The San Diego Chargers are coming off their bye week and will play the Houston Texans in their week 11 matchup. Lets take a look at each offensive position group for these two teams and see who has the advantage where.
Quarterback
Chargers: Philip Rivers (2886 yards, 20 TD’s, 11 INT’s)
Texans: Brock Osweiler (2061 yards, 12 TD’s, 10 INT’s)
Philip Rivers is clearly the superior quarterback in this matchup. The Chargers signal caller, now in his 13th season, is still one of the best in the business. He has had a few tough moments this year but has mostly enjoyed a great season. This week Rivers is coming off a bye and will be looking to bounce back from a rough outing against the Miami Dolphins the week prior.
Brock Osweiler’s play has been up and down, to say the least. He certainly has not produced in the way Houston expected when they handed him a monster contract in the offseason. Scattershot accuracy and poor decision making have plagued Osweiler's 2016 season, but despite that the Texans sit in first place in the AFC South. Osweiler showed some promise last season in Denver, and there is a chance he can still turn things around in Houston, but right now he remains a bigger detriment than an asset as the Texans starting quarterback.
Winner: Philip Rivers
Running back
Chargers: Melvin Gordon (Rushing: 838 yards, 9 TD’s, 2 fumbles lost.
Receiving: 346 yards, 2 TD’s)
Texans: Lamar Miller (Rushing: 824 yards, 3 TD’s
Receiving: 133 yards, 1 TD)
Lamar Miller has been a fine player for the Texans since coming over from Miami in the offseason. He has been explosive on the ground and is averaging nearly 4.3 yards per pop. Miller is what makes that Texans offense run.
The same can be said for Chargers back Melvin Gordon. The Chargers have played their best football when Gordon has played his best football. The second-year runner has shown real improvement from his rookie season. He has found the end zone 11 times and has shown that he has what it takes to put the team on his back and close out a game. Gordon has been massively productive catching the ball out of the backfield as well, an area where he really distinguishes himself from Miller. Gordon takes this one.
Winner: Melvin Gordon
Wide Receivers
Chargers: Dontrelle Inman (408 yards, 1 TD), Travis Benjamin (514 yards, 3 TD’s), Tyrell Williams (720 yards, 4 TD’s)
Texans: DeAndre Hopkins (540 yards, 3 TD’s), Will Fuller (389 yards, 2 TD’s), Braxton Miller (87 yards, 1 TD)
This was a tough pick, but I went with the Texans trio of wideouts. While the Chargers receivers have been more productive this season, I believe a lot of that has to do with the play at the quarterback position. The Texans receivers, led by DeAndre Hopkins, are a very talented bunch. More talented than the receivers the Chargers currently have available to them. However, as previously mentioned, Rivers is a lot better than Osweiler and is able to get more out of his receivers. But this is about which team has the stronger receiving corps, and Houston’s stable of pass catchers gets the nod.
Winner: Texans – Hopkins, Fuller, Miller
Tight ends
Chargers: Antonio Gates (290 yards, 5 TD’s), Hunter Henry (351 yards, 4 TD’s)
Texans: C.J. Fiedorowicz (387 yards, 3 TD’s), Ryan Griffin (253 yards, 1 TD)
After appearing out of synch with Philip River for a good stretch, Antonio Gates has come back and shown he still has some magic. He may not be fast but man, nobody gets open like Gates. Henry has been great in his rookie season. A capable run blocker and a weapon in the aerial game, Henry looks ready to carry on the legacy of great Chargers tight ends.
C.J. Fiedorowicz has played well and made some big plays in the passing game. Ryan Griffin has also shown he can make a play when called to do so. However, I have to give this one to the bolts and their future HoFer.
Winner: Chargers – Gates, Henry
Offensive line
Chargers: King Dunlap, Orlando Franklin, Matt Slauson, D.J. Fluker, Joe Barksdale
Texans: Duane Brown, Xavier Su’a-Filo, Greg Mancz, Jeff Allen, Chris Clark
After dealing with injuries and a rough start to the season, Houston’s offensive line has stiffened and protected Osweiler well while also making life easier for the Texans backs. In the last five games, the Texans offensive line has only surrendered 7 sacks, and 5 of them have come in two games, 3 against the Detroit and 2 last week against the Oakland Raiders. The Texans offensive line is one of the strengths of Houston’s roster and is continuing to improve.
The Chargers offensive line has fared better than it did last season, giving Rivers more time in the pocket and opening up holes for Melvin Gordon. But there really isn’t a competition here. The bolts offensive line is still a work in progress and is an inferior unit compared to the Texans line.
Winner: Texans
There you have it. That’s 3-2 in favor of the San Diego Chargers. Stay tuned to see how these two teams compare on the defensive side of the ball.