Seahawks vs. Chargers: Complete Week 2 Preview for San Diego
The San Diego Chargers welcome the reigning Super Bowl champs to Qualcomm Stadium on Sunday with intentions of handing the Seattle Seahawks their first loss of 2014.
The Chargers (0-1) are coming off an 18-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Monday Night Football and will have a short week to prepare for the Seahawks, who will be fresh off a 10-day layoff after opening the regular season against Green Bay a week ago.
The Seahawks (1-0) dominated the season opener, dishing out a 36-16 beating to the Packers and looking more than ready to defend the title behind the impeccable play of Russell Wilson and arguably the best defense in football.
San Diego's performance fell on the opposite side of the spectrum this past week as mistakes doomed the Chargers on the road. Holding a 17-6 lead after the third quarter, the Chargers gave up touchdowns on back-to-back drives and watched helplessly as Carson Palmer rallied his team to a come-from-behind victory.
In what has been a longstanding problem to hold onto leads and close out games, the Chargers find themselves in an early 0-1 hole that is almost identical to the start of last season when they forfeited a 28-7 lead to the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football.
The Chargers and Seahawks crossed paths in the second week of the preseason up in Seattle, but San Diego found no comfort in the 41-14 rout. Philip Rivers attempted just four passes before his exit, while Wilson manufactured 121 yards passing and two rushing touchdowns against a bewildered Chargers defense.
In Sunday's game, Rivers can expect to withstand four quarters' worth of the Legion of Boom compared to just the one he saw in the preseason. And on defense, the Chargers will be reacquainted with Wilson and get an extended look at Marshawn Lynch, who played briefly in the Aug. 15 meeting.
San Diego's Week 2 preview begins now.
Chargers Week 1 Recap
1 of 5
Whether it was first-game jitters or the pressure that comes with playing on the road, the San Diego offense looked out of sync early against a defensive unit that was missing key starters.
The Chargers had three dropped passes, an interception and just three points to show for in the first half, but momentum shifted for the Bolts when the third quarter got underway. After four consecutive punts to start the game, San Diego delivered back-to-back scoring drives after intermission for a 17-6 lead that would quickly vanish.
Palmer's five-yard touchdown pass to Stepfan Taylor cut the deficit to 17-12 with 12:30 remaining, and San Diego's ensuing drive would produce the most talked-about debacle of the night. Rivers led the Chargers down to the 29-yard line of Arizona with a prime opportunity to build an eight-point cushion on the leg of Nick Novak in the fourth quarter, but a botched snap between Rivers and backup center Rich Ohrnberger drove the Chargers back 14 yards, knocking them out of field-goal range.
That mistake allowed Palmer to lead the Cardinals on an 11-play, 91-yard drive that would score the game-winner. The Chargers did get one last series on offense to set up a potential game-winning field-goal scenario for Novak, but the Arizona defense held strong thanks to a tipped pass on third down by Larry Foote.
Based on the number of mistakes committed by San Diego, most would argue that the Chargers let Monday's game slip away.
News and Notes
2 of 5
Hardwick Out for Season
On Wednesday, the Chargers announced that 11-year veteran Nick Hardwick was placed on injured reserve, thus ending his season. The longtime anchor of the offensive line had been battling a series of stingers the past few seasons and suffered yet another in the season opener. The decision to shut it down was the necessary one for Hardwick, who understandably wanted to avoid serious or long-term injury, but his absence will be tough to overcome in San Diego.
Hardwick's bond with Rivers along with his leadership in the locker room will be sorely missed. The former Pro Bowler stared 67 consecutive games and is in the final year of his contract.
Rivers Not Scared to Throw Sherman's Way
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers didn't attempt a single pass in the vicinity of All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman in last week's season opener—a valid decision by most standards. But as Rivers told reporters early this week, the plan isn't to "completely eliminate" Sherman from the picture on Sunday. The Chargers QB may insist on playing with fire by throwing in the direction of last season's league leader in interceptions.
Chargers Have Trust in Ohrnberger
With Hardwick done for the year, the Chargers intend to move forward with Ohrnberger filling in at center—a decision that appears to be well-received within the organization. Despite the faulty exchange in the fourth quarter of Monday's game, Rivers and coach Mike McCoy expressed total confidence in the six-year veteran to pick up the leftover slack.
Ohrnberger proved last season in the playoffs that he was more than capable of handling duties at center in San Diego's win over Cincinnati, but taking over the girth of the regular season will be a new experience for a player with just five starts in his career.
Injury Report
3 of 5
| Player | Position | Injury | Status |
| Jahleel Addae | DB | Hamstring | Questionable |
| Keenan Allen | WR | Ribs | Probable |
| Brandon Flowers | DB | Groin | Questionable |
| Antonio Gates | TE | Hamstring | Questionable |
| Melvin Ingram | LB | Hamstring | Questionable |
| Sean Lissemore | DL | Ankle | Probable |
Courtesy of CBS Sports.
Addae, Ingram and Gates did not practice on Thursday, per Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. Gates was a game-time decision against the Cardinals on Monday but wound up playing and actually led the team in receiving with six catches for 81 yards. Addae, meanwhile, has been on the mend for nearly a month with a nagging hamstring, which has contributed to more playing time in the nickel for Richard Marshall.
Flower's groin injury is fairly new to the injury report, but the debut of Jason Verrett last week went well enough to consider him a viable replacement should Flowers be a scratch for Sunday's game.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
X-Factors and Matchups to Watch
4 of 5
Rivers vs. the Legion of Boom
The respected secondary of Seattle held Green Bay's passing game in check for a total of 189 yards last Thursday. In making the decision to avoid Sherman's side of the field, Rodgers left himself with limited options and, at times, was forced into difficult situations. The Packers QB was sacked three times and threw an interception in the loss, which shouldn't come as reassuring news for Rivers.
Against the duo of Patrick Peterson and Antonio Cromartie, the San Diego QB still managed to get the ball to his receivers, but his performance was far from perfect, with one interception thrown and two balls that could have been easily added to that tally. The decision to throw in Sherman's direction is a bold one, in my opinion, but a necessary one to get the ball in the hands of San Diego's playmakers.
Rivers' main concern is playing it cool against this secondary. The need to force throws could be costly, and mistakes like the ones last week will almost certainly lead to defeat.
Allen vs. Sherman
Allen's sophomore season got off to a good, but not great, start in Arizona. He caught five passes for 37 yards in the loss with Peterson draped on him for most of the night. With Seattle coming to town on Sunday, the coverage will only get better from Sherman.
Offensively, the Chargers looked flat in their first game, with one reason being that Allen was unable to have an impact. Against the Seahawks defense, the Chargers can't afford to go cold for an entire quarter, which means Allen and the rest of the offense will have to sustain drives to stay competitive. When San Diego beat good teams last season, Allen typically had a big game.
Chargers Defense vs. Wilson and Lynch
Seattle's ground game accounted for 243 yards and five touchdowns in a preseason win over the Chargers, and it didn't look all that different against the Packers either. It's no secret the Seahawks like to run the ball with Lynch, but Wilson's mobility under center makes for double trouble.
Percy Harvin has also made his case as a dangerous runner, which is why San Diego needs to get an outstanding effort from its front seven. The Seahawks are extremely physical up front, and if the Chargers can't stop the bleeding, Seattle will proceed to move the chains and chew up clock. Last week against the Packers, the Seahawks controlled time of possession for 33:20.
X-Factor: Chargers Offensive Line
San Diego will live or die in the trenches on Sunday. Not only will Rivers need to be kept upright, but some sort of running game will need to be established. The Chargers poorly executed on the ground for a grand total of 52 yards on 24 carries against Arizona, and things will only get tougher without Hardwick in the lineup.
San Diego's three-headed monster in the backfield has yet to be unleashed, but that should end against Seattle.
Prediction
5 of 5
Not surprisingly, the defending champs are Vegas favorites to come out on top in San Diego. After demolishing Green Bay, it's tough to argue that a Chargers team coming off a loss filled with mistakes is going to upset Seattle.
If the Chargers can get as close to possible to a mistake-free outing, however, things could get a little more interesting. Last season, the Bolts played at their best against good teams. The Seahawks were beaten three times last season, and all three of their opponents had to rally late to capture the win.
Aside from the final score, it will be interesting to see how San Diego responds in a sold-out home opener. The Seahawks are arguably the stiffest test for the Chargers in 2014, so how does competing against the best translate on the field?
When it's all over, I predict the Seahawks to pick up their second win of the season, while the Chargers are left picking up the pieces in a 0-2 hole.
Prediction: Seahawks 31, Chargers 23
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
