There were three parts to the San Diego victory on Sunday: Defense, Special Teams and Darren Sproles.  The stats verify the first, don't touch on the second and seem to disagree with the third.  I'd like to start by explaining why the stats are "wrong" about Darren Sproles.

Sproles ran the ball 23 times on Saturday night for 105 yards (4.6 ypc).  The problem was that he was stopped for gains of three yards or fewer on 14 of those carries and not one of those was in a short yardage situation.  He was stuffed* on eight of his attempts.  Stuffs are almost entirely the fault of the offensive line and to a lesser degree, so are carries of 1-3 yards.  If we remove the stuffs from his line (a reasonable action), Sproles' success rate jumps almost 20% from 34.8% to 53.3% (a most respectable rate and more representative of his play on Saturday).  Also his yards per carry balloons from 4.6 to 6.5.

Sproles' 20% success rate in the passing game is also weighed down by factors outside of his control.  Of his eight failures, five incomplete passes that were thrown at his feet and not actually at him.  If you remove those from his line (a reasonable action), his success rate doubles to a still less than stellar 40%.  Still, his two successes are a big 17 yarder on first down and a huge 13 yarder on third and long which the success rate system doesn't effectively reward.  However, that is balanced out by his goal line fumble which the system doesn't effectively punish.

There is also Sproles' stellar night returning punts and kicks that isn't included at the numbers at all, but that I'm certain you're all aware of.

The defense was excellent.  58.5% is damn good against an average offense.  Against the Colts, is downright incredible.  Things didn't look good early.  On the Colts' second drive of the game they went 85 yards on nine plays (seven of them successful).  Once they hit the red zone, it took the Colts only three plays (all three successful) to punch it into the end zone.  Outside of that second drive of the game, the Chargers' defense had a stop rate of 64.3%.

That drive would be the last time the Colts ran a play in the red zone.

Jamal Williams, Jyles Tucker and Stephen Cooper tied for the team lead in Stops with five.  Igor Olshansky and Eric Weddle tied for fourth with three apiece.  Antoine Cason had two.  Luis Castillo, Tim Dobbins, Jacques Cesaire, Matt Wilhelm, Antonio Cromartie and Quentin Jammer also picked up a Stop.  One really can't say enough about the play of the San Diego defense on Saturday.

We already touched on Special Teams in discussing Sproles' night, but the other star of that unit was Mike Scifres.  I might have to get a Scifres jersey.  He punted six times.  His net average was 51.7.  Tony Dungy called him "the difference in the game."  I have asserted to anyone who would listen that Scifres is the best player on the team and after Saturday, I feel a lot better about that.

And one more stat real quick: the Chargers under Norv Turner are 3-1 in the playoffs.

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With Gates and LT injured you had to wonder how the Chargers would do against a Colts squad riding a nine game winning streak.  The Chargers have been in win or go home mode for five weeks now and managed to do just enough to win at home.

Mike Scifres via the Union Tribune (it's hard to find a good picture of him)

Quarterback - B
This is a tough grade, Rivers threw the pick and had another dropped on a deep throw.  He only gained just over 200 yards through the air; but almost as important is the number of throws he didn't make.  When he didn't see a play he would throw the ball away; and despite being sacked four times he avoided the strip sack.  And let us not forget his fabulous lumber to get close to the first down where he went in head first and then brought the QB sneak for a crucial first down.  Rivers did enough for the win. 

Offensive Line - B
There were some nice holes created by the line coupled which led to 167 yards on the ground.  The line didn't do as well protecting Rivers, not only giving up four sacks but also allowing a lot of pressure and forced roll outs.  Considering the skill of Mathis and Freeney, it wasn't a bad effort and the run blocking was the best of the season.

Wide Receivers - C-
Almost a non-factor in this game.  Give credit to a great game by the Indianapolis secondary that kept Vincent Jackson to no catches.  Chambers caught for about 50 yards and Naanee chipped in about 15; but the wide receivers were scarcely an issue in this game.  

Tight Ends - A
You expect your stars to come through in the big games and Antonio Gates did exactly that.  You want your tight end to take those middle routes against a Tampa two and that is exactly what Gates did.  An exceptional performance with the high ankle sprain.

Running Backs - A
Wow, LT gives a great start before going down with the nagging groin injury.  Sproles gets 23 carries and 105 yards on the ground plus 45 through the air.  Michael Bennett chipped in with 24 yards; but lets not forget perhaps the best performance.  In the replays of all three touchdown runs Hester could be found making a block that would key the big play; I have spent some time this season wondering if we had overpaid for Hester but he has really come into his own these last few games.

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This game was a classic; an epic of the first water.  The easy thing to say is that the Chargers have the Colts number; but that clearly isn't true.  Every game against the Colts comes down to the final play and today it was the Chargers who had the ball last.  In an ironic twist this game really revolved around two terrific defenses and special teams instead of the quarterbacks with all the gaudy awards and statistics.  Philip Rivers would end up with a passer rating of 60 with one interception and four sacks and a scant 190 yards.  Peyton Manning would get three hundred yards and a TD; but that is deceptive as 72 yards and the TD came on one quick snap and complete breakdown by Antonion Cromartie in coverage for the Chargers.

                           Antonio Gates had eight catches for 87 yards

The game started well for the Chargers with Ladainion Tomlinson scampering around the outside edge for thirteen easy yards.  It was clear that he was running injured however as he couldn't seem to make a cut.  That was followed by a two yard run, a six yard pass to Gates who had the high ankle sprain, but then Mathis came up big for the Colts with a sack of Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers and the Chargers were forced to put the ball.  Scifres pinned the Colts back in their ten yard line; it was the first of many dazzling punts by Scifres.  Manning came out looking sharp, aided in part by a thirty yard pass interference call against Quentin Jammer.  The Chargers defense began the game shifting formations like wildfire until there were ten seconds left on the clock.  It did seem to baffle Manning just a bit and the Colts would end up punting from the Chargers 42; but in the battle of the punters Hunter Smith would prove to be much less effective.  He hit the touchback, netting only 22 yards.

The next drive Manning would come out looking every inch the MVP as he drove 81 yards for the TD making frequent use of Anthony Gonzalez.  If the first drive the Chargers defense had him off strive; he recovered quickly.  The Chargers next possession gained only 20 yards before ending in a punt against the stout aerial defense of the Colts.  But again Scifres would boom a punt that would pin Indianapolis back at their three yard line.  The Chargers defense only allowed the Colts five yards.  Rivers would get the ball at the Colt 44 after another punt by H. Smith.  Rivers made short work of the short field with a big pass to tight end Antonio Gates; and LT bolted in from the three yard line sprung by the first of many great blocks by Jacob Hester working as fullback.

LT goes in for the score

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This past week's contest with Tampa Bay has been described as the Chargers' first complete game of the season.  I would only quibble with the description of it as the first.  This Sunday's 17-point victory over the Buccaneers was most definitely a complete game.

Neither side of the ball was dominant for four quarters, but they were both in control.  Even when the Bucs took their first lead of the day, I don't think anyone could seriously have thought they were going to win.

For one of the very few times this year, the offense was successful both running and passing the ball.  The success rates don't really capture how good the offense was because it doesn't give any extra credit for big plays and the offense was full of big plays on Sunday.

Gates obviously had a big day, but I think one guy people are overlooking is Naanee.  He only got two looks, but both were first down catches on third down.  LT had his first successful day running the ball in I can't remember how long.  Jackson continues to get a ton of looks and is still cashing in on them.

On the defensive side of the ball, the defense was dominant in the first half and the fourth quarter but was dominated in the third quarter.  It didn't come back to bite them and their total numbers were solid, but you can't like seeing the other team come out looking that strong against them to open the second half.  The adjustments made in the fourth quarter are rather promising, though.

Cooper again tied for the team lead in Stops, this time with Jamal, while also intercepting his fourth pass in three games.  I think perhaps we missed him in the first four games of the season.  Castillo, Phillips, and Weddle all had three stops.  The defensive line combined for nine on the day (Olshansky and Cesaire had one each).

The entire team really does seem to be peaking right at the end of the year.  I'm excited.  Hopefully, they don't come out ant lay an egg on Sunday night.  I don't see it happening, but as a San Diego sports fan I can't discount the possibility that it will.

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The Chargers won under pressure; but there are clearly still some weak areas.  The Buccaneers managed two terrific drives for touchdowns in the third quarter; but the defense came up with three turnovers so some grades might be higher than you would otherwise expect.  This was a team effort though and there were standouts on both offense and defense, so lets take a look.

Quarterback - A
Four touchdowns and no interceptions.  Rivers is now one TD away from Dan Fouts record.  Any time a quarterback gets mentioned in the same sentence with Fouts; he's a great quarterback.  The other thing Rivers did yesterday was he didn't force anything; when nothing was there he threw the ball away. 

Wide Receivers - A
Vincent Jackson coming off a concussion was lights out.  He was almost always open; he continuously got position or separation on a very talented Tampa secondary.  Chambers also came up with several catches for first downs and Legedu Naanee had one good drive where he caught two.  He has really good form catching the balls, he reaches out and grabs it out of the air.

Tight Ends - A
Gates had four catches; but two of them were for touchdowns.  On one play he just plucked the ball out of the air with one hand before turning it up field; I think that was the point at which I thought this was going to the Chargers day.  Manu came up big too; he caught the screen for seven points and was also blocking well on the running plays. 

Offensive Line - B+
Rivers had a great day in part because he had time to let things develop; there was only one sack on the day.  The line gave him the time to deliver the ball.  They also managed to create some running lanes for LT who had a good day and ended up with 90 yards on 21 rushes.  The screens for the Chargers have also regularly been going for good yards; though the Bucs did diagnose several for no gain. 

Running Backs - B+
While they only put up just over 90 yards on the ground; that doesn't capture the screens and YAC pass plays.  Together Sproles and LT caught for over 60 yards and a touchdown.

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The offense and defense were both pretty bad this week against one of the weaker teams in The League.  Fortunately,  they were both good enough to win and with the way this season has gone, I'll take it.

Offense

The offense was, again, much better in the Red Zone than out of it (54.5% to 41.7%).  On the day, the offense put together a total of eight successful running plays.  Two of them were in the Red Zone where they only ran the ball twice.  Of their 19 carries, all but four went to Tomlinson.  Those four were split among Hester, Rivers and Jackson.  All of them were successful.

As usual, they were better when they threw the ball, though not by much.  Gates led all Charger receivers in unsuccessful plays (seven) and Chambers had the lowest success rate (14.3%).  Unsurprisingly, Floyd led Charger receivers in successful plays (five) and among those targeted more than once in success rate (83.3%).  The Chargers success rate when passing jumps nine points if you remove all passes that targeted Chambers and Gates who are supposedly our top two pass catching threats.

Prior to the final five minutes the of the game, the Charger offense was successful on 18 of 51 plays (35.3%), but in those final five minutes they were successful on 14 of 21 (66.7%).

Defense

Watching the game, it seemed that the Chiefs were running all over the Chargers defense, but they weren't actually having that much success on the ground.  Well, their running backs weren't, at least.  Larry Johnson was stopped on 58.8% of his carries and Charles only managed to break even on his four rushing attempts.  Quarterback Tyler Thigpen, on the other hand, was nigh unstoppable on Sunday as the defense stopped him on only 25% of his rushes.

It was the passing game, though, where the defense nearly lost this game.  A 40% stop rate against the pass is atrocious and it doesn't even capture how bad they were for most of the game.  Half of their 12 stops came in the third quarter alone which means they had a stop rate of 26% in the other three quarters, a performance so pathetic I can't put it into words.

Looking at the defense on an individual level, there are some bright spots.  Antwan Applewhite and Stephen Cooper led the team in stops with four.  All four of Applewhite's tackles were stops and Cooper also chipped in with a pick in the end zone.  Third on the defense was Jamal Williams with three stops out of four tackles.  Jammer and Phillips both contributed with two stops each.  The rest of the defense doesn't really show up positively in this particular analysis, but part of that is due to the limits of this kind of analysis.

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When you are down by eleven points at the two minute warning and end up with a win; the football gods are smiling at you.  The Chargers got outplayed for most of this game and looked to see their playoff hopes finally flat line, but Rivers had other plans and for this week the ball bounced to the Chargers.  Once asked if he wanted a skillful general, Napoleon replied that he wanted a lucky one, he could teach him everything else.  While I don't mean to take anything away from Rivers phenomenal comeback; the catch to Chambers where he lay stunned after a ferocious hit but had just enough left to grab the ball for a big gainer and then the onside kick where the Chiefs best receiver dropped the onside kick, and who else but perennial special teams Pro Bowler Kassim Osgood came up with it, were just outrageous good fortune.  The Chargers have two wins against the Chiefs by one point; each with the Chiefs in a position to win at games end.  

Next week the Chargers will need to beat a good Tampa Bay team still fighting for the playoffs at home and the Broncos will have to lose to mediocre Bills team that is out of the playoffs at Denver in order to continue the Chargers improbable hopes.  But enough, on to the grades:

Quarterback - A-
This was hard to place; Rivers actually played poorly for much of the game with a pick off and fumble as well as numerous failed drives.  But how can you not give an A to the QB who brings a team back from the dead with huge passing plays when the defense knew he had to throw the ball?    Folks on SBN have all kinds of images of Rivers making ridiculous faces; it's because he cares.  You see some other quarterbacks when things are going the wrong way and they are looking at their shoes; Rivers always brings fire and I'll take that every day of the week.

Wide Receivers - B+
They had some trouble getting open early; but the final two TDs went to Malcom Floyd and Vincent Jackson.  Jackson also had the huge pickup on the final drive that placed San Diego in position to win.  Chambers play where he managed to hang on despite the wicked hit was crucial as well.  On the down side Jackson had a fumble in the first half that really set the Chargers back. 

Running Backs - C-
Some very nice screens; but LT was stymied behind poor run blocking again.  He also has been dropping passes that nobody should drop; 3-4 in the past few weeks.  One big gainer was called back on a holding call; once again penalties were horrific.  Hester ran some nifty screens and had ran a second fake punt for the first down.

Offensive Line - D-
Weak run blocking and the Chiefs were getting at Rivers.  The Chiefs with 6 sacks all season coming into the game took Rivers down three times and had a number of hurries.  OK, Dielman got thrown out early on an egregious call and Hardwick went out with a concussion; but the Chargers need a free agent or high draft pick to be used on the line this off season.

Tight Ends - B-
Gates was back, he nabbed more than seventy yards in passes.  Like LT he too had a drop on what should have been an easy catch.  Manumaleuna came up with a big catch as well.

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Matter comes in a variety of forms.  If we look at water, when it is cold it becomes solid ice, warm it up and it becomes liquid; really apply the heat and it becomes a gas (steam).  When matter moves from one state to another; they call that phase transition, that state of moving from liquid to solid.  I watch Antonio Gates run the field and I swear he is in that phase transition somewhere between solid and liquid; he doesn't run routes, he flows along them. 

When he jumps for the ball he just slides up to it, everything is one fluid motion.  He doesn't even catch the ball, he just absorbs it as if it were some missing part of him.  You watch him blow by linebackers and corners and you think he is moving slowly; just a languid run in the park; but somehow time has slowed down for the people around him. 

Gates has not followed quite the same evolutionary path as the rest of us, he has once again taken a faster route just a little beyond the rest of us.  He plays tight end the same way Einstein did physics or Newton worked at mathematics.  This year Gates has been playing with a bad toe; which is a little like trying to play the violin without a bow.  He began the season looking almost human, almost solid.  We didn't see much of him in the Steeler game, but the few weeks prior you could see him come around; and even with the injury he leads NFL tight ends with six touchdown catches.  It almost feels wrong to say Gates plays tight end, Gates is the tight end.

Considering this was a game they had to have the Chargers came out flat.  At home after the bye, the defense would give up two long TD drives and the offense would bog down and settle for two field goals, and then give up the int right before the half.  Give the Chiefs full credit; they did not look like a 1-7 football team.  Thigpen was throwing well and they mostly held the San Diego offense despite having numerous injuries that left second and third stringers in their lineup.  This was a game I expected the Chargers to dominate, but the Chiefs showed up with grit and were surprisingly stout against the run.  This looks like a team that is moving the right direction and it is going to be trouble down the road.

The story of this game for me was the way the Chargers defense showed up in the second half.  They forced five consecutive punts from KC; once immediately after an interception.  While they gave up the final TD drive; a lot of those yards came from a highly questionable PI call.  They also forced KC to a fourth down once; and in the end Hart made that one big defensive play that has been eluding the Bolts this whole season. 

 
                                   Clinton Saves the Day

Quarterback - B

In a stiff wind some of Rivers passes were not as crisp as they needed to be.  He also overthrew LT on a crucial third down in the red zone resulting in a San Diego Field goal.  At the end of the first half he was picked off in the endzone killing what had been a good drive.  He came out sharp in the second half throwing the TD to Floyd, but also burned two time outs trying to audible at the line and then had the killer interception trying to avoid the sack.  For all that he threw for 300 yards with 2 TDs and two interceptions.  In crunch time he was eight for eight on the final drive.

Wide Receivers - A-

Vincent Jackson had another drop, but otherwise looked reasonably sharp.  The wide receiver who was money this game was Malcolm Floyd who made a remarkable juggling catch on the sideline as well as catching the TD in the second half to tie it up.  This kid is just lighting it up; you have to love the Chargers depth at wide receiver.  Legedu Naanee came up big with a fine third down catch as well.

Tight Ends - A-

Antonio Gates was tremendous; along with the other wide receivers the Chargers definitely have an impressive array of weapons through the air.  He came up huge on the go ahead drive in the second half on third down; and then for the go ahead TD.

Offensive Line - B-

They gave up two sacks; and the running game against an anemic defense with multiple injuries was limp.  LT appeared to be running hard, but even after making two or three tacklers miss, he would be back at the line of scrimmage; the line was allowing penetration.  It improved a bit towards the end of the game, but what has become of the offensive line that used to pummel opponents into submission?

Running Backs - C+

LT was running hard, but really didn't have the holes to run through.  Fullback Mike Tolbert made several nice runs after short passes; and lateraled one to LT for a nice gainer.  LT began moving better in the second half, juking one KC defender out of his cleats; then running for 20 yards.  LT also passed OJ Simpson and Corey Dillon on yards, he is now in 15th place; he needs just 74 yards to pass John Riggins next week.

Defensive line - B-

There was still not enough pressure on the QB; but they did do a nice job of containing the running game.  Jamal Williams was great in the center, and Castillo made a couple nice tackles.  Jamal came up huge more than a few times in getting penetration and stuffing the run; and in one instance getting in Thigpen's face just as he was throwing to force an errant throw and subsequent punt.

Cornerbacks - C

They ran hot and cold; Jammer gave up the TD early when he just gave up on the receiver; but would redeem himself with I believe three huge third down stops.  Cason came up huge on another third down stop off Rivers turnover in the second half.  Cromartie had a nice chip that cost the Chiefs a third down conversion too.  Overall they looked to play much more man to man and were able to help force a series of three and outs.  While Hart was called for PI right at the end of the game; it was clearly a blown call on what was a terrific play.

Safeties - A-

While I didn't see any specific mistakes; Gonzales had a huge game and there were several plays where the safety help to the inside seemed slow.  Weddle made some nice tackles for short gains on short routes.  The high grade is almost entirely for Clinton Hart who both made a terrific play in the fourth quarter that the officials somehow turned into a PI call, but then made the play at the games end to deny the Chiefs the two point conversion and iced the Chargers victory.  After having been unfairly flagged, having missed the game saving play against the Panthers and having been called out for poor play in the press; that had to be most satisfying.

Linebackers -C

Marques Harris came close to getting a sack, and they were really attacking the run.  While there wasn't as much pressure as you would hope for; they were really diving in at the line on the blitzes.  This team has really come a long way against the run; they still have a ways to come against the pass.  For the Chiefs third string QB to come into the Murph and end up with a QB rating that looks like Manning spells trouble.  It was also yet another game without an interception; or turnover for that matter.

Coaching -C

The defense in the first half gave up the big touchdown, but did seem to force more third downs.  The offense came out flat, and I still would like to see them run the ball more.  I would have expected the staff to have them come roaring out, but that just didn't happen here.  Rivers is starting to try and force things when they aren't there; and had more than a few balls go out waffling in the wind.  There were also two instances of Rivers calling timeouts because of trying to audible a play late in the count; not to mention one delay of game.  You can blame Rivers for the mistakes; but you would expect Turner to be working with him on knowing when to throw the ball away.

Quarterback - A-

Rivers threw the late interception, but he was mostly impeccable finding the open receiver and cutting the Saints secondary to ribbons.  He looks terrific back there, and doesn't seem to know the word panic even as the team falls behind.  This has been a tough season, but you never see him hanging his head or blaming the defense for the losses.  He has really matured into a leader and a great quarterback.

Wide Receivers - A-

They were getting open the whole game, made spectacular catches and generally had a terrific day.  Vincent Jackson dropped one pass that would have gone the distance, otherwise I would have given them a solid A.  I like the spreads with Floyd, VJ and Chambers.  As dispiriting as the loss was, the offense is just fun to watch.  There are so many weapons and Rivers seems to be getting the ball to all of them.  If the defense can even play average ball, this team is going to light some folks up.

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