Chargers vs. Ravens: Postgame Grades, Notes and Quotes for San Diego

San Diego's downward spiral continued in Baltimore, as the Baltimore Ravens beat the Chargers 29-26 on a late field goal.

Justin Tucker kicked a 39-yard field goal as time expired to lift Baltimore (2-6) to its first home win of the season, one of five field goals he made on the day. Joe Flacco threw for 319 yards with a passing touchdown and rushing touchdown. Steve Smith Sr. led the Ravens in receiving with five catches for 82 yards but was injured in the third quarter and did not return. According to NFL media insider Ian Rapoport, Smith tore his Achilles and is out for the rest of the season.

Philip Rivers led the charge for San Diego (2-6) with 301 yards passing and three touchdowns. Malcom Floyd caught two scores and had 92 yards receiving, and Keenan Allen caught the other but was injured making the play. He did not return due to muscle spasms, per the official team Twitter page.

The Chargers pulled even with Baltimore at 26-26 after a 49-yard field goal from Josh Lambo with 2:27 remaining. Flacco and crew drove into San Diego territory, and a defensive pass interference penalty moved the Ravens down to the 22-yard line.

Baltimore ran two plays and called timeout with three seconds left before bringing out Tucker for the game-winner. For the third time this season, the Chargers lost a close game in the final seconds.

Time for the Week 8 edition of postgame grades, notes and quotes.

Position Grades for Chargers

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Position	Grade
QB	A
RB	C
WR	A-
TE	C+
OL	C
DL	C+
LB	C+
DB	D-
Special Teams	F
Coaching	B-

Rivers set a franchise record with his fifth consecutive game of 300 yards passing, and he once again carried San Diego in a tough loss. But as good as he is, Rivers can't do it by himself every day.

Melvin Gordon saw a season-high 18 carries and produced a personal best of 54 yards, but it was far from enough to be considered a good day for him. Danny Woodhead and Branden Oliver weren't as active, catching just two passes apiece and combining for 27 yards on the ground.

Malcom Floyd tied Tony Martin for the 10th-most touchdown receptions in franchise history with his 33rd in the second quarter and caught another in the third quarter for a career-long 70 yards. Keenan Allen totaled 35 yards in catches and sacrificed his body on an incredible touchdown snag just before the half.

Antonio Gates, playing on a sprained MCL, finished second in receiving with four catches for 56 yards, and Ladarius Green left the game due to injury after just one catch.

The offensive line, forced to shuffle due to injuries, did an OK job protecting Rivers by allowing just one sack, but the Ravens hit him six times. And once again, the running game could do very little with poorly executed blocks up front. But with guys playing different positions and getting swapped out, that's bound to happen.

With Corey Liuget carted off early in the first quarter, the defensive line was forced to pick up the slack. Kendall Reyes notched a sack, and the pressure up front was good at times. Ryan Carrethers, who came in for Liuget, put in work with seven tackles and showed hustle getting to ball-carriers.

Melvin Ingram and Jeremiah Attaochu applied pressure on Flacco and made him move. Ingram got to him for 1.5 sacks and Attaochu helped the cause by forcing Flacco out of the pocket. Donald Butler had a big tackle for loss on third down in the fourth quarter and was credited with half of an Ingram sack, and Kavell Conner played well in place of injured Manti Te'o.

The secondary, missing Eric Weddle for a second straight game, allowed 319 yards through the air, including one play for 46 yards and two for 39 yards . Jason Verrett played Steve Smith Sr. tough and broke up three passes. Everybody else struggled, including Jahleel Addae, who was burned for a 39-yard catch and cited for two costly penalties (taunting, unnecessary roughness for 15 yards each).

Josh Lambo was the lone bright spot on special teams with two made field goals. He's made eight straight for the Chargers. The poor grade really comes from the return game. Jacoby Jones returned one punt for negative-two yards and let another roll to the Chargers' 3-yard line. He's been ineffective at setting up the offense with good field position.

It's tough to put a lot of the blame on coaching considering how many injuries occurred, but Mike McCoy and his staff did a decent job of making adjustments and managing personnel. Still, a four-game losing streak is a four-game losing streak.

Injury-Plagued Game for Chargers

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Injuries plagued both teams, but San Diego took the cake in sheer number with somewhere around 12 players. In the first half alone, at least nine players came off the field, half of whom did not return.

King Dunlap (ankle), Corey Liuget (foot), Ladarius Green (ankle), Chris Watt (shoulder) and Keenan Allen (muscle spasms) exited the game at some point in the first half and did not come back in. Meanwhile, Stevie Johnson, Chris Hairston, Ricardo Mathews and Melvin Ingram were forced to come out but eventually returned.

In the second half, Jason Verrett and Jahleel Addae came off with injuries but returned, and Patrick Robinson left early with a concussion, according to Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Refs Miss Blatant Offsides on Blocked PAT, Might Have Decided the Game

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Baltimore's Asa Jackson should have been flagged for offsides on the blocked extra point just before halftime (seen here), but none of the officials saw it that way. Instead of a 17-13 lead, the Chargers went into the locker room up by three. 

Had the Chargers been able to re-kick the extra point and make it assuming everything else stayed the same, the Ravens would have needed a touchdown to win the game, not a field goal. That doesn't excuse the Chargers from losing the game, but it might have affected the outcome had it been called correctly. 

Fourth-Quarter Blunders

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Among the mistakes committed by San Diego in the fourth quarter were two bad snaps on offense, one that Rivers fell on and another he threw away for an incompletion. Right tackle Joe Barksdale was flagged for a false start penalty on third down that turned a 3rd-and-9 into a less-manageable 3rd-and-14 for the offense.

Jacoby Jones made the decision to not field a punt and it cost him, as the ball rolled for another 18 yards, pinning the Chargers at their own 3-yard line. And last but not least, Steve Williams picked up a 21-yard defensive pass interference penalty on 3rd-and-19 that set up Baltimore for the game-winning field goal.

McCoy on Injuries

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In regards to the injuries that occurred to his team, McCoy told reporters postgame, via Chargers.com, that he'd "never seen anything like that before," and "it was one thing after another." It seemed like every couple of plays a San Diego player would have to come out, and in a few instances it was for the rest of the game.

But credit the coaching staff for juggling personnel and keeping play going. Offensive line coach Joe D'Alessandris has been in that situation plenty of times this season, and he continues to find a way to balance things out.

McCoy on Crucial Special Teams Error Late in the Game

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Speaking about the punt Jacoby Jones decided not to field that instead rolled to San Diego's 3-yard line, McCoy disagreed with the call made by his returner and said Jones should have fielded the punt, per Fox Sports Xtra 1360.

Jones' blunder is one of many poor decisions he's made on special teams. And through eight games, the Chargers have just one punt-return yard. Jones, signed in the offseason to aid San Diego's kick return woes, has been a disappointment thus far, and in five games played he has a total of negative-four yards in punt returns. Going against his former team, you'd think Jones would be motivated to have a big day, but it didn't go well for him.