Los Angeles Chargers safety Nasir Adderley described his season-ending hamstring injury as a tendon split.
With expectations high for Chargers free safety Nasir Adderley, he was unable to show why he was so highly touted in his rookie campaign.
The Bolts’ second-round selection had been dinged up with a hamstring issue since the summer. He played the first four weeks of the regular season, primarily on special teams, but he hadn’t played since Week 4.
Since he was unable to get healthy, Los Angeles decided to put the first-year safety on the injured reserve.
According to Orange County Register’s Gilbert Manzano, Adderley described his season-ending hamstring injury as a tendon split.
“It wasn’t the rookie year I was expecting. I was hoping to make a big impact,” Adderley said.
Had Adderley been healthy, there’s a good chance that we could have seen him as the starting free safety over Rayshawn Jenkins.
The former Delaware product showed flashes this past preseason of the player that was coveted coming out of college, displaying the ideal range and ball skills.
With a full slate to recover, get stronger and more adapted to the speed of the NFL, Adderley will be in competition for the starting spot with Jenkins heading into the 2020 season.
Austin Ekeler, Rayshawn Jenkins and Melvin Gordon all had words to say following another heartbreaking loss.
The Los Angeles Chargers are 4-8 and all eight losses have been by seven points or less. They’ve been margins of three, seven, seven, seven, three, two, seven, and three points.
Whether it’s fumbling at the goal-line, interceptions, or most recently, getting hit with a penalty that should’ve never been called to ensue the game-winning field goal on the final drive, the Chargers haven’t caught a break.
The frustration from the fanbase has been evident. Many of them had high expectations entering this season, but now they wake up each Sunday wondering how their favorite team is going to find a way to lose.
It has become a pattern so consistent that the players on the team can’t even hide how maddening it is.
“It seems like we’re literally trying to figure out every way you can possibly lose a game,” running back Austin Ekeler said.
“This feels like maybe six of the other losses we’ve had. This is another one we should have won,” safety Rayshawn Jenkins said.
“We’re good enough to put these games away earlier, and every week we somehow fail to do so. And, every time, it bites you in the butt in the end,” running back Melvin Gordon said.
When assessing what went wrong for the Chargers this season, there will be a few notables including the injuries to key players, quarterback Philip Rivers’ decline and the coaching change.
But the team still had enough talent to hang with anyone, yet they were unable to overcome shooting themselves in the foot when games were on the line on a weekly basis.
Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lists three players that have rose to the occasion, which many may have not anticipated.
Despite being hampered by injuries this season, the Chargers still possess one of the most talented rosters in the NFL. While there are players that had high expectations heading into the year, there were a few that weren’t talked about as much and have exceeded many people’s expectations.
With that, here are three Chargers players that have been good in a surprising manner in 2019.
C Scott Quessenberry
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Starting center Mike Pouncey was a hit with a season-ending injury in October, which forced the Chargers to turn to the former UCLA product to fill the void.
Quessenberry, the La Costa native, grew up as a Chargers fan. He wears the number that former Charger great Nick Hardwick wore in No. 61 in hopes to have a big impact on the team that he’s always supported.
In five games played, he’s made an impact on the offensive side of the ball that many may have not been expecting from him when filling in for a four-time Pro Bowler.
But you can tell that the second-year player has used that time learning from one of the best at the center position.
Quessenberry has kept pressure away from quarterback Philip Rivers on the inside by using his high football IQ to recognize blitzes and execute his blocks, along with opening up running lanes for running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler.
Pouncey is slated to become a free agent after the 2020 season, which means that if the Chargers feel like they have something in Quessenberry, they could move on from Pouncey and make Quessenberry the long-term center.
Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out four Chargers players that had standout games on Monday night against the Chiefs.
The Los Angeles Chargers suffered a huge loss at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday night at Estadio Azteca.
There were some solid performances in Week 11, even though Los Angeles wound up falling, 24-17.
Here are four Chargers players whose stock rose:
RB Melvin Gordon
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Gordon knew he was in line for a monstrous performance facing the 31st run defense entering the game, and he delivered in a big way for the third consecutive outing.
Once again, Gordon ran like the player we knew from a season ago, seeing openings and running through or spinning his way through defenders. He ended up totaling 80 yards from scrimmage.
Gordon moved into a tie with fullback Keith Lincoln for No. 5 among Chargers running backs all-time in yards receiving (’61-’68) at 1,689. His three receptions in the game also brought him to 200 in his career.
RB Austin Ekeler
While Gordon established the ground game, Ekeler provided a superb option in the passing game out of the backfield. Routinely being targeted underneath, Ekeler made a lot of huge plays happen, including a 37-yard reception on the first drive.
Ekeler finished the game with 24 rushing yards on five carries and 108 receiving yards on eight catches, his second career 100-yard receiving performance. He tied wide receiver Keenan Allen in receptions with his big outing.
The tandem of Gordon and Ekeler combined for 222 yards from scrimmage.
DE Melvin Ingram
The defense’s stout performance all started up front in the trenches, which was led by the dominance of Ingram.
Ingram was a force from the first snap of the game, but he came in clutch in the fourth quarter, making third-down stops on the Chiefs’ final three drives, which all led to punts.
He finished with five tackles, two passes defensed and one sack. Ingram’s lone sack in the fourth quarter allowed him to pass Hall of Fame linebacker Junior Seau for No. 4 in Chargers history (47.5).
FS Rayshawn Jenkins
The first line of defense made sure that quarterback Patrick Mahomes was under constant duress, buying him no time to throw the ball. But the rest of the members were solid in keeping everything in front of them, particularly Jenkins.
On one of the very few throws where Mahomes tried to go deep, Jenkins was there to click and close on the football. Jenkins’ interception of Mahomes was just the second of the season for Mahomes, whose touchdown to interception ratio entering the game was 18:1.
Jenkins knew that he would have to keep the speedy Chiefs wideouts from getting behind him and he rose to the occasion. Jenkins now has three interceptions on the season.
The Chargers defense forced Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes to one of the worst performances of his career.
The Chargers knew that they would have their hands full facing a Chiefs team, who has one of the best offenses in the league.
Even without safeties Derwin James and Adrian Phillips, who were both key components to the success when the two teams met last season, the defense did what most teams haven’t been able to do.
The unit held quarterback Patrick Mahomes to 182 passing yards, which was his lowest in a full game so far in his career. Mahomes had a 72.7 passer rating, which was his second-lowest mark.
Mahomes was nearly a non-factor in the first half of the game, as he was held to less than 100 total yards.
Kansas City lost wide receiver Tyreek Hill early on to a hamstring injury, and he finished with no catches and zero yards. Running backs Damien Williams and LeSean McCoy were also banged up throughout the course of the game.
But they still limited the other handful of playmakers the Chiefs possess.
It all started up front with defensive ends Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram. The two both did an excellent job against a stout offensive line by generating pressure, making Mahomes feel uncomfortable.
Ingram came in clutch in the fourth-quarter by stopping the Chiefs on three consecutive third-down plays, which all resulted in punts.
Defensive tackles Damion Square and Justin Jones, who returned from an injury, were solid against the run, recording a handful of stops at or behind the line of scrimmage.
The line’s efforts benefited the rest of the members on the defensive side of the ball as Mahomes, who was under constant duress, didn’t have much time to push the ball downfield and was forced to throw nearly everything underneath.
When Mahomes did try to go deep on one play, he was picked off by free safety Rayshawn Jenkins, who jumped in front of a ball on a pass intended to wide receiver Demarcus Robinson and came up with an interception.
Outside of a few crucial missed tackles and blow coverages, including tight end Travis Kelce’s touchdown in the third-quarter, the linebackers and cornerbacks stayed true to their assignments and kept everything in front of them.
Thomas Davis has really come into his own as a run stopper, leading the way with the team-high 12 tackles and Casey Hayward continues to show he’s one of the best corners in the league by not giving up a single reception.
The defense did what they needed to, but unfortunately, quarterback Philip Rivers and company were unable to pick them up in a must-win game on Monday night.
Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez gives his thoughts from the first half of the matchup between the Chargers and the Chiefs.
The Chargers trail the Chiefs 10-9 in a low scoring affair at the halfway mark.
Here are our takeaways from the first half:
The Chargers defense has been playing lights out against a Chiefs offense that ranks near the top of the league. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes has yet to surpass 100 passing yards and the rushing attack has been held to less than 50 yards on the ground.
Linebacker Thomas Davis has been dominant against the run, but he’s made a couple key plays in coverage.
Cornerbacks Casey Hayward and Michael Davis are having great games, keeping the Chiefs wideouts in check. Safety Rayshawn Jenkins, who came up with the big-time interception in the first quarter, has done a nice job keeping everything in front of them.
The Chargers offense is in full control, but the two turnovers have killed them and that’s why the Chiefs have the lead.
Running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler have been awfully productive tonight. The two have combined for 199 yards from the line of scrimmage. They’re having success carrying the football and have been deadly in the short passing game.
Quarterback Philip Rivers’ first interception wasn’t his fault, but the second one was. It was a bad read from Rivers, attempting to go wide receiver Keenan Allen and safety Tyrann Mathieu made the perfect play on the ball.
Aside from the one sack given up, the offensive line has given Rivers a lot of time to distribute the football.
Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out one offensive and defensive player to watch in the Chargers matchup with the Chiefs.
As the Chargers take on the Chiefs in the Monday night bout, several players will be under the microscope. Here are two Chargers players on each side of the ball to keep an eye on:
Offense — RB Melvin Gordon
After a lackluster start to his season, Gordon has had success the past two consecutive games. The past two games combined, Gordon has rushed for 188 yards on 42 carries (4.4 yards per carry), including three touchdowns. His performance against the Raiders last Thursday marked the first time a Chargers player has rushed for over 100 yards.
Gordon could very well have a season-high performance facing one of the most generous run defenses in the league, who is allowing 148.1 rushing yards per game. Look for the Chargers to lean on Gordon to exploit the Chiefs’ weakness early and often. A multi-touchdown game is well within reach.
Defense — FS Rayshawn Jenkins
It won’t be an easy task for the Chargers to slow the Chiefs offense, who present arguably the most explosive in the league, featuring some of the fastest wide receivers, and are capable of making monstrous plays happen at any given moment.
While the linebackers and cornerbacks will have to stay sound to their assignments and the players they’re covering, it’ll be crucial for Jenkins as the last line of defense. Jenkins will have the responsibility to tackle in the open field in case someone breaks loose and he has to defend those deep passes.
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.
