EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — And the Los Angeles Chargers now have a better defense compared to their previous line up this year. In the contest played in the Week 8, the Chargers only allowed the New Orleans Saints offense to score 6 points. They have given up 20 points just once in the season and this is in Week 3 to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In the lead up to the Sunday, the Chargers were ranked best in the NFL in scoring defense, surrendering as few as 12.7 points per game on that facet.
“Been outstanding,” coach Jim Harbaugh said of his defense, Monday. “We are not talking about one of the best, no it is like the best scoring defense there can be out there and this really do count.”
All true. Jesse Minter, the coordinator of the above event, has done a superb job on this. The Chargers are a more physical football team vs the run thank you very much. I found that they are opposites but they are more integrated at the backend level. They are much better on third down. As I said, they are way better in the red place. They have still posted a level of performance despite injuries — especially in the corner back position — which is a proof of the coaching staff.
Still, at this point in the season, it is hard to define whether the Chargers defence is very good or simply good. Context matters. And the Chargers have faced the easiest of schedules for eight weeks in a NFL.
In all four of their wins, the Chargers have faced offenses currently ranked in the bottom 10 in expected points added per play, according to TruMedia: the Las Vegas Raiders (29th), Carolina Panthers (28th), Denver Broncos (25th) and Saints (23rd). The quarterbacks in those four games: Minshew II, Gardner, Young, Bryce, Nix, Bo, Rattler, Spencer, Haener, Jake.
The team can only beat the opponent was on the schedule. These have been times where the Chargers have gotten to take a crack against weak offenses and average/mushy/learning signal callers. They have not been nearly the same unit against better offences and quarterbacks, though. Even in their defeats to the Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs and the Arizona Cardinals, TruMedia post that the Chargers only gained 0.01 EPA per play. That is just like how the Seattle Seahawks has been playing this year for their NFL games. Across the plays, Seattle ranked 21st in EPA before Sunday. Chargers defense their average EPA per play in wins is 0.26.
Yeah, that’s why the Chargers played really well in Week 4 against the Chiefs, and maybe we can look at that game as a better indication of what this defense is. To what extend can one game be relied upon?
Sunday, what the Chargers did defensively from snap to snap did not quite match with the point catastrophe that ensued.
They allowed Saints running back Alvin Kamara to run in their direction for some reason for a couple of times. He ran for a 23-yard pickup on the Chargers’ first defensive possession. The Chargers could not stop Kamara in the second quarter on a screen to the left side of the field. Kamara took that pass 37 yards, which was the longest play for the New Orleans Saints all night. Here is 24-quarter Kamara, escaping from the edge rusher Bud Dupree. Dupree was attempting to pull the ball out and lost the chance for the tackle. After the game, the edge rusher Khalil Mack said that the play ‘looked a little sloppy.’
C. Olave was the leading receiver of the day making eight receptions for 107 yards. Olave’s longest reception a 28 yarder in the fourth quarter came on a busted coverage along the right sideline.
The Saints had a great two-minute drill before the half and made it to 9-5 despite being second and 16 on the first play of the drive. That is one game where they gained 366 yards of total offense while benching the starting quarterback.
When the team had to, the Chargers played a tight game. On the games opening drive when Kamara took the Saints into plus territory, the Chargers’ defence stopped two consecutive short yardage plays to knock the Saints punt. In the first quarter’s later part, Mack sacked a second-and-9 after the opposition abused a double-team on him, disrupting that possession. On the next team possession, Derwin James Jr. obliterated a first-down run to put the Saints in first and second down situations.
On the particular next drive, just after Kamara’s awesomely powerful screen reception to get some new yardage on the field, the Saints accordingly penetrated Chargers territory once more. On second down from plus-44, defensive lineman Teair Tart sacked for his second offensive holding of the game to halt that drive.
Rookie cornerback Tarheeb Still made form tackle on a third down play in the first possession of the second half. Linebacker Daiyan Henley got home on a delayed third-down blitz on the next possession, and there was an incompletion. On the third down, the edge rusher – Tuli Tuipulotu, had a coverage which he had a pass breakup after dropping.
Plenty of good plays. New Orleans was limited to 2 of 16 on third down by the Chargers.
But even that statistic skews the reality a little as well. Well, with Rattler as a new quarterback and starting two young tackles in Penning and Fuaga, the Saints stayed reserved on third downs in particular early in the game. They went for it on third and five, and ran a sprint out. Tampa Bay ran two draws on third-and-15-plus. They threw screens on a third and twelve and on third and twenty during the first half of the game.
“It was on them, man,” Mack of Sunday’s third-down defense. I think they was trying to kick the ball out early, conduct screens and attracts. I think they held on to defend their tackles from the pass rush.”
What the Chargers did to offset their defensive mistakes was to come up with important situational plays. That can be a successful recipe against bad offences. Then of course, better offenses and better quarterbacks will capitalize on those mistakes more frequently.
”We’re doing good job of defending and have some good competition” Harbaugh added.
The Chargers are in a group that plays the Cleveland Browns this coming weekend. They then play the Tennessee Titans in week 10. The Browns are 31st in offense EPA per play per TruMedia, but aside from the change in quarterback from Deshaun Watson to Jameis Winston due to a season ending Achilles injury. As for their EPA per play, the Titans are in a 32nd place.
As from week 11 there is a rising level of competition. In the next five weeks the Chargers play Cincinnati Bengals who have the eighth best EPA per play and Baltimore Ravens who rank the second; and Atlanta Falcons who rank seventh and the chiefs who are ranked ninth followed by Tampa Bay Buccaneers who are ranked fifth.
There’ll be no escaping during that period.
“There’s no sense of satisfaction,” Harbaugh said.
