protection, only allowing one quarterback pressure on 40 pass-blocking snaps. Slater also paved the way in the running game for multiple carries that went over five yards. It’s been only four games, but he is deserving of Pro Bowl consideration.

EDGE Joey Bosa

The key to slowing down the Raiders’ passing attack was by getting into the face of quarterback Derek Carr, which the Chargers managed to do early and often. Carr was sacked four times, with four different players landing one, namely Bosa, Covington, Kyler Fackrell and Jerry Tillery. However, it was Bosa who pressured Carr a whopping seven times. As a result, Carr was held to just 196 passing yards, and a lot of credit goes to Bosa for giving him very little time to distribute the wealth. Note to other teams in the league, don’t leave a rookie tackle on an island against a premier pass rusher of Bosa’s caliber.

LBs Kyzir White & Drue Tranquill

Heading into the season, it is not likely you would have said that White and Tranquill would evolve into one of the league’s better linebacker duos. After showing up on a snap-to-snap basis, the two have solidified themselves as just that. White, who made back-to-back big plays on third and fourth down in the second quarter, finished with three run stops. Tranquill, on the other hand, only totaled one stop against the run, but his presence as a blitzer led to three quarterback pressures. With their combination of play speed, burst and instincts to quickly react, they have been impactful in all facets.

HC Brandon Staley

For the second consecutive week, Staley’s aggressive decisions attributed to the team’s victory. Refusing to punt and give the ball back to the Raiders, Staley went for it on fourth down on three occasions, two of which the offense converted. The 13-yard conversion on 4th-and-2 in the fourth quarter between Herbert and Cook led to the game-winning touchdown by Ekeler. This season, the Chargers are 4-of-5 on fourth down, with their conversions coming from their own 34, 45, 50, and opponent’s 28. Earlier in the game, Staley challenged and successfully won the challenge of the spot late, which ultimately gave Herbert the ball back, and they went on to score right after before heading into the half. After enduring double-digit blown leads the past few seasons due to poor game management, Staley has completely changed the narrative in Los Angeles with his outstanding football mind.

Chargers PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 4 win over Raiders

Spotlighting Pro Football Focus’ studs and duds from the Chargers’ win over the Raiders.

In Week 4 of the 2021 regular season, the Chargers took care of business in primetime against the Raiders.

En route to victory, there were a handful of players that helped guide them to along the way.

With that being said, here are the best and worst performers from Monday’s contest, according to Pro Football Focus’ player grades.

Top 5 Offense

TE Jared Cook — 90.4

C Corey Linsley — 87.1

RB Austin Ekeler — 85.7

OT Rashawn Slater — 83.6

QB Justin Herbert — 83.0

Top 5 Defense

EDGE Joey Bosa — 90.8

NT Forrest Merrill — 87.9

DT Linval Joseph — 82.6

EDGE Kyler Fackrell — 81.9

LB Drue Tranquill — 81.4

Bottom 5 Offense

RB Larry Rountree III — 52.7

WR Mike Williams — 52.1

CB Tevaughn Campbell — 46.0

OT Storm Norton — 44.4

G Michael Schofield — 30.8

Bottom 5 Defense

DT Breiden Fehoko — 60.0

EDGE Chris Rumph — 57.1

S Derwin James — 48.0

S Alohi Gilman — 45.6

EDGE Uchenna Nwosu — 39.5

5 takeaways from Chargers’ 28-14 victory over Raiders in Week 4

Highlighting everything notable from the Los Angeles Chargers’ victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.

On Monday night, the Chargers picked up a victory over their division rival, handing the Raiders their first season loss by a final score of 28-14.

Here are five quick takeaways from Los Angeles’ victory in Week 4:

Justin Herbert is that guy

Herbert was lights out in the first half, completing 20 of his 25 passes for 175 yards and three touchdowns. Then, in the second half, Las Vegas’ defense finally started to get to him with additional pressure. Yet, the 23-year old still managed to stay composed throughout and contributed to setting up the offense’s fourth and final touchdown of the night to tie the bow late in the fourth quarter. On that drive, Herbert converted on fourth down for the second time on three attempts. Finishing the game with 25 of 38 passes for 222 yards and three touchdowns, Herbert continued to justify that the sky is the limit with him under center.

Rock on, Austin Ekeler

It was only a matter of time until Ekeler was going to steal the offensive spotlight. Well, it finally came in primetime. It was clear that Joe Lombardi wanted to take advantage of a subpar run defense, which is what Ekeler and an offensive line with a 79% run block win rate did, finishing the game with a career-high 117 yards on 15 carries (7.8 yards per carry). Ekeler powered a crucial fourth-quarter scoring drive that burned over five minutes of the game clock, which resulted in an 11-yard rushing touchdown to close out the game. His presence in the passing game also paid dividends, with one of his three receptions going for a score.

There are the tight ends

Wide receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams had the least productive performances up to this season, combining for only 48 receiving yards. Instead, it was the tight ends time to make their presence known. Leading the group, veteran Jared Cook finished with six receptions for 70 yards and the game’s first touchdown. Cook was an integral piece in critical situations, as he caught both targets on fourth down. Donald Parham finally provided some value in the red zone with a touchdown catch following Cook’s. Stephen Anderson continued to make his money as a blocker, but he also made a play in the passing game that went for 34 yards.

Defense fired on all cylinders

Coming into this matchup, the Raiders had eight straight games with over 400 yards of offense. That was until they met the Chargers’ defense, which stymied them to only 51 yards in the first half and 251 yards altogether. Defenders were swarming on all three levels. They sacked Derek Carr four times and finally played physically enough up front to limit the running game to 48 yards. Aside from a couple of hiccups in coverage, the secondary kept nearly everything in front throughout all four quarters, with credit going to pass rush too, not allowing a receiver to go for over 100 receiving yards and holding Carr, the league leader in passing yards (entering Week 4), under 200. Derwin James’ fourth-quarter interception sealed the deal.

Aggressive, effective, efficient

These are the words to describe Brandon Staley and his game management. While all the players mentioned above are worth applauding for the outcome of this game, it would not mean anything not to include Staley, whose vital decisions also guided the team to victory. Refusing to punt and give the ball back to the Raiders, Staley went for it on fourth down three times, two of which the offense converted. The 13-yard conversion on 4th-and-2 in the fourth quarter between Herbert and Cook led to the game-winning touchdown by Ekeler. In addition, Staley challenged and successfully won the challenge of the spot late in the second quarter, which ultimately gave the Chargers the ball back, and the team went on to score right before the half. After enduring double-digit blown leads the past few seasons due to poor game management, Staley has completely changed the narrative in Los Angeles.

Chargers QB Justin Herbert positioned for big performance vs. Cowboys

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert is in a great spot to build off of last weekend’s showing.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert started his sophomore campaign on a strong note against Washington, who was second in the NFL in both total and passing defense a season ago.

Connecting with eight different targets, Herbert finished with 337 passing yards and a touchdown. Had his receivers not dropped seven passes, two of which would have been scores, Herbert might been the most productive signal-caller in Week 1.

Herbert now looks ahead to this weekend’s matchup against the Cowboys, who allowed 379 yards and four touchdown passes to QB Tom Brady and the Buccaneers in the season opener.

After putting together a solid outing against one of the most premiere defenses, Herbert should benefit immensely from Dallas, who has some holes along the defensive line and question marks in the secondary.

Starting edge defenders Demarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory will not play. Even with Lawrence and Gregory on the field last week, Brady was only knocked down twice and he was never sacked despite throwing 50 times.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles’ offensive line only allowed six pressures on 49 dropbacks against a fearsome front. With backups Dorance Armstrong and Tarell Basham starting, Herbert should have plenty of time to distribute the wealth.

Even with Bryan Bulaga out, Storm Norton should provide a serviceable starter at right tackle after holding his own against reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year, Chase Young.

With time to throw, Herbert should have success against a secondary that was sliced a week ago aside from cornerback Trevon Diggs, who blanketed wide receiver Mike Evans.

Here were Brady’s stats against Dallas’ two other primary corners.

• Anthony Brown: 7 of 8 passing, 121 yards, one touchdown, 158.3 passer rating.

• Jourdan Lewis: 6 of 11 passing, 74 yards, one touchdown, one interception, 68.0 passer rating.

Keenan Allen and Mike Williams will draw the majority of the attention. Even then, Jalen Guyton, Josh Palmer, Jared Cook and Austin Ekeler are all capable of making good things happen in the passing game.

Like last weekend, look for offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi to let Herbert cook early and often this Sunday.

Fantasy owners, Herbert is a must start.

The best fantasy football gamble of Week 2

Can you smellellell what this Charger is Cookin’?

Every week, at least one player becomes my fascination of whether he’s worthy of a fantasy football start or bench. The decision can be a mental wrestling match, but for the purpose of brevity, only one player can be chosen as the fantasy football gamble of the week.

The best fantasy football gamble for Week 2

Tracking my predictions: 0-1-0
Win: Player produces ≥ 75% of projected fantasy points
Loss: Player produces >75% of projected fantasy points
Tie: Player is ejected or leaves with an injury

Week 1 summary: Barf.

The case for San Francisco 49ers running back Trey Sermon was laid out rather convincingly, if I do say so myself … until it all crumbled down upon me in a Kyle Shanahan-induced, Jenga-like heap of gameday inactives. Sermon being a healthy scratch was one of the most shocking gameday personnel decision I’ve see in the NFL in some years.

Not at all bitter. Nope. Nuh uh. Not one bit.

I stand by the decision with steely commitment. My logic was sound … how was anyone to know Shanny would play games with not only Sermon but WR Brandon Aiyuk.

My reasoning proved true after RB Raheem Mostert (knee) exited early (c’mon, everyone should have seen that coming!) and paved the way for backup rookie Elijah Mitchell to run roughshod over the lowly Detroit defense. All told, a pair of San Francisco backups totaled 24.2 PPR points. My Sermon projection was 22.5. It’s not a win, nor even a push.

I’ll take the “L” and move on to Week 2, but first, I will apologize if my advice led to Sermon being stuck into someone’s lineup given how close we were to kickoff before anyone had a clue he’d be inactive. Being wrong isn’t what bothers me the most … costing someone else a win gnaws at me.

TE Jared Cook, Los Angeles Chargers vs. Dallas Cowboys

Last week, Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski was good for 90 yards and a pair of scores on his five grabs, illustrating Tom Brady isn’t the only one with indecent pictures of Father Time.

Cook is no Gronk, and the way the latter stuck it to the ‘Boys is not even the basis for the well-traveled veteran being the focus of this article. I’m not going to pretend like it doesn’t help my argument, but the real driving factor here is what Dallas is doing at linebacker in passing situations. Leighton Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith — superior players against the run — come off the field in favor of Micah Parsons and Keanu Neal.

There is no question the Neal-Parsons combo provides more athleticism in coverage, but this duo is about as inexperienced as it gets in the NFL playing coverage linebacker. Neal, a former safety under current Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn in Atlanta, transitioned to the position just this offseason. And Parsons, for as ridiculously talented as he is, remains a rookie with one whole NFL game under his belt, regardless of position.

[lawrence-related id=460345]

These two guys are dynamic and rangy, covering territory far faster than their run-stuffing counterparts, but the NFL is such a mentally quick game that even a pro moving from a similar position — in the box safety — is bound to have hiccups at first, let alone for a rookie.

This game is on the road once again for the Cowboys, and defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence (foot) won’t be available to apply pressure on Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. The second-year Oregon product is unflappable and showed a nearly seamless transition between a collegiate offense to the pros in 2020 and now to yet another new system in ’21.

The Bolts have two strong receivers, especially with Keenan Allen, for Dallas to be preoccupied with stopping. Mike Williams is coming off his most catches ever in a game last week. The Chargers really don’t have a bona fide WR3 at the moment, and running back Austin Ekeler wasn’t even targeted in the passing game, much to the dismay of his PPR owners.

That leaves Cook. The veteran came over from New Orleans in the offseason, following Joe Lombardi, LA’s new offensive coordinator. The system concepts are more than familiar for the 34-year-old tight end. Maybe Cook isn’t quite as athletic as he once was in his prime, but there is wisdom that comes with experience, and he understands nuance better than at any point in his career. He also has seen a serious scoring uptick in the past few seasons. One of my favorite value buys this draft season, here’s what I wrote about him entering the year:

He scored 25 total touchdowns in 117 appearances prior to his two-year stint with the Saints, a 29-game stretch in which he registered 16 TD grabs.

While Cook didn’t find the end zone in Week 1, he landed five of his eight targets for 56 yards. Williams isn’t going to see 12 looks every game, and some of those extra plays will go Cook’s direction. Unless Ekeler gets a major boost in receiving work this weekend, Cook is a strong bet to outperform last week’s 10.6 PPR points.

… That is, so long as he isn’t a surprise healthy scratch prior to kickoff!

My projection: 6 receptions, 64 yards, 1 TD (18.4 PPR points)

11 waiver wire targets in fantasy football for Week 2

11 waiver-wire targets in fantasy football for Week 2.

As Week 1 came and went, so did the roller coaster of emotions that comes with managing a fantasy football team. Or if you’re a degenerate like me, you find yourself in way too many leagues.

Regardless, it doesn’t matter whether you started off with a scoring victory or were cursing your lineup for dropping a dud. Scouring the waiver wire is vital to success in fantasy football.

To be eligible as a waiver wire target, a player cannot be rostered in more than 50% of ESPN leagues.

Here are 13 waiver-wire targets to help your fantasy football team in Week 2:

Chargers Week 1 Report Card: How the offense graded in victory over Washington

Grading every position on the offensive side of the ball in the Chargers’ season opener.

The Chargers took care of business in Week 1, defeating Washington by the score of 20-16.

Here’s how every position graded out in the team’s victory on Sunday:

Quarterback — A

While many believed he was going to endure sophomore struggles, quarterback Justin Herbert did not lose a step from his phenomenal rookie campaign. Delivering beautiful darts at all levels of the field, Herbert finished 31-of-47 passing for 337 yards – leading the offense on three long scoring drives (75, 76, and 68 yards). His most impressive work came on third-down situations, as he completed 13 of 16 passes for 160 yards and a touchdown. Had the dropped passes not occurred, Herbert could have been sitting with over 370 yards and two scores.

Running back — B-

After dealing with a hamstring injury leading up into the contest, Austin Ekeler still played and took the majority of the carries. Running the ball 15 times, Ekeler totaled 57 yards. He was a non-factor in the passing game, not being targeted on any of his 26 routes. Aside from a carry of 13 yards, Larry Rountree did not do much with his other opportunities. The bulk of Justin Jackson’s playing time came on special teams, finishing with only one carry for five yards. All backs played key roles in pass protection, however.

Wide receiver — B

Herbert distributed the wealth to nine different skill players, with all five receivers on the roster being targeted. Keenan Allen and Mike Williams were the stars of the show, combining for 17 catches for 182 yards and a touchdown on 25 targets. Allen went for over 100 yards and Williams caught a career-high eight passes in his new role in Lombardi’s offense. Jalen Guyton and K.J. Hill each had three receptions, averaging over 10 yards per catch. Rookie Josh Palmer was only targeted once, but he turned it into a 17-yard gain. Had there not been some bad drops, this unit would have received an ‘A’ grade.

Tight end — B

Jared Cook did the majority of the work in the passing game out of this group. The chemistry between Herbert and Cook was there, as the two linked up five times for 56 yards on eight targets. Cook, however, did have one of the team’s few drops on the afternoon. In a surprising manner, Donald Parham was primarily used as a blocking tight end. Parham had 20 run blocking snaps and eight pass blocking snaps, while only running routes 13 times. Stephen Anderson wasn’t a factor as a receiver, but he was arguably one of the better blockers, especially in the run game.

Offensive line — A

It’s been quite some time since this position group received anything higher than a ‘C’ grade, but the newly revamped line held their own against one of the best defensive fronts in this league. Herbert had 52 dropbacks and he was only pressured five times. Rookie tackle Rashawn Slater was a major contributor, going up against Chase Young and Montez Sweat, not allowing a single pressure and paving the way in the run game.

Watch: RB Austin Ekeler scores first touchdown of season for Chargers

Check out the Chargers’ first touchdown of the 2021 regular season.

It was the Chargers who struck first in the season opener against Washington.

Facing one of the league’s best defenses, Los Angeles scampered down the field with ease on the opening drive.

Quarterback Justin Herbert engineered the majority of the production on the 10-play, 75-yard drive but it was running back Austin Ekeler who found the end zone from three yards out.

Check it out: