BOLT ANALYSIS -WEEK 12

Well, they lifted the blackout in San Diego at the 11^th hour and actually put the game on TV. A good thing for the fans..not so sure for the network. A couple of plays after halftime, this game was 35-7 and it was pretty much not worth watching from that point on. Back in Week 7..a struggling Charger team played the Chiefs in their house and crushed them 37-7. Here is what I said after that event: You can only line up against one team at a time. And we lined up against the perfect tonic for our ills..the Chiefs.

I must echo that here in Week 12. As we discussed back then…we need to stop worrying about playing our “best” or playing “good” teams. We just need to line up and beat the team in front of us. I see a focus on our team that we have not had recently…and I think they would have played even better had the Chiefs not self-destructed like a poorly made pipe bomb. This game was tied at one point…with the Chiefs driving easily with the ball. If Jamaal Charles does not fumble at the end of a long carry (nice play Jammer) who knows how that changes the tenor of the game? This time, we jumped on it…and kept jumping on it…turning 4 Chiefs turnovers into 28 points. The Chiefs did everything wrong…interceptions, fumbles, a safety, a snap over the head, a pass off a helmet, bad penalties, and bad throws. Despite our best attempts to make Chambers look like Jerry Rice and make Jamaal Charles look like vintage LT…we just kept taking advantage and making plays. It is tough to keep up focus when you are that far ahead…but we managed…even while putting in many of our backups. Let’s start with the good stuff:

It is beginning to sound a bit stale…but Phillip Rivers is completely in control of this offense. He was crazy accurate again…21 for 28…317 yards…2 touchdowns…0 interceptions. A couple of long bombs to Jackson broken up by nice plays, or he would have had 400 yards and another TD. He is just awesome right now…and the line is giving him time. He was hurried once yesterday that I remember…right in the beginning of the game. Other than that..our line is making it work. Hats off to new guy Dombrowski, subbing for Jeromy Clary. A false start penalty or two…but a great debut by a rookie from San Diego State who never expected to even play this year. We have had a lot of guys like this come through for us.

And…of course, there is Gates. When he plays the Chiefs…he is just in his own stratosphere. So wide open most of the day you just wondered what the heck was going on? Two great TD catches. And, if the game was not so out of hand, who knows what kind of numbers he and Phillip would have put up. You could almost see the frustration in Phillip’s face toward the end “Just let me throw the damn ball!” But, being up 43-14 is a good problem to have. Finally, the Defense, despite liberal subbing in and out and makeshift formations, they were very good. Jammer seemed everywhere….Larry English was energetic…Phillips blew up some plays. Brandon Siler continues to emerge as a very solid middle linebacker. The most impressive part was that 3 MORE DEFENSIVE STARTERS got hurt and left the game…and we still never looked in danger. This team is getting more and more confident…and backup guys are getting more and more exposure. That will only help later.

And now for the bad: Well, it’s not really THAT bad…but it is troubling. Let’s see…Weddle sprains his ACL, Burnett has a concussion, and Merriman’s tendinitis in his foot is “too painful to continue”. Nice that it was a blowout….or these would have been massive injuries. Every team has injuries…especially this time of the season…but don’t you think ours are getting a little ridiculous? We just keep losing guys. For my money, Weddle is playing the best football of his short career so him missing a few games is rough. Merriman, after coming on pretty well a few games ago, has been reduced to a decoy and largely ineffectual player again. Expect all of these guys to sit against Cleveland for many obvious reasons. Finally, it is not really THAT bad…but LT’s fumble and overall rushing inadequacy is troubling. He so clearly is mentally checked out when he leaves the field these days; he was not ready for that play and fumbled into the end zone. This is a guy who fumbled once in TWO YEARS while he was carrying the ball more than anyone else in the League. Clearly, this liberal subbing him in and out for a play here and a play there looks to be our immediate rushing future. He wants it…but I don’t like it…he seems to never get any momentum going. Again, tough to tell given the nature of this game….but still awkward.

OK…perhaps the best thing is our next opponent. Cleveland is probably the worst team in the League at 1-10. They have nearly no weapons and this will be a cold-weather game..so look for a Classic “Norv Management” game. The two games after this are at Dallas and home against the Bengals. Good teams. Look for Norv to sit all these injured guys and hope the Bolts can win on the road against the hapless Browns with a conservative, back-up laden lineup. We are saving up for the stretch drive, people. If Norv’s master plan comes true, we will be the healthiest we have been when the playoffs hit. Hmmm…..that might get interesting. Just keep focused on the team in front of you.

BONUS COVERAGE: Don’t forget to watch the battle for Oregon and the Rose Bowl this Thursday night. Go Ducks!