Championship Game Kribbles, Part III: Chargers' Offense vs. Patriots' Defense

Ah, the Thursday before championship game weekend...a time when we can all try to imagine ways the San Diego Chargers can upset the seemingly invincible New England Patriots.

Or at least cover the 14-point spread.

Or at least give them a game in the first half.

The first quarter?

A bit of kribbling, then, on that amazing slapdash Chargers offense versus the steadfast Patriot D...

• Think the New York Giants have problems with injuries? San Diego has become a M*A*S*H unit at exactly the wrong time of the year. With most pundits reckoning the opposition offense must play a perfect game to have a chance (maybe) of beating the Patriots, what's obvious regarding Sunday's game is simply that the Chargers must have their starters back.

• Who's that on the Charger depth chart below Antonio Gates at tight end? Brandon Manumaleuna? NFL-New_England_Patriots-San_Diego_Chargers-Championship_game_kribbles_part_III_Chargers_offense_vs_Patriots_defense/revisions/">Legedu Naanee, normally a wide receiver and still a "Photo Not Available" guy on ESPN.com? Who would have thought that David Thomas would be viable trade bait?

• The funny thing about New England's linebacker corps is that "common wisdom" tells us that this group may be the chink in the team's armor. They're getting old, buzzes the blogosphere, and remember the last time they lost? In the AFC championship game last year, Peyton Manning kept the Pats' defense—essentially the same as this year's, but plus Adalius Thomas and this week minus Roosevelt Colvin—on the field for three long drives late in the second half and exhausted the New England guys.

Be that as it may, has anyone noticed that at age 32, Mike Vrabel is playing the highest-quality ball of his career, grabbing his second consecutive Pro Bowl start? (And Adalius Thomas could well have been on the AFC starting roster as well, by the way.) That at 34, Tedy Bruschi led the Pats in tackles with 92? That Junior Seau at 39 is still a viable starter on a prospective Super Bowl team, at least on first and second downs? What say we put off the age talk 'til next season, when it becomes more of a concern?

• Speaking of Bruschi, why is his possible/probable retirement at the end of this season not 1/100th the big deal that, say, Brett Favre's is? A likable figure amid a gang popularly perceived as intergalactic stormtroopers, fans around the league will miss him when he's gone.

• The most obsession-creating bit of game tape from the season thus far, even beating out the car wreck-level fascinating Baltimore Ravens implosion against the Pats in Week 13: The Chargers' final drive against the Colts last week, with the Legion of Substitute Heroes doing battle out there in lieu of the Justice League proper of Rivers Man, The Gates Keeper and LaDainian "Black Lightning" Tomlinson.

• Simply put, how did Billy Volek—a guy who shouldn't even be starting in Madden, really—become John Elway on "The Drive"? Well, the looseness of the Tampa-2 defense burned the Colts here, as receivers turned screen passes into gains of 15 and 27. Heck, on the first play Chris Chambers stretched his reception to 15 yards before Bob Sanders gets to him (still can't figure out where Sanders was positioned on that play: Better watch the replay again). Of course, Marlin Jackson's silly 15-yard facemask penalty helped as well.

• If the Chargers keep it close going into the fourth, it would be interesting to see the small-ball approach versus New England's traditional fourth-quarter blitz-dominated defensive game plan. New England fans have to readily dread the Patriot secondary slacking off like the Colts in the fourth after seeing the first-half Jacksonville "performance" on guys like Asante Samuel and Randall Gay.

• And LT has to go for more than 28 yards, even if he does play only one half. Also, he needs to put up better numbers than 42 yards on 21 carries (as against the Titans in the wild-card round) or 56 yards on 16 (against the Raiders, Week 17).

Endlessly kribbling all year-round at RealFootball365.com