Chargers vs Bills: Full Report Card Grades for San Diego
The San Diego Chargers knocked off the formerly unbeaten Buffalo Bills 22-10 and earned their first win at Ralph Wilson Stadium since 2006 on Sunday.
Philip Rivers delivered another strong performance under center despite swirling winds and a hostile environment on the road. San Diego was dealt a massive blow early in the first quarter with the loss of Danny Woodhead, but Donald Brown delivered in the clutch with the heaviest workload he's seen in his six-year career.
The Chargers gave the same energy on defense and bottled up two of Buffalo's biggest playmakers. After scoring 52 combined points in their first two games, the Bills were held to just 10 by San Diego's improving defense.
Here's how the units graded out in another stunning outing.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Rivers has been on a tear this season, completing 68 percent of his passes while throwing for 778 yards and six touchdowns. At the line of scrimmage, Rivers has looked extremely comfortable in handling adjustments, and his awareness in the pocket hasn't looked this good in a long time.
Coming off the Seattle game, I was very impressed with his ability to move around, elude pressure and deliver passes. Against Buffalo, Rivers picked up right where he left off and was sacked just once against a stacked defensive line.
His knowledge of coverages and alignments has only gotten better with age. He looks the part of an elite quarterback.
Rivers picked up 11 first downs throwing the ball and added another with his legs on a nine-yard rush—a recent trend he's been credited with.
"Philip Rivers has rushed for 1st down in 3 straight games & had at least one 9-yard run in 3 straight games. 2nd time in career for both.
— UTKevinAcee (@UTKevinAcee) September 21, 2014"
Another thing to note following Sunday's win was his ability to throw in strong winds. Rivers completed 72 percent passes for 256 yards and two touchdowns.
Grade: A
Running Back
2 of 10
Heading into Sunday's game, the Chargers were already thin at running back with Ryan Mathews recovering from an MCL sprain, and things took a turn for the worst when Woodhead was carted off the field with an ankle injury early in the first quarter.
Alex Marvez of Fox Sports first reported that Woodhead will likely need surgery, but he is expected to seek further evaluation on the injury.
".@Chargers RB Danny Woodhead likely to need surgery on right leg. Expected to seek second opinion first, @FOXSports has learned
— Alex Marvez (@alexmarvez) September 21, 2014"
Down two of their leading contributors in the ground game, San Diego turned to free-agent acquisition Donald Brown who delivered a gritty performance with such a heavy workload. Brown's previous career-high for carries in an NFL game was 18, but he shattered that mark with 31 carries against the Bills for 62 yards. And the last Chargers running back with 31 carries knows a little something about winning ball games—LaDainian Tomlinson.
"Donald Brown's 31 carries most by a #Chargers back since LT had 31 on 9/11/06.
— UTKevinAcee (@UTKevinAcee) September 21, 2014"
Reminiscent of the strategy they used against the Seahawks, the Chargers opted to bleed the clock with carries and Brown did just enough to help accomplish that.
Moving forward, San Diego has some decisions in the works with what the plan is to replace depth behind Brown at the running back position. With Mathews and Woodhead dealing with long-term injuries, Marion Grice could be an option to call up from the practice squad. Branden Oliver will also be a part of that decision—he rushed for 11 yards on three carries
Grade: B
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Eddie Royal produced his third multi-TD game as a Charger with two receiving scores against the Bills—both of which were set up on screen passes. September has been generous to Royal the past two seasons in San Diego, and he now owns five touchdowns in the lucky month dating back to last year. With one more game remaining before October starts, we'll have to see if Royal can string together more points for the Bolts.
Malcom Floyd had just two catches, but he gained 49 yards apiece on the long bombs from Rivers and helped set up scoring drives in the first and second quarters. Keenan Allen, who continues to be relatively quiet this season, had only two catches for 17 yards.
At tight end, the Bills defense paid close attention to Antonio Gates following his three-TD performance against Seattle. Gates was locked up for just one catch, but Ladarius Green benefited heavily from Gates' shortcomings. Green had two catches on a drive to set up Nick Novak's 19-yard field goal in the second quarter and followed with a pair of grabs for 14 and 26 yards to set up Royal's five-yard score in the third quarter.
Green had registered only two catches through the first two games of the season but finished with four for 64 yards on Sunday, which could mean Frank Reich intends to use him more on offense.
Grade: B
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
Allowing just one sack to one of the NFL's best pass-rushing defensive lines was a victory in itself for San Diego.
Buffalo finished second in sacks last season with 57—41 of which came from the combined efforts of Mario Williams, Kyle Williams, Marcell Dareus and Jerry Hughes. King Dunlap and D.J. Fluker held strong on the edges against M. Williams and Hughes, and while the interior struggled with Dareus and K. Williams, Rivers had the time he needed to get the ball out most of the time. Manny Lawson had the lone sack on Rivers in the second quarter.
On the ground, San Diego picked up just four first downs off of runs, but execution on screen passes like the ones that freed Royal was spot on.
Grade: B+
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Corey Liuget and Kendall Reyes looked like the duo of old getting penetration in Buffalo's backfield. Reyes, who hadn't recorded a sack since Week 16 of last season, snapped the skid in the fourth quarter of Sunday's game when he dropped EJ Manuel for a 10-yard loss on third down. Reyes came up big on the previous drive as well when he and Donald Butler clobbered C.J. Spiller for a loss on 3rd-and-1.
Liuget also got in on the fourth-quarter action, sacking Manuel and forcing a fumble in the process. The two combined for 10 tackles and three QB hits. Liuget nearly had a second sack early in the second half, but the sneaky Manuel slipped right out of Liuget's grasp and completed a 37-yard pass to Scott Chandler.
Grade: A
Linebackers
6 of 10
With Melvin Ingram placed on short-term IR earlier this week, Dwight Freeney and Jarret Johnson needed to step up at outside linebacker for the Bolts—which they did in their own individual ways.
Johnson, who missed last week's game due to the birth of his child, returned to the lineup and generated an eight-tackle performance while Freeney added a tackle for loss and a sack. San Diego also received production from Reggie Walker who was in on the tackle that forced Manuel to fumble in the fourth quarter.
At inside linebacker, Donald Butler and Manti Te'o were challenged by two shifty running backs in Spiller and Jackson. Te'o, who has been progressing from week to week, tallied 10 tackles and Butler chipped in nine. That duo has worked well together. As long as they stay healthy, they'll continue to shore up the middle of that defense.
Grade: B-
Secondary
7 of 10
Through three games, there's a lot to like about the Chargers secondary. Larry Fitzgerald, Percy Harvin and now Sammy Watkins have struggled to produce meaningful performances against San Diego.
On Sunday, Watkins caught just two balls for 19 yards one week after torching Miami for eight catches, 117 yards and a touchdown. Buffalo's top three contributors in the passing game were two running backs and a tight end. Receivers, for the most part, weren't a factor.
Brandon Flowers, who missed last week's contest with a groin injury, batted down two passes and had a near-interception of Manuel in the second quarter—the same play he injured himself on. After a brief trip to the locker room, Flowers returned and continued his stifling coverage on Watkins and the rest of Buffalo's receiving corps. Shareece Wright, who continues to battle penalties on his part, did well amid the mental mistakes.
Game ball has to go to Eric Weddle in this unit, however. The bearded one led the team with 10 tackles and delivered a monstrous hit on Marquise Goodwin in the fourth quarter that jarred the ball free, forcing an incompletion. Collectively, the Chargers limited the Bills to 4.8 yards on passing plays.
Grade: A
Special Teams
8 of 10
Nick Novak is quickly closing in on John Carney's team record of 29 consecutive field goals after kicking through No. 22 and 23 on Sunday. Novak, who has been a machine since taking the gig on a full-time basis in 2013, was perfect from 19 and 37 yards out.
Mike Scifres battled strong gusts at Ralph Wilson Stadium, but his pinpoint accuracy paid off in the fourth quarter. On his last two attempts of the game, Scifres pinned the Bills at their own nine- and five-yard line, one of which aided the Chargers in forcing Manuel to take a safety on the intentional grounding penalty.
Coverage on kick returns was also consistent as Spiller managed to return just one kick for 18 yards, a week after he was named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week with a 102-yard return for a score against the Dolphins.
Grade: A
Coaching
9 of 10
In his return to the franchise he once played for, offensive coordinator Frank Reich made all the right calls from the sideline against a very good Buffalo defense. Utilizing the same tactics from last week's win over the Seahawks, the Chargers offense pushed the ground game despite the loss of Mathews and Woodhead. Short passes to Brown were also favored when Rivers had no one open down the field. The free will given to Rivers to change things up at the line of scrimmage has been a winning formula thus far.
On defense, John Pagano knew he had to scheme for playmakers in Spiller and Watkins. Slowing down Buffalo's rushing attack was also a point of emphasis as San Diego became the first team to limit the Bills to under 100 yards rushing. Getting pressure on Manuel also paid off handsomely as he was sacked three times, fumbled once and gave up a safety.
Mike McCoy has his team really moving after two big wins against stout competition, but the Chargers need to continue this momentum during their upcoming two-game homestand against the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets.
Grade: A
Final Grades
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Grade |
| Quarterback | A |
| Running Back | B |
| WR and TE | B |
| Offensive Line | B+ |
| Defensive Line | A |
| Linebacker | B- |
| Secondary | A |
| Special Teams | A |
| Coaching | A |
| Cumulative Grade | B+ |
The Chargers are rolling early in 2014. Back-to-back wins have them in a good position with three upcoming games against some lesser competition. If everything goes well, San Diego is more than capable of being 5-1 by mid-October.
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