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Raise your hand if you thought there was a chance that Keenan Allen and Mike Williams would be one of the best wide receiver duos in the league through the first month of the season?
For those that truly believed in this offense and what Justin Herbert could do, good for you. For the others that raised their hand despite some cautious optimism, you can’t fool me!
Through the first three games of the season, Allen and Williams have combined to catch 43 passes for 553 yards and five touchdowns. That’s the most combined yardage from a receiver tandem in the league thus far and the biggest reasons why Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton named them the top pair of receivers of the young season.
“A full routine offseason with second-year quarterback Justin Herbert has seemingly paid early dividends for Keenan Allen and Mike Williams,” says Moton. “While Allen has two 100-plus-yard performances in three weeks, Williams continues to dominate in the red zone, hauling in three of his four touchdown receptions within 12 yards of the goal line.”
“Neither receiver has top-gear speed, but Herbert can depend on them to win their one-on-one matchups. Allen and Williams have solid catch rates at 63.3 and 71.0 percent, respectively.”
As Moton mentions above, Williams’ recent play has been a big reason why this team was able to turn around their abysmal red zone offense. Like Brandon Staley said last week, it’s not a “50-50” ball when you throw it to Williams. Due to his skill set, the chances of Williams coming down with the ball is a lot higher than 50 percent and the Bolts are finding a way to tip the scales in their favor on a much more consistent basis.
This week, the Chargers will face the Raiders and their former defensive coordinator, Gus Bradley. Through three weeks, the Raiders are allowing 355.7 yards of total offense per game with 120.3 of that coming on the ground. The Bolts will have an opportunity to get their ground game going on Monday night but if that isn’t the case, they’ll still have their two dynamic wideouts to rely on.
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