Denver Broncos vs. San Diego Chargers: Full Report Card Grades for San Diego
The San Diego Chargers will need help reaching the playoffs after suffering a 22-10 setback against the Denver Broncos on Sunday.
The Chargers were vacated from the final wild-card spot in the AFC by Baltimore, which beat up Jacksonville 20-12 earlier in the day. The next two road games will decide San Diego's postseason hopes.
Peyton Manning came into Sunday's game feeling under the weather, and it showed at times. For the second week in a row, Manning completed only 14 passes, but it was all Denver needed to top San Diego's slumping offense.
Earlier this week, Philip Rivers told reporters how relieved he was to not have to depend on outside help, but he also stressed the importance of getting the job done against the Broncos. He and the rest of the team failed to do so, and the Chargers now find themselves in a similar position to last season, when their entrance into the playoffs was scenario-based.
Here's how the units graded out.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Rivers had the unfortunate burden of putting the success of the offense on his shoulders without much of a run game to turn to. In 41 attempts, he completed 24 passes for 232 yards and averaged 5.66 yards per attempt—his lowest of the season.
Rivers protected the ball through three quarters, but when San Diego's deficit grew to six in the final quarter, the need to press amounted to two interceptions. Keenan Allen's early exit due to injury noticeably affected Rivers.
Grade: D
Running Back
2 of 10
San Diego tried to force Branden Oliver down Denver's throat with draw plays and inside runs, but the front seven would have none of it, holding the rookie to 26 yards on 12 carries. Donald Brown added 18 yards on five carries.
Where the Chargers utilized Oliver and Brown the most was in the passing game, an area they need to explore more often. Screens and dumpoffs to the backs kept the Broncos pass rush honest and bailed Rivers out of trouble. Oliver had 44 yards receiving and Brown gained 38.
Grade: D+
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Allen was targeted eight times by Rivers, but lockdown coverage from Chris Harris Jr. held San Diego's No. 1 receiver to three catches for 18 yards before he left the game with an ankle injury. Malcom Floyd and Eddie Royal also managed three receptions apiece for 34 and 27 yards, respectively.
Denver's secondary matched up well with the receiving corps, as Antonio Gates was the only pass-catcher to have an impact. Gates caught all but one of his seven targets for 54 yards and hauled in a late score to bring the Chargers within six points in the fourth quarter.
Grade: C-
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
As Phil Simms alluded to during the CBS broadcast Sunday, the offensive line had a solid second-half effort in protecting Rivers and giving him time to throw. The Broncos didn't have a sack all game, nor did they get a hit on San Diego's quarterback.
But it wasn't necessarily all good. Oliver and Brown had little to no blocking on most run plays, and right tackle D.J. Fluker cost his team field position with a pair of penalties that included smacking DE Derek Wolfe upside the head in front of an official. Coach Mike McCoy ripped into Fluker on the sidelines, and he had every reason to.
Grade: B-
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Some missed tackles on C.J. Anderson propelled the Broncos running back to 85 yards rushing, but when the defense needed a stop near the goal line, it delivered courtesy of a strong push by the defensive line. Corey Liuget had five tackles, Sean Lissemore recorded two and Kendall Reyes added one.
Where the D-line struggled, however, was in disrupting the passing game.
Grade: C+
Linebacker
6 of 10
Melvin Ingram's skills continue to flourish under defensive coordinator John Pagano. He now has sacks in back-to-back games and 10 tackles over the previous two contests. Ingram nearly added a turnover for the Chargers defense when he knocked the ball free from Manning's grasp, but the Broncos recovered.
Kavell Conner put in a five-tackle effort, and Andrew Gachkar continues to impress as he totaled eight tackles, including two for loss. Donald Butler has been a big disappointment since he got paid in the offseason. He had two tackles before leaving with an arm injury, which occurred on a block from Manning.
Grade: B
Secondary
7 of 10
The last time San Diego played Denver, it was Emmanuel Sanders who went off for 100-plus receiving yards and three scores, but this time it was Demaryius Thomas who put on a show. Thomas saw coverage from Brandon Flowers for most of the day with a few appearances from Shareece Wright, and he finished with 123 yards and a touchdown.
Even while battling flu-like symptoms, Manning managed to connect on 14 passes for 233 yards—a 16.6-yard average. Flowers was beaten for a 36-yard gain by Thomas, Wright forfeited a 33-yard catch to Sanders and Eric Weddle couldn't thwart a 30-yard pass to Julius Thomas despite good coverage.
The assumption was that Flowers would make the difference in a second meeting with Denver after missing the first game, but Denver's weapons proved to be too much.
Grade: C-
Special Teams
8 of 10
Heading into Sunday's matchup, Nick Novak had gone 20-of-21 on field-goal attempts, but that was before his holder (Mike Scifres) was lost to injury. Newest Charger Mat McBriar took over holding duties for Novak and appeared to do fine, but Novak wound up missing two field goals that could have been huge.
Novak had a 46-yard attempt tipped and a 37-yard attempt bounced off the left post.
McBriar averaged nearly 50 yards on four punts with a long of 54.
Chris Davis returned two kickoffs for 47 yards, and Royal's only punt return went for a whopping 58 yards.
Grade: D
Coaching
9 of 10
This offense isn't the same under Frank Reich. Sure, it pulls concepts from the previous scheme installed by former OC Ken Whisenhunt, but the Chargers have struggled to move the ball and finish drives with points. Believe it or not, San Diego actually reached the red zone five times, but only converted one of those trips into a touchdown.
What may have been the most frustrating, however, was the desire to keep running Oliver for no gain between the tackles.
Pagano's defense, meanwhile, continues to play lights out in the red zone, shutting out the Broncos in three trips. The secondary folded in the second half by allowing the long touchdown to Thomas, but keeping the NFL's fourth-highest scoring team to 22 points should be looked at as some sort of a moral victory.
Being the offensive guru that he is, I would expect a McCoy-led offense to have better results in year two, but you could argue it has regressed somewhat.
Grade: C-
Final Grades
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Grade |
| Quarterback | D |
| Running Back | D+ |
| Wide Receiver and Tight End | C- |
| Offensive Line | B- |
| Defensive Line | C+ |
| Linebacker | B |
| Secondary | C- |
| Special Teams | D |
| Coaching | C- |
| Cumulative Grade | C- |
The Chargers played the AFC's top two teams in back-to-back weeks and kept both contests close into the second half, but the offensive woes continue to hinder what should be a good team. Last season, critics complained that San Diego had no defense, and now that Pagano has given them that, the offense has suddenly decided to sputter.
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