Tag: Keenan Allen

Instant analysis of Chargers’ 23-20 loss to Broncos

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez delivers his thoughts from the Chargers’ 23-20 loss to the Broncos.

The Chargers were hit with another gut-punch on Sunday.

Los Angeles lost on a game-winning 53-yard field goal by Broncos kicker Brandon McManus as time expired. The field goal was set up by a questionable defensive pass interference call against cornerback Casey Hayward, putting Denver in field goal range.

With the loss, the Chargers drop to 4-8 on the season.

Here is our instant analysis from the Week 13 matchup.

Injury Report

There weren’t any notable injuries in today’s game.

Play of the Game: Mike Williams’ 38-yard reception

On 4th-and-11 with a little over two minutes left, Williams came up clutch again with a monstrous reception. He fell, got up and brought in the ball with his left hand over cornerback Isaac Yiadom.

Notable Number

17: 17 of the Chargers’ last 25 games have been decided by a single possession.

Quick Takes

  • Quarterback Philip Rivers looked like he was going to get benched in favor of Tyrod Taylor early on when he looked rattled and was missing his receivers, but he turned it around towards the end of the half when he found running back Austin Ekeler for the score.
  • Rivers’ second half was more promising. He benefitted from running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler in the short passing game, wide open receivers and big catches from his pass-catchers, including Williams’ reception on fourth-down.
  • It was evident with the 29 carries that the Chargers wanted to revolve around the running game to bring them success instead of having the same episode of the past two games. Running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler combined for 115 yards (4.0 yards per carry)
  • Three sacks may suggest that it was a poor performance from the offensive line, but on two of them, Rivers had time to get rid of the ball and elected to walk into the pressure.
  • The battle between WR Keenan Allen and CB Chris Harris Jr. went in favor Allen, who had six receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown.
  • As for the matchup between CB Casey Hayward and WR Courtland Sutton, Sutton got the best of Hayward, as he amassed four receptions for 74 yards and two scores.
  • Despite what the scoreboard shows, the Chargers defense had a phenomenal outing, holding the Broncos to 218 total yards.
  • Led by linebacker Drue Tranquill and his three tackles for loss, Denver’s running game was held to 84 yards on the ground.
  • Safety Derwin James was used all over the field, but he made his biggest impact as a pass rusher, putting rookie Drew Lock under duress on a few plays. Adrian Phillips delivered some huge blows and came up big on third-down situations.

Up Next

The Chargers travel to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars next Sunday, Dec. 8 at 1:05 p.m. PT.

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6 things to watch in Chargers vs. Broncos

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out six things to watch when the Chargers take on the Broncos in Week 13.

The Chargers return to action on the road as they’re set to take on the Denver Broncos following their bye.

Here are six things to watch in Sunday’s bout.

1. Will Philip Rivers turn things around?

Rivers isn’t having the season that he was anticipating in the final year of his contract, as he’s tossed 14 interceptions, seven in the last two games. The veteran quarterback is eager to overcome his woes, but it won’t be easy facing a Broncos defense that picked him off twice in their first meeting this season. In his last three games against Denver, Rivers has thrown three touchdowns and six interceptions.

2. Offensive tackle situation

Despite playing their best game with two backup tackles in Week 11, we saw Rivers look uncomfortable and rushed, largely due to the fact that he doesn’t trust them. If the Chargers want the most out of Philip Rivers, he has to trust the guys up front, and that means that his security blanket will have to be playing — left tackle Russell Okung. Okung and right tackle Sam Tevi are both questionable. Regardless, stopping linebacker Von Miller will be key to their victory since the offense has struggled recently.

3. Change at quarterback

The Broncos will likely have their third quarterback change this season, as rookie Drew Lock is set to take over under center. Lock is coming back from a thumb injury, which landed him on the injured reserve to start the season. In the three preseason games he completed 31-of-51 passes for 254 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Lock should have a warm welcoming from the presence of defensive ends Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, who face an offensive line that’s struggled to find consistency.

4. Derwin James and Adrian Phillips

The Chargers officially activated James and Phillips off the injured reserve on Saturday, which means that they will play tomorrow. With James back in the lineup, he will take over for Jaylen Watkins at strong safety. Phillips will resume his duties as the team’s dime linebacker. As for Watkins, he will still get snaps. It’s possible they could put him in the slot, and utilize Desmond King outside.

5. Slowing down Phillip Lindsay

The Broncos may take a little bit to get into a groove in the passing game with Lock making his debut, which means that they will resort to their offensive playmaker to find success. Lindsay had his best rushing performance of the season, amassing 111 yards rushing and 147 total yards in Week 5. But the Chargers have been stout against the run in their last three games, allowing 84.3 rushing yards per contest.

6. Wide receiver-cornerback battles

All eyes will be on wide receiver Keenan Allen and cornerback Chris Harris Jr. as Allen is looking to bounce back from his underwhelming performance in which he only had four receptions for 18 yards. But the matchup between WR Courtland Sutton and CB Casey Hayward deserves your attention.

Sutton finished with four receptions and a touchdown for 92 yards in the first meeting. He currently has 16.6 yards per catch, ranking 10th in the NFL. Meanwhile, Hayward has allowed only one catch over the last four games and has given up a reception on just 47.2% of his targets this season.

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4 matchups to watch in Chargers vs. Broncos

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lists the four matchups to watch when the Chargers take on the Broncos in Week 13.

The Los Angeles Chargers (4-7) take on the Denver Broncos (3-8) in Week 13 of the 2019 regular season.

Here are four matchups to keep an eye on that could ultimately determine the outcome of the game.

Chargers QB Philip Rivers vs. Broncos secondary

In the first meeting of the season, Rivers’ performance wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows as he was held to 211 passing yards, zero touchdowns and two interceptions. Since then, has accumulated 14 interceptions on the season and is looking to get back on track, but it won’t be easy facing a stout Broncos secondary.

Led by cornerback Chris Harris Jr. and safety Justin Simmons, Denver hasn’t made life easy on opposing quarterbacks, allowing only 207.5 passing yards per game, which ranks fifth in the NFL. Although they’re strong in this area, they haven’t been able to take the ball away, totaling only 10 takeaways this season.

Rivers, who’s been susceptible to making poor decisions and throwing the ball to whoever in hopes of them coming down with the catch, can’t do that on Sunday or else they will make him pay. Rivers has thrown six interceptions the past three games that the two teams have played against each other.

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4 key things to know about Chargers vs. Broncos

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lists the four most important things to know about the Chargers’ opponent in Week 13.

Fresh off their bye week, the Los Angeles Chargers (4-7) will look to get back on track after losing their past two consecutive games in a matchup against the Denver Broncos (3-8).

Here are four key things to know prior to the Week 13 bout.

Decision on quarterback is up in the air

The last time the Chargers played the Broncos, veteran Joe Flacco was behind center. That won’t be the case this weekend as Flacco is currently nursing an injury, which has put him out for the past few weeks.

In place of Flacco has been Brandon Allen, who is 1-2 since taking over as Denver’s starter. But rookie Drew Lock, who has returned from the injured reserve, could make his professional regular season debut.

Lock has practiced the past three weeks, but the Broncos have continued to roll with Allen to ensure that the first-year player’s thumb is feeling 100%.

ā€œWeā€™re going to up Drewā€™s reps this week extensively in practice, see how he does with this, and then make a decision prior to the game. The earliest (the decision) would be made would be later in the week, right up until the game,” coach Vic Fangio said.

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9 Chargers players to watch vs. Chiefs in Week 11

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out the nine most important players to watch against the Chiefs in Week 11.

The Los Angeles Chargers (4-6) travel to Mexico City to face the Kansas City Chiefs (6-4) in a crucial Week 11 matchup.

Here are nine Chargers players to hone in on:

QB Philip Rivers

After his worst performance of the 2019 season, Rivers will look to have a bounce back game. But it won’t be an easy task facing one of the best passing defenses in the league.

RB Melvin Gordon

Gordon has been on a tear the past two games, and he will look to continue that dominance going up against one of the league’s worst run defenses.

WR Keenan Allen

Allen has been slowed as of late, failing to surpass 70 receiving yards the past seven contests. He wasn’t impressed by the Chiefs’ secondary this past offseason and now he will have to opportunity to get his words up, six months later.

OT Trent Scott

One of the reasons for Rivers’ struggles last week was the poor protection. Scott, who will start at right tackle again in place of Sam Tevi, will need to slow a Chiefs pass rush that ranks first in the NFL in sacks (52).

DE Joey Bosa & Melvin Ingram

If the Bolts want to slow quarterback Patrick Mahomes, they need to contain him and make him feel uncomfortable. That all starts up front with the pressure. Bosa and Ingram have combined for 13.5 sacks this season.

CB Casey Hayward

Hayward is set to be lined up across arguably the league’s fastest wideouts in Tyreek Hill.

FS Rayshawn Jenkins

With how fast the Chiefs position players are, Jenkins will be needed more than ever to assist from the single high role, whether that be as an open field tackler or eliminating passing plays over the top to avoid explosive plays.

S Jaylen Watkins

Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is the best at his position, and will need to be eliminated. Last season, they limited him because Derwin James did a nice job against him, but he will not be playing.

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Chargers’ Keenan Allen looking to back up words about Chiefs secondary

Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen had some words about the Chiefs’ secondary back in April.

After finishing as one of the worst secondaries in the NFL last season, the Chiefs made the point to address the unit this past offseason with a slew of acquisitions.

Back in April, after the initial wave of free agency and the draft, wide receiver Keenan Allen was asked about the changes Kansas City made.

ā€œSince you asked, it was brought up today in the locker room. We just looked at their DB (defensive backs) group, and Iā€™ll just leave it at that. Weā€™ve seen it,” Allen said.

From Allen’s comment and smirk on his face, he didn’t appear to be that impressed with the group on paper.

Fast forward to now, and the new pieces that the Chiefs added have made a huge difference. Kansas City hasnā€™t allowed 300 passing yards in a game since Week 1, and they’re allowing 221.4 yards per game, which ranks No. 8 in the NFL.

Their new-look secondary includes safety Tyrann Mathieu, cornerback Bashaud Breeland and rookie Juan Thornhill. Those three players, along with the change to the defensive coordinator, have been a much-needed boost to the defense.

Quarterback Philip Rivers threw for over 300 yards when the two teams met twice last season, including the big victory at Arrowhead Stadium, which snapped their losing streak to the Chiefs.

Even though Rivers enters Monday’s contest against Kansas City with a league-high 2,816 passing yards, it won’t be an easy task for the veteran quarterback to have that success facing a revamped secondary and a depleted offensive line.

Allen will look to back up what he had to say about Kansas City’s secondary, and get back on track after being held to less than 70 receiving yards the past seven games and find the end zone for the first time since Week 3.

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Chargers players not fond of practicing in Colorado

Some of the Chargers players aren’t happy with practicing in Colorado for a few days prior to the matchup against the Chiefs.

The Chargers’ home for the next few days will be at Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO in preparation for Monday night’s game against the Chiefs in Mexico City.

Coach Anthony Lynn moved the team from California to Colorado because he wants to get the players acclimated to the altitude they will be playing in Mexico City, which is about 7,300 feet above sea level.

Lynn has his purpose for having the Bolts practice in Colorado for a few days, saying that even though science suggests it could take seven or eight days to acclimate to it, as a former player it pays dividends.

But some of the players aren’t too thrilled with it.

Running back Austin Ekeler, grew up in Colorado, doesn’t mind practicing there because he’s used to it, but he elaborated that it’s a different story for his teammates, saying that some of them would’ve rather practiced in Costa Mesa, CO.

ā€œI think thereā€™s a lot of mixed feelings about us coming here. Me personally, I kinda like the change-up. Iā€™m probably a little biased, obviously, because Iā€™m from here. I was looking forward to being back in Colorado for a week, but I know some people disagree with that. They would rather have it at our own facility, back in our regular routine,” Ekeler said.

Wide receiver Keenan Allen went to his personal Twitter account to express some frustration. It’s all not certain what it’s about, but based on the day, it seems like he’s talking about being in Colorado.

“I hate everything about this,” Allen tweeted on Tuesday.

Defensive end Joey Bosa made it seem like he didn’t care the team was in Colorado, but would’ve rather stayed home in California and practice if he had the choice.

ā€œYou notice a difference out there a little bit with breathing. I donā€™t know if a few practices is enough to get acclimated to it. But, weā€™re here. Weā€™ll make the most of it.ā€

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2020 Pro Bowl voting now open

It’s time to cast your vote to send your favorite Charger to the 2020 Pro Bowl.

Voting for the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl is officially open.

Fans can vote on NFL.com/ProBowlVote from Tuesday, Nov. 12 until Sunday Dec. 12. The rosters for the AFC and NFC will be announced on Tuesday, Dec. 17 on NFL Network.

During the final two weeks of 2020 Pro Bowl voting — November 28-December 12 — fans will also be able to vote on Twitter. To cast a vote, fans should tweet the first and last name of the player, the player’s official Twitter handle, or a hashtag including the player’s first and last name. It must include the hashtag: #ProBowlVote.

Fans, players and coaches will each account for one-third toward determining the 88 All-Star players who will be selected to the Pro Bowl

Even though it hasn’t been the sunshine and rainbows for the Chargers, the team still has several players worthy of Pro Bowl consideration this season.

Running back Austin Ekeler has been a force as a ball carrier and as a pass-catcher. Ekeler has totaled 899 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns. Wide receiver Keenan Allen has cooled down a little bit the past few weeks, but he has still amassed 62 receptions for 725 yards and three touchdowns.

On the other side of the ball, cornerback Casey Hayward continues to shut down some of the league’s best receivers on a weekly basis. In the trenches, defensive ends Melvin Ingram and Joey Bosa remain as one of the top pass-rushing tandems, combining for 13 sacks.

Fullback Derek Watt and linebacker Drue Tranquill have done their fair share of work on special teams. Watt leads the league in special teams tackles with 12, while Tranquill is third with nine.

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