They had it all to play for here. With a win they remained in contention and possibly kept their head coach around for 2012. Either that wasn’t enough motivation for the San Diego Chargers or they just simply were not good enough. Are they now a franchise who has seen ‘it’s time’ pass them by without the Super Bowl they craved?
While San Diego appears to be heading in the wrong direction, you can’t say the same thing about the Detroit Lions. The main reason for the Chargers poor showing here was that they were simply overpowered by a Lions outfit that seemed to remember just how explosive they can be when they’re geared up.
Their reward is a long overdue playoff appearance where we’ll really get to see them tested. If they can play like this though, then ask yourself; who couldn’t they keep pace with?
San Diego – Three Performances of Note
Every Streak Comes To An End
With Vincent Jackson (-1.3) having his contract expire at the end of the year and his latest injury reducing his snap count in this game, it’s a very real possibility we’ve seen the last of him in a Chargers uniform. If so, it’s sad that his tenure had to end with a poor performance from the Northern Colorado Bear. Clearly operating at less than 100%, he caught only two of the seven balls thrown his way while dropping a chain moving pass that summed up his day.
Sticky Situation
You don’t often see the Chargers man Quentin Jammer (-4.4) up with a receiver. Maybe after this game we won’t see it at all. Jammer had problems all game long after being asked to slow down Calvin Johnson, giving up all four balls thrown his way for 52 yards and a touchdown. Throw in a couple of missed tackles and you have a real bad day for the former first round pick. Jammer wasn’t alone in the secondary with Dante Hughes (-4.3) playing badly enough to lose snaps in the slot to Marcus Gilchrist. Na’il Diggs (-2.3) continues to astound in his role as a nickel linebacker given his obvious limitations in coverage.
Not All Bad
If this year has shown us anything, it’s that the Chargers need to make more use of Antwan Barnes (+3.0). The active outside linebacker has done fairly well filling in for either Shaun Phillips or, in this game, Travis LaBoy. He has not looked like the kind of liability in the run game that would prevent him seeing more snaps. He finished the day with four pressures, but his work in the run game was almost as impressive as he made the most out of his 44 snaps.
Detroit – Three Performances of Note
Can He Keep It Up?
You won’t find a more vocal critic of Matthew Stafford (+6.8) than myself. I’ve gone as far to speculate how many more wins Detroit would have with Shaun Hill at the helm. Well, if Stafford can play like this (or even half as good as this) on a weekly basis consider myself converted. Attacking the Chargers zone with authority, the former first overall pick completed an astounding 11 passes thrown more than 10 yards in the air, on just 15 attempts as his arm was too much for the Chargers coverage unit. Perhaps San Diego, who only sent five rushers on five occasions, should have sent more blitzers, as Stafford completed 26 of 32 attempts when the Chargers sent four or fewer men. That shouldn’t take away from one of the better quarterbacking displays of anyone from the entire season.
Playing Himself Out of a Contract?
It’s hard to know what to make of Eric Wright (-3.6). He’s capable of playing extremely well, but all too frequently gets beaten like a drum. Against San Diego he earned his benching with Alphonso Smith (+1.4) looking far more assured in his stead. Wright gave up 7-of-8 balls thrown at him for 90 yards and a touchdown as he continues his horrible end to the season.
Making It Look Easy
There wasn’t really that dominant of a defensive play from any single Lion in particular, but rather a collection of impressive performances. Chris Houston (+2.1) was the star of the secondary by allowing just two completions on 10 balls thrown at him. Justin Durant (+1.6) also contributed with a tough to match six defensive stops as he played his highest percentage of snaps as a Lion. That aside, it was more a case of everyone doing their job, and nobody (outside of the aforementioned Wright) really letting the defense down. They’ll have bigger tests in the future but against a high powered Chargers offense, this was extremely encouraging.
Games Notes
– Jared Gaither finally allowed some pressure on the stat sheet with two hurries surrendered.
– The Lions missed just four tackles.
– Philip Rivers connected on just one of seven attempts on balls thrown over 20 yards.
Game Ball
This was as good as Matthew Stafford has ever looked. Was this a turning point in an inconsistent career, or just one of those days? I’m intrigued to find out.
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