Speaker 1: Hey, what is up everybody? Welcome to the Guilty of
Speaker 1: Charge podcast, presented by the Chargers Podcast Network. My name
Speaker 1: is Stephen and I am the host as always and
Speaker 1: joining me on a victory Tuesday Wednesday for you guys
Speaker 1: is my guy Tyler. Tyler, what something I doing today?
Speaker 2: Pretty good? Man? That game was about as pretty as
Speaker 2: you and me competing in a beauty pageant. But you
Speaker 2: know what, man, it's nice to break out the Victory
Speaker 2: Monday shirt on a Wednesday. It's nice to be talking
Speaker 2: on this podcast after a win. Steven, how are you doing?
Speaker 1: I'm doing great. Shout out to Homage. They make great shirts.
Speaker 1: I guess it's a free ad now, but I have
Speaker 1: a few Homage shirts myself. They make like fantastic quality.
Speaker 1: You know. I have the the NFL jam one with
Speaker 1: Justin Herbert and Keenan Allen. I have the Quentin Johnston one.
Speaker 1: I got the Joey Bosa NFL Blitz shirt. So Homage
Speaker 1: makes great, great stuff. If you haven't check them out,
Speaker 1: you can get that Victory Monday shirt as well. So
Speaker 1: appreciate Homage. But doing good. Tyler and I were talking
Speaker 1: before we jumped in here. Both of us obviously work
Speaker 1: in education, as we've talked about on the show, and
Speaker 1: both of us are very much prepared for Christmas break
Speaker 1: because as if any educator is in your life, you
Speaker 1: know that they are are feeling the same. So a
Speaker 1: few short weeks away from Christmas break and very excited
Speaker 1: for that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, me too. But we got games to cover until then,
Speaker 2: and you know some kids, the two person stuff.
Speaker 1: Yeah, games to get into. I have started watching draft prospects.
Speaker 1: This is generally the time of year where I started
Speaker 1: watching draft prospects, so I just started watching Brock Powers today.
Speaker 1: So a lot of fun. All right, We're gonna dive
Speaker 1: into this Chargers Patriots game, also do a little look
Speaker 1: ahead to Chargers Broncos, and then we're bringing back over
Speaker 1: Reaction Wednesday. So Tyler and I have some talking points
Speaker 1: we want to discuss and figure out where is the
Speaker 1: silver lining or where is kind of the gray area
Speaker 1: in these kind of topics debates that are kind of
Speaker 1: going around on social media. So it should be a
Speaker 1: lot of fun. Hopefully you guys are ready and excited
Speaker 1: off a win for what's to come the rest of
Speaker 1: the week. So before we dive into this content today,
Speaker 1: as always, Tyler and I are fans of the team
Speaker 1: first and foremost. The opinions that we express on this
Speaker 1: show are just out there, our opinions and not the
Speaker 1: opinions of the Chargers organization. We're very grateful to have
Speaker 1: this platform and hope to continue to produce this content
Speaker 1: for you guys the rest of the season. So hopefully
Speaker 1: enjoy it, and if you don't mind, please leave a comment,
Speaker 1: leave a rating, leave a review. All that stuff really
Speaker 1: does help us to continue to grow the show and
Speaker 1: show our appreciations towards the Chargers. So that being said, Tyler,
Speaker 1: we'll dive in first and foremost to the Patriots game.
Speaker 1: We wanted to sit back and watch some of that
Speaker 1: tape and get some real takeaways there. So you kind
Speaker 1: ofocusing on the offense, I kind of focus in on
Speaker 1: the defense. Well, we'll have some big takeaways to discuss
Speaker 1: from that game from what we saw on tape. So
Speaker 1: let's start with the offense. You're pointed out some things
Speaker 1: on Twitter, but what was kind of your your big
Speaker 1: takeaway after watching the tape about the Chargers offense and
Speaker 1: they're six points on Sunday afternoon.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, thanks for giving me that one. The offense
Speaker 2: and the six points. I'm happy to kick that one off.
Speaker 1: For the show.
Speaker 2: Don't worry. Honestly, I came away being happier with Kellen
Speaker 2: Moore the play caller, but about us frustrated with Kellen
Speaker 2: Moore the offensive coordinator. And I do kind of want
Speaker 2: to make that distinction. Outside of a handful of plays,
Speaker 2: I really felt like the offense, you know.
Speaker 1: I like the calls overall.
Speaker 2: I like Justin Herbert and how he looked. There are
Speaker 2: plenty of guys that were open, plenty of opportunities I
Speaker 2: think for the Chargers to be better than what the
Speaker 2: scoring output ended up being. At the same time, the
Speaker 2: coordination on the offense and trying to get eleven guys
Speaker 2: to play together and all eleven guys to execute that
Speaker 2: was very frustrating, and it really has been frustrating for
Speaker 2: several games now. And you can throw in and talk
Speaker 2: about a lot of the reasons why it doesn't look
Speaker 2: so good. We've talked about it a million times. Corey Linsley, Michaelames,
Speaker 2: Josh Palmer, all these issues, and I do take those
Speaker 2: into account, and I do believe that, like in the
Speaker 2: Lions game sort of recently, for example, in a lot
Speaker 2: of games. The graphic they showed during the Patriots game,
Speaker 2: they're moving Keenan Allen around a lot. He's got like
Speaker 2: two hundred more yards after motion because of motion or
Speaker 2: off of motion than any other receiver or tight end
Speaker 2: in the NFL. But so they're trying, but the execution
Speaker 2: is just not there on a down to doown basis.
Speaker 2: And if I give Brandon Staley Derek Ansley some flak
Speaker 2: for the defense not executing, I and we have to
Speaker 2: talk about how Kellamar has not gotten all of these
Speaker 2: guys on a down to down basis to execute really well.
Speaker 2: And as I was prepping for the show, I just
Speaker 2: kind of wanted to mix mental notes of plays just
Speaker 2: off the top of my head after watching the film
Speaker 2: and after we've watched the game, we could tell anyway
Speaker 2: where the execution for whatever reason was just not there.
Speaker 2: And it's always it's almost a different player every time.
Speaker 2: You know, you look at the third down run, Jalen
Speaker 2: Giden doesn't get his block and they don't convert on
Speaker 2: that run. Guiden doesn't get out in front of Quentin
Speaker 2: Johnston on a screen, that thing could have been forty
Speaker 2: or fifty yards for a touchdown. To be completely honest,
Speaker 2: Keenan Allen doesn't get a hand on the edge rusher
Speaker 2: on that jet sweep, which was probably a dead play anyway,
Speaker 2: but still nobody blocks him. Couldn't get a hand on him.
Speaker 2: Loss of seven. Donald parm has two drops. Quintin Johnston.
Speaker 2: You couldn't have asked for more than justin Herbert on
Speaker 2: that throat in the rain, rolling to his right under pressure,
Speaker 2: right down the sideline. Quentin Johnson drops it. Joshua Kelly
Speaker 2: dropped a pass. Austin Eckler dropped a pass. Slater can't
Speaker 2: get in front of Eckler on a screen that I
Speaker 2: thought was going to be, you know, pretty good again,
Speaker 2: the call was there. It got the the Patriots, I think,
Speaker 2: but Slater can't quite get out there, and the screen
Speaker 2: doesn't go for as much. Austin Eckler runs and is
Speaker 2: the opportunity to cut to his right. You took the
Speaker 2: screenshot and we talked about it. I noticed this yesterday too. Actually,
Speaker 2: I could have gone to the right behind Jamari Sawyer.
Speaker 2: Plenty of green grass that way, but he just goes
Speaker 2: left straight into a pile. Herbert keeps the option rather
Speaker 2: than hand it off which has been the opposite problem.
Speaker 2: You know, in previous weeks, typically Herbert hands it off
Speaker 2: where he should have kept it, he keeps it, they
Speaker 2: lose yards. You know, Herbert's off by just like a
Speaker 2: foot on an effort pass in the red zone. So
Speaker 2: every unsuccessful play has one person typically not doing their
Speaker 2: job or not executing to their fullest, and it's never
Speaker 2: that same person. But so the calls I think I
Speaker 2: felt were better than I thought, And it's tough to
Speaker 2: save because after only six points to say that they
Speaker 2: were like really good calls, but they were better than
Speaker 2: I expected because guys were open and there were opportunities there.
Speaker 2: But somebody is not executing. So I think there's one
Speaker 2: hundred passing yards another forty rushing yards that are just
Speaker 2: there sitting on the field. But because Kellen Moore has
Speaker 2: not gotten these guys to execute every single down and
Speaker 2: there's always one guy making some mistake, they haven't been
Speaker 2: very successful and that's part of the reason the Chargers
Speaker 2: are currently on the outside looking in in this postseason race.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that's important that you make that designation
Speaker 1: or distinction rather about the play calls, and like the
Speaker 1: concepts that Kellen Moore generally runs are very strong. Like
Speaker 1: we on Saturday talked about like how we have really
Speaker 1: enjoyed seeing Kellen Moore bringing this you know, extra step
Speaker 1: out of Justin Herbert, and how Justin Herbert has had
Speaker 1: more control of the offense. You know, keenan Allen's getting
Speaker 1: more opportunities downfield, which like Shocker he has always been
Speaker 1: able to do. You know, Justin Herbert's aidad is up
Speaker 1: and like the bones of this offense schematically are really
Speaker 1: really sound. But you know, at the end of the day,
Speaker 1: like part of your job as being an offensive coordinator
Speaker 1: are these details to get everybody on the same page.
Speaker 1: And Brandon Steally even said this yesterday, you know, speaking
Speaker 1: specifically about the run game, that it's about all eleven players,
Speaker 1: Like all eleven players have to be on the same page,
Speaker 1: whether that's blocking, whether that's running routes, whether that is
Speaker 1: quarterbacking and calling the plays, whether that is the center communicating,
Speaker 1: whether that is you know, everybody has to be on
Speaker 1: the same page to properly run an offense and listen,
Speaker 1: like there's a lot of context like that you mentioned,
Speaker 1: but you know, this Chargers offense scoring six points this
Speaker 1: week ten points last week. It's just it's just kind
Speaker 1: of unexcusable. It's unacceptable to me to have a Justin
Speaker 1: Herbert let offense continuing to have these kind of struggles
Speaker 1: of consistency. And that's about practice, right, Like, that's throughout
Speaker 1: the week. Those are things that you have to be
Speaker 1: honing in throughout the week as a as a coordinator,
Speaker 1: as a head coach, coach. And like you mentioned, we
Speaker 1: were criticizing Brandon Staley and Derek Nseley in the defense
Speaker 1: earlier this season for not honing in on the details,
Speaker 1: and now we're seeing some of that come to a
Speaker 1: fruition from the offense. There's also just some like really
Speaker 1: head scratching decisions being had out there. You know, I
Speaker 1: tweeted about the the sequence right after the two lead
Speaker 1: tweek below to fumble recovery and they run a crack toss.
Speaker 1: They get five yards out of that, which is fine.
Speaker 1: On second down, they run a trap play, which the
Speaker 1: Patriots were in a light box, and so like again
Speaker 1: the concept is sound. You run a trap play, Austin
Speaker 1: Eckler gets three yards. You know, Rashaun Slater Andrew whatever
Speaker 1: kind of missed some blocks. It wasn't super clean, but
Speaker 1: you get three yards, so you're in a positive third
Speaker 1: and two situation, So like you can kind of understand
Speaker 1: the thought process there. But then on third down they
Speaker 1: motion into the exact same formation with Jalen Guyton coming
Speaker 1: in across formation. This time the Patriots safety follows him
Speaker 1: and essentially creates a heavy box and Justin Herbert decides
Speaker 1: to kill the first play. So for those who don't
Speaker 1: know every single play call in the NFL, especially under
Speaker 1: Kellen Moore, you have two tags with it, and so
Speaker 1: Justin Herbert has the ability to kill the first play
Speaker 1: and get to the second play. And in this instance,
Speaker 1: the second play was the exact same trap call that
Speaker 1: the Chargers ran on second down. It's just instead with
Speaker 1: Joshua Kelly instead of Austin Eckler, and Joshua Kelly gets
Speaker 1: one yard instead of the two and a half that
Speaker 1: he needed, And that, to me is just an unacceptable
Speaker 1: use of your resources in that moment after a turnover,
Speaker 1: for you to run that kind of sequence was a
Speaker 1: head scratcher for Kellen Moore. And some people will say, like, oh,
Speaker 1: like they were in a positive down a distance you
Speaker 1: should be able to run a trap play for you know,
Speaker 1: to get two and a half yards on third down,
Speaker 1: and it's like, yes, I agree with you, but when
Speaker 1: you're a value waiting the play call and the process,
Speaker 1: that to me was not a positive experience front or
Speaker 1: not a positive review from Kellen Moore. To have the
Speaker 1: same exact play, same exact formation on back to back
Speaker 1: plays after a turnover when you're really trying to get
Speaker 1: things going, to me was was not a great sequence
Speaker 1: for Kellen Moore.
Speaker 2: No, at some point they do have to consider the
Speaker 2: process and the results of the process and what they're
Speaker 2: trying to do here. I mean the Chargers, their rushing
Speaker 2: success is terrible. And see if I can, I can
Speaker 2: find it here. But basically this, this rushing success is
Speaker 2: the worst it's been since twenty twelve. No one has
Speaker 2: a worse success rate in sixty six point six seven
Speaker 2: or two thirds of their games than the Chargers since
Speaker 2: twenty twelve. Like it is, it is not great, and
Speaker 2: the Chargers need to acknowledge that. And like you said,
Speaker 2: the head scratching situations, there are too many times you know,
Speaker 2: early down in situations. Again, I don't know why on
Speaker 2: third and six the Jets sweep was there to Austin Eckler,
Speaker 2: who just doesn't quite have that same burst. But yeah,
Speaker 2: the head scratching moments there are really setting the team back.
Speaker 2: But then you have the drops as well. That the
Speaker 2: drops are kind of a new thing for the Chargers.
Speaker 2: In terms of this season, it felt like it was
Speaker 2: pretty managed throughout the beginning of the year and now
Speaker 2: it just seems to be magnified in several games. As
Speaker 2: our guy Argin pointed out against the Patriots, the Chargers
Speaker 2: it was the third time since being drafted that Justin
Speaker 2: Herbert had receivers dropped six passes in a single game.
Speaker 2: So that's the third game of his with six drops
Speaker 2: since twenty twenty. No other quarterback has had one such
Speaker 2: game since twenty twenty. I'm not even talking about twenty
Speaker 2: twenty like quarterbacks. I'm talking all quarterbacks. Herbert's got three.
Speaker 2: No other quarterback has more than one. So it's just
Speaker 2: frustrating to see some of these easy ones, you know,
Speaker 2: go through and not work out. There are so many plays,
Speaker 2: at least two of the Parham plays, the Quentin Johnston catch,
Speaker 2: where you have a fueld goal at least in there,
Speaker 2: And I'm not saying that fifteen points is a whole
Speaker 2: lot better than six points. But fifteen points is better
Speaker 2: than six points, you know, and that would have led
Speaker 2: to I think a more successful at a better looking day.
Speaker 2: But again because the execution for whatever reason, the charges
Speaker 2: just are not getting it done. And you can do
Speaker 2: that against the Patriots, right because they scored we'll talk
Speaker 2: about the defense zero points, but you can't do that
Speaker 2: against most of these other teams. So hopefully they figure
Speaker 2: it out. I do want to see this offense operate now,
Speaker 2: not in the rain.
Speaker 1: Not in the rain for sure, not against an elite
Speaker 1: Ravens defense for sure. Just to real quick about your
Speaker 1: point about the drops. If you follow not a lot
Speaker 1: of people follow him, which I think is should be
Speaker 1: corrected mid PJ. He's the blob man on Twitter. He's
Speaker 1: a great follow, especially if you're into analytics stuff, and
Speaker 1: he always goes to bat for Justin Herbert, so he's
Speaker 1: he's a great follow. And he pointed this out too,
Speaker 1: that Justin Herbert has lost the second most EPA from
Speaker 1: drops this season because a lot of these drops that
Speaker 1: we're talking about are coming on third and fourth downs,
Speaker 1: like at least three of these six from Sunday, We're
Speaker 1: on third downs and would have been conversions. So I
Speaker 1: think that just adds to that point. So I will say,
Speaker 1: you know, on a more positive side, adding like from
Speaker 1: then the offensive tape, I thought Justin played a fantastic game.
Speaker 1: I thought the offensive line played a fantastic game. We've
Speaker 1: seen you know the you know, the Patriots don't have
Speaker 1: their same guys, right, but the scheme and the bones
Speaker 1: are there. This stunt package that the Patriots have has
Speaker 1: given the Charges a lot of problems in the past,
Speaker 1: and I thought they generally had an answer for it.
Speaker 1: That was something that me and you wanted to see
Speaker 1: highlighted this week. They only allowed four pressure pressures as
Speaker 1: an offensive line. Justin Harber was only pressured on nineteen
Speaker 1: percent of his dropbacks, I believe, according to Pro Football Focus.
Speaker 1: So six points not great. Run game not great, but
Speaker 1: there were some positives from the offense, and I think,
Speaker 1: namely Justin Herbert and the offensive line or things that
Speaker 1: you can kind of hang your hat on in that
Speaker 1: game and hopefully build on for this week against the Rongos.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it speaks to the growth of Justin Herbert. You
Speaker 2: think of the first game that he played against the Patriots,
Speaker 2: and that was definitely an enjoyable experience. It was not.
Speaker 2: The second game was a bit better. I think they
Speaker 2: ended up scoring twenty one in that game well, with
Speaker 2: that last touchdown kind of off a mile to hill
Speaker 2: Mary's sort of throw, but he looked and the offensive
Speaker 2: line give him credit like this was arguably their best
Speaker 2: game in pass pro all season. It was definitely, at
Speaker 2: least statistically Trey Pipkin's best, allowing zero pressures in this
Speaker 2: game against a pretty good set of EDG rushers, at
Speaker 2: least the one edge rusher. So it was very encouraging
Speaker 2: to see. Justin Herbert has continued to look really good.
Speaker 2: We'll get into I think some of the Herbert growth
Speaker 2: stuff in a bit with the overreaction stuff, so I
Speaker 2: won't share everything, but yes, he did look very very strong. Overall,
Speaker 2: six drops is just six drops and they got to
Speaker 2: do better.
Speaker 1: Yeah, hundred percent shifting gears here to the excuse me,
Speaker 1: to the defensive side of things. I want to give
Speaker 1: a shout out specifically today to two players who the
Speaker 1: Chargers made starters during the Ravens week, and that is
Speaker 1: is Sang Bassi and Jalen Hawkins. Jalen Hawkins I think
Speaker 1: is like not necessarily a starter starter, but he is
Speaker 1: their safety three, which is the say two who comes
Speaker 1: in for the dime package. And also I guess Derwin
Speaker 1: James belongs in the same kind of conversation. So, you know,
Speaker 1: the Chargers made these changes in the hopes that they
Speaker 1: will be able to kind of settle things down. Derwin
Speaker 1: obviously is their best player in the secondary, and they've
Speaker 1: played him more in the slot recently, and the combination
Speaker 1: of those three players has really started to I think
Speaker 1: settled down the Chargers secondary. I think previously there were
Speaker 1: a lot of communication errors, often between the safeties and
Speaker 1: the linebackers, or the slot and the safeties, or the
Speaker 1: slot in the linebackers, and a lot of times that
Speaker 1: resulted in some pretty nasty busted coverages. There were a
Speaker 1: few against the Lions that Almaras Saint Brown was just
Speaker 1: like wide open with nobody within fifteen yards of him,
Speaker 1: Sam laporta same kind of thing. Since the Chargers have
Speaker 1: made that change, things have just looked so much better
Speaker 1: on the back end, And obviously it's not perfect. I
Speaker 1: don't want to put too much stock into this week's game.
Speaker 1: You know, in the reign against a very poor Patriots offense,
Speaker 1: but they had a good showing against the Ravens. They
Speaker 1: had a good showing against the Patriots, and is Sang
Speaker 1: Bassi in particular has given them a strong lift in
Speaker 1: the slot. Popper wrote about this as well. Through week eleven,
Speaker 1: the Chargers were allowing thirteen point four yards per reception
Speaker 1: two slot receivers, which was the highest in the league.
Speaker 1: Over the last two weeks, that has shrunk down to
Speaker 1: eight point seven yards per reception, which ranks eighth lowest
Speaker 1: in that span. So easing Bassie, the combination of him
Speaker 1: and Derwin James in the slot has really started to
Speaker 1: pay dividends, and it just looks cleaner, like there's not
Speaker 1: as many issues passing off routes, there's not as many
Speaker 1: issues with broken coverages. The very last play, I think
Speaker 1: is one of these examples where Easting Bassie is kind
Speaker 1: of in mansonman coverage against Hunter Henry and he kind
Speaker 1: of gets hung up a little bit, but Eric Kendricks
Speaker 1: is right in position, right on time and is able
Speaker 1: to make a pass breakup. Easting Bassie was also able
Speaker 1: to recover. But if Bassie had not gotten there. Eric
Speaker 1: Kendricks was right there waiting for him. So just like
Speaker 1: the communication, the understand the passing off of routes. I
Speaker 1: think it's really improved over the last two weeks, in
Speaker 1: particular because of EA saying MASSI playing the way that
Speaker 1: he has just kind of has stabilized the slow position
Speaker 1: for the Chargers right now.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he's only allowed twenty one yards receiving the last
Speaker 2: couple of weeks. I mean that is significantly better than
Speaker 2: what the Chargers will get in terms of production prior
Speaker 2: to this. And now the Chargers it's only running over
Speaker 2: the last two weeks, but they are ninth in EPA
Speaker 2: per play in those two games in defensive EPA per plays,
Speaker 2: so they are significantly better. And like you said, there's
Speaker 2: less of these Why is that guy wide opens? There's
Speaker 2: less of wait? Why is nobody around this guy? Why
Speaker 2: is that guy just running free? There's a lot less
Speaker 2: of that. And credit Brandon Staley and this coaching staff
Speaker 2: because they had been saying for so long it's an
Speaker 2: execution thing. We've got to play a certain way. We're
Speaker 2: looking for certain things, and it didn't seem like anything
Speaker 2: was changing, and we assume that there was coaching and
Speaker 2: there was to try to correct these things. But the
Speaker 2: solution that they've come up with now very late in
Speaker 2: the season, like the last third ish of the season,
Speaker 2: to play these guys around, it's working. And so right now,
Speaker 2: look even and I said it last week, I'm not
Speaker 2: taking a whole lot of stock in just one game
Speaker 2: against the Ravens, who I do think got away with
Speaker 2: what they were doing that was working well. And I'm
Speaker 2: not going to put a whole lot of stock in
Speaker 2: just facing the Patriots. So I think talk to me
Speaker 2: against after Denver, obviously after Buffalo, those sort of games.
Speaker 2: But this defense just looks a lot better, Like the
Speaker 2: product on the field just looks better. We're not just
Speaker 2: sitting here clawing our faces wondering why a guy is
Speaker 2: wide open. It's very sound. Things are in front of everybody.
Speaker 2: It just seems like everyone understands their responsibilities now. And
Speaker 2: in credit to all the acquisitions they've made really throughout
Speaker 2: the middle of the season, right before the season, I mean,
Speaker 2: having some foresight to bring in some guys. It was
Speaker 2: Dean Marlow for a bit who really stabilized things. Now
Speaker 2: it's Jalen Hawkins, you know, Basy Hollins, you know, at
Speaker 2: the edge rusher. Some of these guys that they're bringing
Speaker 2: in are just bringing something different that maybe they expected
Speaker 2: from their draft picks. Some of these draft picks, whether
Speaker 2: because they're hurt or not playing well, et cetera. You know,
Speaker 2: that was kind of their plan going into the season.
Speaker 2: I understand why you have those guys in those roles,
Speaker 2: but they brought in different guys and they've been They've
Speaker 2: kind of made themselves prepared to pivot at a certain point.
Speaker 2: And you may say, you know, too little, too late,
Speaker 2: but they are pivoting and it is working. And if
Speaker 2: it continues to work again this week against the Broncos
Speaker 2: in a pretty good Broncos offense. Right now, hats off
Speaker 2: to the coaching staff.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I am curious to see how things changed. JT.
Speaker 1: Woods was activated off of the NFL I list today.
Speaker 1: You know, that means the Chargers are carrying five safeties
Speaker 1: on the roster right now. So I am curious to
Speaker 1: see what the plan is for JT. Woods. Does that
Speaker 1: mean more slot snaps for Derwin, more box now for Derwin?
Speaker 1: Does JT. Woods have a role at all? It is
Speaker 1: just gonna be interesting to see how they kind of
Speaker 1: onboard him because JT's obviously was the safety three all
Speaker 1: off season long. He started that way. He was placed
Speaker 1: on the NFL I list. But Jalen Hawkins has been
Speaker 1: playing pretty well, easting Vassi has been playing pretty well.
Speaker 1: Derwin in the slot has been a nice nice thing
Speaker 1: to get back to, and I think those guys also
Speaker 1: stabilizing those positions means that Derwin James can get back
Speaker 1: to doing some of these things like rushing the passer,
Speaker 1: like playing as a pseudo like edge rusher in certain packages,
Speaker 1: and I think that's really where we've seen Derwin kind
Speaker 1: of start to make more of an impact over the
Speaker 1: last couple of weeks. So there are definitely some other
Speaker 1: things like defensive storylines. Obviously, we talked about Kilo Mack
Speaker 1: on Sunday Afternoon and what he's doing. I continue to
Speaker 1: be amazed by the way that Tulee Twee Polow two
Speaker 1: has just walked into the NFL and become one of
Speaker 1: the best edge run defenders in the league. Just the
Speaker 1: ability that he has to stack and shed defenders, beat
Speaker 1: tight ends, make tackles for losses is outstanding. There are
Speaker 1: lots of other things that we could talk about, but
Speaker 1: I think easing Bassi deserved a shout out here, especially himself,
Speaker 1: because he's really taken advantage of this opportunity. And obviously
Speaker 1: I hope that continues for the rest of the season.
Speaker 2: Yeah, me as well, And I hope that whatever J. T.
Speaker 2: Woods role is and whatever capacity how they rotate these safeties,
Speaker 2: we do love Derwen Jim's closer to the line of scrimmage,
Speaker 2: and we do love him as an edge rusher. Of course,
Speaker 2: that was fantastic. Apparently the Sunday was hit Ezekiel really
Speaker 2: hard day, Ellie really hard day. Khalil Mack got him
Speaker 2: really good. Derwyn James got Zeke in pass protection as well. Yeah,
Speaker 2: Derwin close to the line is just makes everything better.
Speaker 2: And credit to the coaches and these safeties for allowing
Speaker 2: Derwen to do that. It is more simplified, of course,
Speaker 2: for Derwin to be way back there guarding back d
Speaker 2: with the Lowhi Gilman, Sure that is simplified. But if
Speaker 2: you can find a way to get Drwin's role closer
Speaker 2: to that line and allow him to rush the passer
Speaker 2: like that is what he does the best, that is
Speaker 2: the best way to use him. And if he can
Speaker 2: execute as well. It looks more like it did on
Speaker 2: Sunday where he was all over the place.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the blitz package that Brandon Staley cooked up for
Speaker 1: the sack that Derwin got was just unfair. Man Like,
Speaker 1: he rushed in between Tuley and Justin Holins, who's who's
Speaker 1: having like a really nice season for the Chargers as well,
Speaker 1: and Derwin executed it perfectly. He faked out Zeke got home.
Speaker 1: I thought Derwin played really solid on on Sunday, and
Speaker 1: then the pass rush in general just was was outstanding
Speaker 1: to see. So good to see their ruin back rush
Speaker 1: in the passer I hope, like there's really no reason
Speaker 1: why he shouldn't be doing that like three or four
Speaker 1: times a game. I think it was for this part
Speaker 1: this past Sunday. You know, he got a pressure, he
Speaker 1: got a sack. So it just makes things so much easier.
Speaker 1: And I think, especially without Joey, you're you probably needs
Speaker 1: to do that more often. All right, let's get to
Speaker 1: some of these overreactions here and then we will highlight
Speaker 1: the Broncos game for a bit. So we have five
Speaker 1: points that we wanted to touch on with these overreactions segments.
Speaker 1: So Tyler We'll start with the first one. There's a
Speaker 1: lot of positivity about the Chargers defense right now. Obviously
Speaker 1: you mentioned their EPA play standings right now. I guess
Speaker 1: the overreaction statement we want to assess here is that
Speaker 1: the Chargers defense has figured it out after too strong
Speaker 1: showings against the Ravens and Patriots and will continue to
Speaker 1: play at this level throughout the rest of the season.
Speaker 2: What are your thoughts there that is currently an overreaction
Speaker 2: to quote the great Ella enchanted, didn't we just do this?
Speaker 2: We just did this? I feel like with the Chargers defense. Yeah,
Speaker 2: Lla Enchanted reference on the Guiltiest Charge podcast, drop that
Speaker 2: expecting that one. Yeah, not at all. I think it's
Speaker 2: an over reaction at this point. I do believe the
Speaker 2: Ravens could have done more against the Chargers based on
Speaker 2: what you saw other teams do the previous weeks, and
Speaker 2: they sort of did that to start the game and
Speaker 2: then got away from that the second half. Still, what
Speaker 2: they did against the Ravens, the defense did against the
Speaker 2: Ravens was pretty strong overall, holding them to thirteen points
Speaker 2: until really like the final play whereas they Flowers broke free.
Speaker 2: But I gotta see more and if if we did,
Speaker 2: if the Chargers had Ravens then Lions and had let's
Speaker 2: say two games of twenty points allowed, I'd believe it.
Speaker 2: But one being the Ravens, Okay, you know, pretty solid,
Speaker 2: showing pretty good, showing the Patriots many they're not good.
Speaker 2: Their offense is not very good, so I got to
Speaker 2: see more. I do believe it is an overreaction at
Speaker 2: this point, and talk to me after the Denver game.
Speaker 2: Then I think we can start seeing if there's a
Speaker 2: real pattern here.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that's totally fair. I also think, like
Speaker 1: figured it out, it has to be quantified here because
Speaker 1: like the Charges right now, like you mentioned, they're eighth
Speaker 1: and EPA per play over the last two drives that
Speaker 1: if that is your expectation, if that's how you are qualifying,
Speaker 1: figure it out, Like if your expectation is them being
Speaker 1: a top ten defense, I think definitely this is an overreaction.
Speaker 1: I think if the Chargers bar for defensive success is
Speaker 1: like twentyeth in the league, I think over the final
Speaker 1: five weeks this team can be that. So I think
Speaker 1: I would kind of fall in the middle right now,
Speaker 1: you know, I think that I don't want to fall
Speaker 1: for this trap again of it being like, oh, like
Speaker 1: the defense, this is what we're expecting, Like this is
Speaker 1: what we wanted to see. But I do think that
Speaker 1: they have settled some things down and I think they
Speaker 1: can perform at you know, an average level right now
Speaker 1: in terms of EPA play, in terms of like being
Speaker 1: maybe like twenty twenty first in the league and not
Speaker 1: just allow these explosive plays to really killed on that
Speaker 1: because that was like the biggest thing, you know, preventing
Speaker 1: them from being an average defense. So they're doing some
Speaker 1: good things. Personnel changes have worked, but I think in
Speaker 1: terms of figured it out, I think that probably is
Speaker 1: an overaction.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I would agree.
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Speaker 1: want to do the next one.
Speaker 2: Here, I'd love to let's see the next one. So
Speaker 2: switching back to the offense, the Chargers' offense is in
Speaker 2: real trouble down the stretch of the season. Overreaction action.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna say yes, EPA for play right now is
Speaker 1: not very kind for the Charges over the last two weeks.
Speaker 1: Obviously the points have not been kind either, but we're
Speaker 1: not too far removed from two very strong showings from
Speaker 1: the offense against the Lions and the Packers. The Lions
Speaker 1: in particular, like we were definitely not expecting that kind
Speaker 1: of performance. I think that game was right up there
Speaker 1: with Justin Herbert's best games of his career. We just
Speaker 1: talked about Justin Herbert having a really strong performance on Sunday.
Speaker 1: Despite the six points, the context of his performance I
Speaker 1: think is stronger than that, and they have some positive
Speaker 1: matchups here down the stretch. The Broncos defense is not
Speaker 1: the same one that had so many points hung on
Speaker 1: them by the Dolphins. But you can score on the
Speaker 1: Broncos defense, you could score on the Bills defense. We'll
Speaker 1: see what happens with the Chiefs and what kind of
Speaker 1: that game means, but I think Justin Herbert and keenan
Speaker 1: Al are still playing at a high enough level where
Speaker 1: I'm not super concerned about the offense. Obviously, there are
Speaker 1: some things that I am concerned about, which we have
Speaker 1: talked about, but as a whole for the offense, I
Speaker 1: think they will be fine over the final five weeks
Speaker 1: of the season.
Speaker 2: I think Justin Herbert definitely keeps that floor there, and
Speaker 2: you assume that the drops will decrease significantly. I can't
Speaker 2: imagine another six drop game, although they've already had two
Speaker 2: I think the last four weeks. But I think things
Speaker 2: could get better. I don't think it's an overreaction though,
Speaker 2: to say that the Chargers will be in trouble on
Speaker 2: offense over the last few games now, sort of like
Speaker 2: the defense, it depends on what your bar is here.
Speaker 2: What is the version for what being in trouble is.
Speaker 2: I think it's hovering in like this fourteen to twenty
Speaker 2: point range, I think, and basically not be able to
Speaker 2: exceed that. And I think the Chargers are a bit
Speaker 2: in trouble. The Raiders, believe it or not, are fifth
Speaker 2: and EPA per play the last five weeks on defense,
Speaker 2: that certainly is potentially because of the coaching switch, I'd
Speaker 2: imagine so. But you see what they did to the
Speaker 2: Dolphins back of a game. They're playing hard, and of course,
Speaker 2: like rivalry, games are just different. The Bills will see
Speaker 2: how they are and what's the state of their defense
Speaker 2: even is by the time they get to that game.
Speaker 2: But McDermott as a defensive minded head coach the Chiefs.
Speaker 2: We saw what the Charger did against the Chiefs. That
Speaker 2: was with Josh Palmer, who dropped a buck thirty three
Speaker 2: on them. Did Josh Palmer situation is what gives me
Speaker 2: a lot of pause right now. If we saw either
Speaker 2: a Palmer come back or Quentin Johnson to be more
Speaker 2: heavily involved as a true mainstay in the offense, I'd
Speaker 2: feel better. But I do worry about the Chargers offense
Speaker 2: right now because I don't think the run game gets solved.
Speaker 2: I need to see this Chargers' offensive line pass protect
Speaker 2: as they did on Sunday for several games. I don't know, man,
Speaker 2: I am worried about this group. And you know, the
Speaker 2: the Broncos defense, it was definitely not great to start
Speaker 2: this season, but they are eighth in the same last
Speaker 2: five games an EPA on defense, and so in theory,
Speaker 2: the Chargers, based on what's going to be the second
Speaker 2: half of the season, are facing three or four ish
Speaker 2: top ten defenses in terms of how they are playing
Speaker 2: right now, and that gives me a bit of a pause.
Speaker 2: So I think it's not an overreaction to say the Chargers'
Speaker 2: offense is actually in trouble.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, Palmer coming back would be huge. We
Speaker 1: don't know what that status is. Brandon Stay said this
Speaker 1: week that there's a chance he comes back. He's progressing,
Speaker 1: but we don't really know he's eligible to come off
Speaker 1: in your reserve basically at any time. At this point,
Speaker 1: you know, the Chargers right now need somebody else to
Speaker 1: step up alongside Keenan Allen. I saw this stat from
Speaker 1: Hayden Weeks of Underdog Fantasy that Keenan Allen is accounting
Speaker 1: for thirty five percent of the Chargers targets right now,
Speaker 1: which is second only to Tyreek Hill in the league
Speaker 1: at this point through this kind of season. So Keen
Speaker 1: obviously has one hundred and one catches. We've talked about him
Speaker 1: potentially being in in range to catch Michael Thomas's receptions
Speaker 1: record which would be crazy, which is fantastic for Keenan.
Speaker 1: Obviously we'd love to watch it happen, but the Chargers
Speaker 1: do need a secondary target to come back into things.
Speaker 1: Gerald ever, was more involved this past Sunday. Maybe he's
Speaker 1: that guy, and Brandon Sley did tell CBS quite often
Speaker 1: apparently that that was the guy that they were hoping
Speaker 1: they get going more often. So we'll see how happens there.
Speaker 1: I understand the concerns. I just think that justin Herbert
Speaker 1: is playing at a level right now where I think
Speaker 1: they'll be fine. I'm not expecting them to be like
Speaker 1: top five like they were when everybody was healthy, unfortunately,
Speaker 1: but I think they'll be able to, you know, have
Speaker 1: chances to win these games because I just think Herbert
Speaker 1: is playing at that level right now.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Overall, I think both the offense and the defense
Speaker 2: are going to kind of meet in the middle. I
Speaker 2: think they're both going to be you know, the offense
Speaker 2: will have to try to return to their forum, defense
Speaker 2: will have to maintain this form. I think they'll kind
Speaker 2: of meet in the middle as both being solid. I
Speaker 2: hope to finish the season. How many wins you get
Speaker 2: out of that Butcher yeah.
Speaker 1: For sure. All Right, Our next one here is a
Speaker 1: bit of a maybe a season ending topic, but we
Speaker 1: wanted to touch on it because mister Khli Mack is
Speaker 1: having a fantastic season and we're limiting this specifically to
Speaker 1: veteran off season additions. But Tyler, is it an overreaction
Speaker 1: to say that trading for Khalil Mack is the best
Speaker 1: veteran offseason move that Tom Telesco has ever made.
Speaker 2: If we're just talking about free agent acquisitions or trading
Speaker 2: acquisitions and non drafts, it is not an overreaction to
Speaker 2: say that Khalil Mack is the best move that Telusco
Speaker 2: has made in the off season during his tenure. I
Speaker 2: think the three that you put up there are signing
Speaker 2: Corey Linsley, which completely changed everything about past protection for
Speaker 2: the Chargers when he first got there. Casey Hayward signing,
Speaker 2: which is an incredible signing, one of the best in
Speaker 2: the NFL over that span in terms of what they
Speaker 2: end up getting out of it. But I think the
Speaker 2: trade for Khalil Mack, while the defense overall has not
Speaker 2: been completely changed by that specific addition, there's a player
Speaker 2: right now in Khalim Mack, gunning for the NFL sack
Speaker 2: record all time, two away from passing Sean Merriman Leslie
Speaker 2: O'Neill for their own Yeah, or from tying those two guys.
Speaker 2: So no, it's not an overreaction. I think at minimum,
Speaker 2: he's one of the three best additions through the offseason
Speaker 2: and so therefore not an over reaction.
Speaker 1: Yeah. I think those three are are definitely the main
Speaker 1: contenders for this designation. I think you can make an
Speaker 1: argument for Mike Pouncey. I think you can make an
Speaker 1: argument for like Russell Okun, but those guys obviously had
Speaker 1: the injuries and things like that. There are other guys
Speaker 1: that I think would be kind of a second tier
Speaker 1: that we could discuss, but those three are definitely the
Speaker 1: top tier. I think if, like if Khalil hits the
Speaker 1: sack record, the answer to this is yes, Like if
Speaker 1: you get you know, twenty two and if you get
Speaker 1: twenty three sacks out of Kalimba at age thirty two
Speaker 1: and you trade a second and six round pick for him,
Speaker 1: the answer to this question is yes. I still would
Speaker 1: lean Casey Hayward because of the duration that he was
Speaker 1: so good for the Chargers, because there was like a
Speaker 1: legitimate four year stretch there where he was arguably, you know,
Speaker 1: the best cornerback in the NFL. And he did it
Speaker 1: at two different positions. Like the first year he came
Speaker 1: to the Chargers, he was a slot corner, led the
Speaker 1: league in interceptions. Then he was an outside corner in
Speaker 1: Gus Bradley's scheme and he was one of the best
Speaker 1: outside corners in the league. So I would still lean
Speaker 1: Casey because of the duration. You know, he had the
Speaker 1: longer time period. But Corey and Khalil are definitely very
Speaker 1: close behind Casey right now. So yeah, for now, I'm
Speaker 1: saying slight overreaction.
Speaker 2: I get that. And you know, we were all super
Speaker 2: excited and hyped for the Khalil Mack trade because we
Speaker 2: knew who Khalil Mack was and how great he was.
Speaker 2: You know, you're getting a player that is a very
Speaker 2: proven player, not that Casey wasn't, but it was it
Speaker 2: wasn't exactly the same coming from Green Bay with him.
Speaker 2: That's signing, and certainly how much it cost, right initially
Speaker 2: that signing for him was it was very small, it
Speaker 2: wasn't all that much, and then he got the extension
Speaker 2: later on, So yeah, I understand why you go with
Speaker 2: Casey Hayward. I do think that these two guys are
Speaker 2: the one and two, with Lindsley in third. Lindsay I
Speaker 2: think could have been first if he were healthy this
Speaker 2: season because allowing was it, nine pressures in two seasons
Speaker 2: is unlike anything we had seen from any Chargers player
Speaker 2: in quite some time, just this last season and what's
Speaker 2: been going on with it, whatever the situation is. Hope
Speaker 2: he's okay. That kind of knocks him the third.
Speaker 1: Yeah, all right, Tyler, let's get to the next one here.
Speaker 2: Alrighty, let's do this one. Overreaction or not, Joe Lombardi
Speaker 2: was better as a Chargers offensive coordinator than Kellen Moore
Speaker 2: as the Chargers offensive coordinator.
Speaker 1: Man, obviously we wanted to do this one because they're
Speaker 1: playing each other this week. You know, there's a lot
Speaker 1: of coaching narratives to discuss. I think this is an
Speaker 1: overreaction because I think what Kellen did over the first
Speaker 1: it's very small sample size, but what Kellen did over
Speaker 1: the first three games was better than anything Joe Lombardi
Speaker 1: did during his tenure as the Chargers. So of course,
Speaker 1: you know the sample is very limited there. The Chargers
Speaker 1: in twenty twenty one were mostly very healthy throughout the
Speaker 1: offense that season. We haven't seen Kellen get that kind
Speaker 1: of opportunity. Obviously, there's been a lot of injuries that
Speaker 1: they've had to deal with, not to the same extent
Speaker 1: as twenty twenty two, to be fair. So I think
Speaker 1: the bones of Kellen Moore's offense are just naturally better,
Speaker 1: and I think that Kellen his mission was I think,
Speaker 1: like obviously Justin Herbert and his development first and foremost,
Speaker 1: and I think that those are the reasons why I
Speaker 1: would say Kellen Moore is a better offensive coordinator for
Speaker 1: the Chargers than Joeln mart he was.
Speaker 2: I agree this is an overreaction. I think we can
Speaker 2: at least admit that in twenty twenty one that was
Speaker 2: the best overall offense of Justin Herbert's career. I'm not
Speaker 2: saying Herbert was the best or wasn't the best, but
Speaker 2: that was the best overall offense and that is objectively true.
Speaker 2: You look at EPA DVOA, they had more points per
Speaker 2: drive than the season world Danian Tellinton set the touchdown record,
Speaker 2: so it was a pretty good offense overall. You could
Speaker 2: maybe just pick out some of the games where it
Speaker 2: wasn't so great, but it was still a top five
Speaker 2: offense in terms of efficiency, scoring, et cetera. You really
Speaker 2: have to compare the two teams when the adversity hit,
Speaker 2: and both of these guys Joe Lombardi in twenty twenty
Speaker 2: two Kellen Moore this year, have dealt with a lot,
Speaker 2: you know, for Okay, maybe you get Corey Linsley this year,
Speaker 2: but Justin Ribber was cracked that year. You get more
Speaker 2: Josh Palmer this year, but you lose you know, Mike
Speaker 2: Williams for you know, fifteen games the next year.
Speaker 1: So it's it's tough.
Speaker 2: But I think if you just look at it, when
Speaker 2: the adversity hits, and this is what we wanted, when
Speaker 2: the adversity hits, who's better, who can pull more? I
Speaker 2: think it's easily Kellen Moore. There's no game on the
Speaker 2: Chargers schedule last season where they came close to putting
Speaker 2: up thirty eight points with all these guys hurt. That
Speaker 2: doesn't happen. Keenan Allen working downfield, you know with a
Speaker 2: skin two skinny post or whatever it was two of
Speaker 2: them for touchdowns. That doesn't happen. Against the Lions with
Speaker 2: Joe Lombardi as the offensive coordinator. There is no thirty
Speaker 2: eight point output for the Chargers over that stretch, so
Speaker 2: I think working with what they have when they've been limited,
Speaker 2: I think Kellen Moore has been better. But twenty twenty
Speaker 2: one was the best overall Chargers offense. But that's also
Speaker 2: because Slater was playing like an all pro, Corey Linsley
Speaker 2: playing like an all pro. So things everyone's just healthier
Speaker 2: where the Chargers were going this season, as you pointed out,
Speaker 2: with those first three games. First game very different than
Speaker 2: the third game, but the passing game started to really
Speaker 2: figure itself out. Keenan had two hundred yards through for
Speaker 2: another forty, Mike Williams had one hundred something yard, Josh
Speaker 2: Palmer had two big catches, one of them for a
Speaker 2: touch on Justin Herbert was perfect in that game. That's
Speaker 2: where the passing game was going to go, and then
Speaker 2: the rest is what we already know. So I think
Speaker 2: that if we had seen this offense healthy for eight games,
Speaker 2: we're talking about one a very different season and two
Speaker 2: just a completely different feel overall about Kellen Moore. Where
Speaker 2: you know, fans as we interact with are not asking
Speaker 2: or suggesting this idea, Delmbardy is a better coordinator for
Speaker 2: the Chargers than Kellen Moore.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think even just if one of Palmer or
Speaker 1: Mike Williams are healthy right now, I think you're seeing
Speaker 1: a drastically different offense. But you lose those two guys.
Speaker 1: You know, Quentin has had obviously his ups and downs.
Speaker 1: He had a much better game this past Sunday. Austin
Speaker 1: Eckler has been injured as well and has taken a
Speaker 1: step back physically, and those are things that Joel Lombardi
Speaker 1: didn't have to deal with for a whole season. So
Speaker 1: that is fair. But like you mentioned twenty twenty one,
Speaker 1: the Chargers offense that year and Justin Herbert that year
Speaker 1: have been the best offense that Justin Herbert has experienced.
Speaker 1: If they make the playoffs that year, he's probably an
Speaker 1: MVP candidate because he was just like lighting it up
Speaker 1: that season. So what's yeah, I've been say all right,
Speaker 1: last one here, we wanted to give a shout out
Speaker 1: to the Chargers special teams here, Tyler. Is it an
Speaker 1: overreaction to say that Ryan Ficken is the best special
Speaker 1: teams coordinator in the NFL at this current time? Nope?
Speaker 2: Because he was one of them at minimum last season.
Speaker 2: But the Chargers were one of the best special teams
Speaker 2: units this year. As Eric Smith pointed out in his article,
Speaker 2: the Chargers are first in Special Teams DVOWAY. So I
Speaker 2: think if you're first in DVOA, that means you're a
Speaker 2: pretty good unit, and therefore I do believe Ryan Ficken
Speaker 2: should be in contention for that. Not an over reaction.
Speaker 2: Ryan Ficken is one of the best coaches in the league, period,
Speaker 2: and the Chargers are one of the best special teams
Speaker 2: in the league and currently the best special teams unit
Speaker 2: in the league. He's just we talk about so many
Speaker 2: different players on this channel. Justin Herbert we talked about
Speaker 2: two league Khalil Mack. We talk about these guys consistently.
Speaker 2: The coach we bring up all the time though, with
Speaker 2: these guys is Ryan Ficken, because every single week, these
Speaker 2: guys are pushing excellence and they're so well coached, and
Speaker 2: you can see it in the press conferences, you can
Speaker 2: see it in the interviews, you can see it on
Speaker 2: film in their comments. Everything is just cranked up to
Speaker 2: eleven in terms of the IQ of the special teams
Speaker 2: unit and the execution of the special teams unit and
Speaker 2: anywhere you look you want, I mean even just on Sunday,
Speaker 2: you got a perfect kicker, an excellent punter, a great returner,
Speaker 2: and the Patriots didn't do anything in terms of returns
Speaker 2: and they really haven't all seasons. So yeah, Ryan Ficken
Speaker 2: man one of the best. He should be a head
Speaker 2: coach somewhere at some point. Difficult for teams to commit
Speaker 2: to a special teams coordinator, but you're not going to
Speaker 2: find many better coaches than Ficken right now.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And like I think we also have to put
Speaker 1: into context here, like we're not too far removed from
Speaker 1: this Chargers team having the worst special teams unit in
Speaker 1: the league. And when Brandon Sadie was hired, like one
Speaker 1: of the things that was like always kind of like
Speaker 1: secondary was like okay, like you got to figure out
Speaker 1: how to get this special teams unit to be at
Speaker 1: least average, and it didn't go super well the first
Speaker 1: year they hire Ryan Ficken, And since that moment, the
Speaker 1: Chargers have been not just average, they've been an elite
Speaker 1: special teams unit. And it's not like they have gone
Speaker 1: through a super healthy like everybody around Ryan Ficken that
Speaker 1: he's coaching everybody's healthy, right, Like they went through four
Speaker 1: kickers last year. Obviously you find Cameron Dicker, and Cameron
Speaker 1: Dicker has become this elite kicker right now. And a
Speaker 1: lot of that I would credit Ryan Ficken for and
Speaker 1: just his steady hand in Cameron Dicker's development. If you remember,
Speaker 1: Cameron Dicker started his NFL career as a punter for
Speaker 1: the Rams, Like that's what they were using him as
Speaker 1: because he was kind of a dual threat player. Now
Speaker 1: this is a guy who has the highest success rate
Speaker 1: in terms of any kicker. He's at ninety five percent
Speaker 1: right now. You know, we talked about Darius Davis on
Speaker 1: our show on Sunday. He leaves the league in punt
Speaker 1: return average. And if you just highlight the special teams
Speaker 1: unit and how many games over the last two years
Speaker 1: the special teams has really sparked wins. I think you're
Speaker 1: talking about at least four or five games, and Darius
Speaker 1: Davis this year has been super impactful. JK. Scott, you know,
Speaker 1: was a cast off punter, like he was potentially out
Speaker 1: of the league and he's having these awesome seasons under
Speaker 1: Ryan Ficken. You look at what they're getting from these
Speaker 1: gunners and what he's gotten from Dean Leonard and Jaseer Taylor. Well,
Speaker 1: you didn't have Jair Taylor on Sunday. You lost Raheem
Speaker 1: Land a couple of weeks ago. And aj Finley comes
Speaker 1: in off of the practice squad and he's been an
Speaker 1: excellent special teams player. Hanley am and Ogawaga meaning nickname,
Speaker 1: and all these guys are legitimately core special teams players.
Speaker 1: You've signed Blake Lynch off of the Street and he's
Speaker 1: a core special teams player. Like everything just kind of
Speaker 1: clicks into place, like it's incredible to watch what Ryan
Speaker 1: ficken It has been doing for this team. And absolutely
Speaker 1: I think this is not another reaction. I think he's
Speaker 1: definitely one of one of the at least the two
Speaker 1: best special teams coordinators in the NFL right now.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I would agree. He's, I hope for the Chargers
Speaker 2: what like Dave Tube is for the Chiefs where he
Speaker 2: was just he's been at consistent presence for them as
Speaker 2: a coach for at least since Andy Reid's been there,
Speaker 2: which I think is about a decade now. So if
Speaker 2: Ficking can be that for the Chargers for a long time,
Speaker 2: the Chargers are really good hands. Like you said, how
Speaker 2: often can we look at the Chargers over the last
Speaker 2: decade and say the special teams won you a game?
Speaker 2: And it never is like officially just a special teams
Speaker 2: that does it. But there's a few games where it
Speaker 2: really feels like that. Certainly was against the Broncos on
Speaker 2: Monday Night Football. It certainly was against the Jets. Darius
Speaker 2: Davis literally was them that game with his one touchdown.
Speaker 2: It it was over, like you could have gone home. Jets
Speaker 2: weren't scoring more often that anyway, It's it's just a tremendous,
Speaker 2: tremendous advantage for the Chargers.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And like how crazy is that to say that
Speaker 1: after everything we've watched, you know, the early years of
Speaker 1: my fandom, because I was born in nineteen ninety four,
Speaker 1: so like people pointed out to me today like, oh,
Speaker 1: like you had John Carney and all these guys, Like, Okay,
Speaker 1: I was five when John Karney left the Chargers. You
Speaker 1: have Mike Ciphers and Nay Kaden obviously, but really like
Speaker 1: since two thousands, like I was in high school, so
Speaker 1: like twenty ten ish to Ryan Ficken, the Chargers have
Speaker 1: been bad on special teams and now it's one of
Speaker 1: the best units in the league. So Ryan Ficken absolutely
Speaker 1: deserves a shout out. All right, real quickly here, we're
Speaker 1: gonna wrap up today's show, just highlighting the Broncos game.
Speaker 1: A few things here, First and foremost, it is Antonio
Speaker 1: Gates Day. He is going to be honored at a
Speaker 1: halftime Obviously a guy we all have argued as the
Speaker 1: greatest tight end all time. So first and foremost, congratulations
Speaker 1: to mister Antonio Gates. Many of my core memories of
Speaker 1: the Chargers are involving Antonio Gates and Philip Rivers and
Speaker 1: all those guys. I would also encourage anybody who attends
Speaker 1: this game on Sunday to stay in your seats at
Speaker 1: halftime and be able to watch mister Antonio Gates get
Speaker 1: his due recognition from the charters. So definitely wanted to
Speaker 1: start their shout out to Antonio Gates, one of the
Speaker 1: best ever. Should absolutely be a first ballut Hall of
Speaker 1: Famer at next year's ceremony, and hope that is the
Speaker 1: case because the athlete he definitely deserves that.
Speaker 2: He's just a throwback to an era and really kicked
Speaker 2: off kind of a renaissance at the position at tight end,
Speaker 2: and I've watched highlights of him. The Chargers do a
Speaker 2: good job of posting highlights here and there of Antonio Gates,
Speaker 2: and it's just who plays like Antonio Gates these days?
Speaker 2: They're really He's just different. He's unique, and you can
Speaker 2: tell this is a guy who was a basketball player
Speaker 2: who transition into the NFL and then just oh, by
Speaker 2: the way, became a Hall of Famer, or he's going
Speaker 2: to be a Hall of Famer. That's that's no surprise there. So, yeah,
Speaker 2: he's fantastic. I was there when he broke the touchdown record.
Speaker 2: I was there on white Hot Sunday when they played
Speaker 2: the Seahawks and their opener and I believe twenty fourteen
Speaker 2: where he had the hot trick three touchdowns to upset
Speaker 2: the defending champions, like it was. He's a part of
Speaker 2: many of my memories, of course, and certainly one of
Speaker 2: my favorite players on the Chargers of all time. Yeah.
Speaker 1: So, like I said, I encourage anybody who's attending on
Speaker 1: Sunday to stay there at halftime in your seats and
Speaker 1: be able to participate in that in a little bit
Speaker 1: of a ceremony. So getting to this game specifically in
Speaker 1: our time here, I do want to highlight this because
Speaker 1: this Sunday against the Broncos is essentially an elimination game
Speaker 1: for either team. You know, the Broncos have had this
Speaker 1: recent you know search here they won five games that
Speaker 1: are obviously they lost to the Texans. The Chargers are
Speaker 1: still kind of hovering at a point where they could
Speaker 1: presumably make or run like make things right. So as
Speaker 1: it currently stands, according to New York Times, the Chargers
Speaker 1: have an eight percent chance at the playoffs, and sumer
Speaker 1: Sports has them at nine point one percent. The Broncos
Speaker 1: are a little bit better here. I think they're around
Speaker 1: twenty percent in most cases. Obviously they have a better
Speaker 1: record right now the Chargers. If they lose this game,
Speaker 1: they're at less than a two percent chance on both
Speaker 1: of those two sites. In terms of making the playoffs.
Speaker 1: The Broncos go from around twenty percent to around ten percent. Obviously,
Speaker 1: the AFC a lot has been changing. Trelor Lawrence just
Speaker 1: got injured. Obviously, Joe Burrow is injured. But essentially Tyler,
Speaker 1: this is an elimination game for the Chargers if they lose.
Speaker 1: You know, right now, the things are looking bleak in
Speaker 1: terms of their playoff chances. But if they lose, that's
Speaker 1: pretty much all she wrote in terms of making the playoffs.
Speaker 1: So I know that there's still a lot of people
Speaker 1: hoping that this team makes a run in the playoffs. Obviously,
Speaker 1: we both would love to see them make a run
Speaker 1: of the playoffs. That's the goal, obviously, to get into
Speaker 1: the dance. But if they lose this game, it is
Speaker 1: essentially over.
Speaker 2: What is being a fan if not basically, assuming your
Speaker 2: team is completely out of the postseason after four losses
Speaker 2: only to go check the NFL playoff predictor after they
Speaker 2: win a six to zero game against the Patriots, that's
Speaker 2: just fandom, right, fanatic?
Speaker 1: Right?
Speaker 2: Yeah? It was definitely looking at that, and certainly looking
Speaker 2: at all the injuries at quarterback that are going on
Speaker 2: the AF seed right now, it feels like there's an
Speaker 2: opportunity for a team to sneak in because of those
Speaker 2: And we'll see what the ramifications of all these injuries
Speaker 2: are over the next few weeks. But yeah, man, this
Speaker 2: this is it. This is it, Like, this is potentially
Speaker 2: the season if they charges lose this, if they lose,
Speaker 2: that's the season. One percent. I don't believe there's a
Speaker 2: team that's made it from one percent odds all the
Speaker 2: way to making into the postseason. I can't imagine that
Speaker 2: there was. So while it has not been officially the
Speaker 2: end of the season so far for the Chargers, it
Speaker 2: basically ends on Sunday if they lose and they can't.
Speaker 2: And I think it's going to come down to your
Speaker 2: star players, all the way down to your special teams unit,
Speaker 2: which is really good, all the way down to your
Speaker 2: backups like Bassie, not starter now like Bassie, like these
Speaker 2: guys to get it done. And I think the Chargers,
Speaker 2: at least at home against the Broncos, will be up
Speaker 2: for the task. The games after that where they have
Speaker 2: to travel to Denver stuff like that, that it is
Speaker 2: a different story.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think, you know, the the overall intensity of
Speaker 1: this game should really ratchet up. Obviously it's a division
Speaker 1: rival game. I've said this before. I know a lot
Speaker 1: of Chargers fans have felt this too, that like the
Speaker 1: Broncos have kind of felt like more of like the
Speaker 1: emotional rival for the Chargers for most of my life.
Speaker 1: I grew up in Utah, Like most people in Utah
Speaker 1: are Broncos fans, So for me that was always kind
Speaker 1: of like the rival. Obviously there was like the Phil
Speaker 1: Rivers Jake Culer stuff back in the day, and then
Speaker 1: the Broncos win those two Super Bowls. So obviously the
Speaker 1: Chiefs now are like the top dog. But this is
Speaker 1: a super important game because this could signify the end
Speaker 1: of this season, Whereas if you beat this team, you
Speaker 1: could potentially still have chance at the rest of your
Speaker 1: reaching your goals. Like it's not necessarily control your desty,
Speaker 1: it's definitely not control your own destiny. But if you
Speaker 1: can win this game, you know, you're you're sitting at
Speaker 1: six and seven, You're you're sitting in this spot where
Speaker 1: you can still potentially take advantage of all of these
Speaker 1: other AFC injuries, And like, as a casual fan of football,
Speaker 1: like I would like to see some healthy quarterbacks get
Speaker 1: into the playoffs. Man, Like I like no shade, but
Speaker 1: like I'm not super interested in watching Mitch Trubisky and
Speaker 1: Joe Flacco, you know, start playoff games in the AFC
Speaker 1: wildcard picture, I would like to see Justin Herbert and
Speaker 1: Josh Allen and some healthy quarterbacks get into the playoffs.
Speaker 1: So if the Chargers can win this game, like I'm
Speaker 1: not gonna go full tilt obviously, but like you mentioned,
Speaker 1: like this is the fan experience. You know, I'm sitting
Speaker 1: there watching all these other quarterbacks get injured, and I'm like, man,
Speaker 1: like the Chargers if they could just like figure it
Speaker 1: out and go on a run, Like what if? Like
Speaker 1: what are the chances here? So it starts and ends
Speaker 1: on Sunday. This is essentially a playoff game for both
Speaker 1: teams because both teams, if they lose there, they're potentially
Speaker 1: sol in terms of the playoff picture.
Speaker 2: Yeah, the playoffs start. They probably started last week honestly
Speaker 2: for the Chargers, but they're going to continue every week.
Speaker 2: Is you know, against an AFC opponent, against somebody that
Speaker 2: you could potentially either see in the postseason or they're
Speaker 2: in front of you in the standings or whatever. So yeah,
Speaker 2: the playoffs. Hey, we're in the playoffs. I think we
Speaker 2: did it. Does that mean we're in the playoffs? Is
Speaker 2: that didn't work a lout like that? No? I am excited.
Speaker 2: I think the Chargers. It's Look, it's more fun for
Speaker 2: us to talk about the Chargers after a win, and
Speaker 2: so hopefully they give us at least a few more
Speaker 2: weeks of this to carry on that hope, because that's
Speaker 2: all we got.
Speaker 1: Yeah, we'll dive into this matchup more specifically on our show.
Speaker 1: But the key thing that I wanted to bring up today,
Speaker 1: the Broncos are living on explosive plays right now. Basically.
Speaker 1: What I mean by that is, specifically, their rushing offense
Speaker 1: has created off explosive runs at the fifth highest rate
Speaker 1: in the league right now, and they have the highest
Speaker 1: turnover rate over the last eight weeks. Basically, since they
Speaker 1: allowed seventy points, they have created more turnovers per game
Speaker 1: than any defense in the league. And that's how they
Speaker 1: have been able to get on this win streak. They
Speaker 1: create explosive runs, some explosive passes, they're certainly starting to
Speaker 1: figure out how to use Courtland Sutton specifically, and then
Speaker 1: they create turnovers a lot, specifically fumbles. They've had a
Speaker 1: lot of positive fumble regression over the last six or
Speaker 1: seven weeks. So those are two key things the Chargers
Speaker 1: have mostly done a great job of of limiting explosive
Speaker 1: runs on defense and limiting turnovers on offense. Those two
Speaker 1: areas are going to be absolutely crucial in order to
Speaker 1: win this game on Sunday, because that's basically how the
Speaker 1: Broncos have gotten hot over the last two months.
Speaker 2: Well, it's a good new It's a good thing that
Speaker 2: the Chargers have Khalil Mack and he's facing Mike mclinche,
Speaker 2: who was fifth worst in the NFL in past blocking efficiency.
Speaker 2: If Khalim Max's gonna go get that SEC record, Sunday's
Speaker 2: a nice extra game to to go find out if
Speaker 2: you can get there or not.
Speaker 1: Yeah, percent, all right, that's going to do it for
Speaker 1: us today. Apologies for a bit of a longer show,
Speaker 1: but we had a lot of things to cover here
Speaker 1: with the segments and things like that. So you know,
Speaker 1: hopefully you guys enjoy the show. Comment let us know.
Speaker 1: We'll be sure to be on YouTube and interacting with
Speaker 1: you guys. We always appreciate, appreciate all of that, like
Speaker 1: the show. Subscribe to the Chargers channel and our own
Speaker 1: channel over at the Guilty as Charge Podcast. We greatly
Speaker 1: appreciate that support. That's going to do it for us today.
Speaker 1: We'll see you next week at this time. As always,
Speaker 1: bold up mm hmm.