BOLT ANALYSIS: A WELCOME BLACKOUT

The first of the Charger Blackout games has come and gone.  Perhaps some of you out there actually saw the whole game? The ANALYSIS did not. When the Blackout news became official, the ANALYSIS chose to spend this 92 degree day strolling around Disneyland with the family and approximately 1.2 million other people who were not at Qualcomm.  Despite this sweaty decision, given the joy that is the Direct TV Redzone channel...much of the game was actually on television. This may become a rarity for home games, because if the Chargers cannot come close to a sell out when undefeated.  Now that they are exposed....who is gonna come out to watch? Hmmm....

The Boyz got punked yesterday.  Demolished and destroyed by a good, solid team on their own field. The ANALYSIS had pondered what might happen when the Chargers faced a complete team; one that could stretch the field with receivers and tight ends. Well...there you go.  A 27-3 crusher.  Interestingly, the second most lopsided loss in the Norval era and the lowest points ever scored under Norv. How good are the Falcons? Not sure. I think they are very sound and very disciplined. They had a good game plan that was nimble and versatile and they adjusted. The Chargers on the other hand, were a sad-sack, vanilla-based group of bores.  Both sides of the ball got schooled yesterday. The defense gave up LONG drives of 96, 80, and 84 yards. Phillip threw two disgusting interceptions; Mathews and Rosario fumbled (one of them on the 3 yard line going in). Add in penalties and grievous pass-blocking and you have a putrid stew of underachievement. Look, you had to figure this would be a difficult game. At the same time, the Falcons were traveling cross-country on a short week. Losing to a good team is OK...getting rolled on your home turf like that is probably a bit more emblematic of the type of team we have.

I am not going to focus on individual performance other than to say not one player stood out to me. Bad across the board. Instead, I will focus on the “5 Big Things” that were listed by the ANALYSIS in the preseason. They were (in abridged form):  Rivers’ abilities, Mathews’ injuries and fumbling, Gaither’s back, pass rush (read: 3^rd downs), and secondary (read: 3^rd downs). OK, let’s do the math......0 for 5 yesterday.

Has Rivers regressed? Has he slipped from his spot as “near elite”? Not sure yet but there are some troubling patterns here. Let’s be fair, first and foremost he is a victim of a line that is decent on their best days and far below average on their worst. Throw in the fact that they have an undrafted rookie at the most difficult spot on the line and, you get the picture. Poor #79 was bum rushed by three different players yesterday. He was on roller skates all game long. Although the box score shows only 1 sack of Rivers, almost all of his throws were rushed or worried. He is hearing footsteps, even when they are not there. The game planning suffers with this lack of protection, and, even when he has time he does not think he does. Not a good sign.

Mathews? All I can do is sigh. Figured the kid would have some jitters in his first game back from a broken clavicle. But, as has been the story all along, just as he starts picking up steam...he fumbles the ball again. In sports we always tend to move toward hyperbole..but I don’t blame anyone who says this guy just does not get it. A fumble on the 3 yard line in your first game?. A broken bone in his first practice? You cannot close the book on him yet..not by a long shot...but it is getting very tough to think we have  a real running back here. We shall see.

Gaither? Well, he is turning into the biggest mistake in years. He has had two MRIs...both negative. Nobody can tell us what is wrong with him. The Chargers are mum. Gaither is mum. It would not surprise me one bit if this guy takes his $8 million guaranteed and retires. He seems like that type of guy. If he cannot be motivated by his teammates, coaches, or pride...what can motivate him?  We are three games into the season and he has not even tried to practice yet. It is really an amazing situation that the SD Press and fans are letting this guy off so easily. He is a joke at this point. Plain and simple. And it is really hurting the team. Maybe it will turn out that he truly has a crazy, debilitating injury...but the secrecy and weirdness surrounding it leads me the other direction.

Finally, third downs. The combination of our pass rush and secondary was overmatched and blown out on Sunday. They were 8-13 on 3^rd downs...and their drives were long and dominant. For a team that had done so well in this category in the first two games, this is a real bummer. Where is our new super-rookie Melvin Ingram? Where is Larry English? Again, maybe the Falcons are a really good team that played a really good game. But, uh, again...I am going in another direction.

Because the ANALYSIS is all about hope and positive vibes, I will leave you with this thought. The NFL is in total chaos. There are only three undefeated teams after week 3. The Patriots have a losing record for the first time since the Revolutionary War. Somehow, some way...the dismal Tennessee Titans and Oakland Raiders (teams we beat up on) won yesterday against “good” teams like the Steelers and Lions. Drew Brees and the Saints are 0-3. Who the heck knows who is good and who is not? Let’s do this, followers; let’s not panic. Let’s take one out of the Good Book of Norval:  “How to Behave, and What to Say” and chalk this loss up to the following reason:  “We did not execute to the best of our ability today. We have a lot of pride and we need to go back to the drawing board to work on getting the most out of the situations we find ourselves in. We need to give ourselves a chance at crucial points and take care of that ball”. Nice! There it is! All we need to do to be successful. I feel like I just got back from a Tony Robbins speech....or a U2 concert.

Look, we have two road games in a row now. A big one at KC and then at the winless Saints. What team comes home in a couple weeks...a team that has shown it can win? Or the one that sends me back to Disneyland? (Hint: I did buy an annual pass.)

BOLT ANALYSIS: FORGET THE TITANS

Total domination. Rarely have we uttered those words in the vaunted halls of the ANALYSIS...especially when we were referring to the Bolts. Yesterday’s smackdown had all the pieces....all the characteristics...of a real win. It was the kind of win that makes you sit back and say, “Does that other team even belong in the NFL?”. Consider the stats:  43 minutes of possession!, 9 first downs by the Titans, allowing only 1 third down conversion while converting 60% of their own third downs. This is the game that Norval watches on his deathbed when they ask him what he wants to spend his last couple of hours doing. It got so silly in the 4^th quarter I thought the replacement refs were going to call the Pop Warner mercy rule.

Before we all start chanting “We’re Number 1!, We’re Number 1”...let’s remember that the Titans might be really, really bad. They were fleeced by the Patriots in Week 1 (who then inexplicably got punked by the Cardinals) and they came in to our home opener with a young quarterback, a banged up receiving corps, and a bit of a no-name defense.  Their once-amazing running back, Chris Johnson, was held to 20+ yards, underscoring again that amazing drop off that so many running backs face. Think about LT..one year he is amazing..the next...ouch. Their line could not block, their receivers could not get open, and they could not catch the ball. So, before we start calling AJ a genius again, let’s remember that last year we were (based on that prophetic ANALYSIS quote) the “Worst 4-1 team in Football”.

OK. Caveats and ass-covering aside, yesterday was a good one. Once again, I must give props to Norv and the coaching staff. A very nice set of play calls in the first quarter had us moving the ball despite the utter absence of a running game. Quick hitters, moving Philip (I know it’s oxymoronic) around in the pocket, finding seams. Moving the chains. Some nice pressure on Jake Locker led to an interception and just like that we were up 17-0. Easy as can be. The Boyz went into a bad kind of cruise control in the second quarter and three possessions in a row were weak..including a true head-scratcher of an interception by Philip and a fumble that he was lucky was recovered by a friendly face. The second-half, however was pretty darn impressive. We had LONG drives...the defense pummeled their foes...and suddenly Jackie Battle came from out of nowhere and gave us a running game. The only Titans score in the second half was courtesy of a big special teams kickoff return and a few quick plays...other than that...nothin’. Yesterday was a fitting tribute to Junior Seau, as they retired his number. He would have been proud of the swarming, tenacious defense we provided.  

The defense was great all day. Good pressure up the middle from the big boys up front....great pursuit by linebackers on the running game. Did not sack Locker much but certainly got in his face. Once again, I thought Shawn Phillips and Donald Butler stood out. Very active and sure tackling. Cason was strong as was the safety tandem of Weddle and Bigby. Never heard Jammer’s name called, which was a good thing considering he broke his thumb last game and had a big ol’ cast on. The defense was hyped all game...mainly because they had so much rest. They were never on the field.

Offensively, the Bolts had absolutely zero running game for three quarters and yet still were just awesome on third down. When the news that Gates would be out hit...I’m sure all you fans out there cringed...”not again!”. But, the three backups were pretty crazy. Three touchdowns for Dante Rosario! Former Oregon Duck and picked up mainly to block and provide depth...he showed us some nice skills. Add in some great catches by Randy McMichael and a nice debut 31 yard catch from rookie Ladarius Green and we look pretty solid at the position. Malcom Floyd also had his second good game, making clutch catches all over the field. I think he is the guy who should have received a 4 year deal like Robert (Cloak of Invisibility) Meacham. Where the hell is our #1 receiver? Once he shows up....maybe we really will be dangerous in the passing game. As far as rushing the ball...we are trying. I love Brinkley’s toughness and attitude. And I think Ronnie Brown also tries hard. But these guys are just not that good. When Jackie Battle came in, it looked like a different team. Fierce runs, pummeling linemen, picking up yards.  I have to believe it was a tired and beat down Titans defense. But, maybe it was just a good fresh runner who has some juice to break tackles. We really need Ryan Mathews back...but at least you know we have some depth.

So, what next? Well, the Falcons come to town. This will be the first real team we play. They play tonight against the Denver Mannings, so we shall see what they are made of. But, our first two opponents are 0-4, so the Falcons should provide some big challenges, especially for our defense.

Taking the pulse of this team after week two, I am cautiously optimistic. One thing that is different from last year is depth. We have it. We are not a one-trick pony on either side of the ball. We are improving and running a lot of different personnel through plays...which will only help as the year goes along. Getting Gates and Mathews and Antonio Garay and (someday) Jared Gaither back will only make us better. I see a lot of good decision-making out there, good positioning, and good judgment. Aside from a couple of Philip brain-freezes, we have poise on both sides of the ball. Again, this will be tested next Sunday. We really have not been stretched by a team yet. We have not played a team that can actually get the ball downfield. The Falcons can do that. They will try to expose the weakness of our running game as well. But, if we can take another step forward...there is no reason to think we cannot continue to roll. One game at a time.

BOLT ANALYSIS: SLOPPY YET SATISFYING

Hmmmm......I must admit the ANALYSIS appears to be at a loss for words. Usually, the first game of the season brings some significant material and pithy observances come the day after. But not today. Last night’s midnight matchup between the Raiders and the Chargers kind of just leaves me feeling, uh, I don’t know. My glass does not appear half-empty, nor does it appear half-full. It is just a glass. For all the good things I saw last night, I saw an equal number of bad things. Ying with the Yang.

We will start with the good stuff. We won. The Chargers looked well coached last night. Yep, I said it.  I know there are a lot of Norv-haters out there, but Norval and company had a conservative game plan designed to protect their QB, and use every last player at their disposal. They had flashes of that frustrating Norvalism that includes conservative play calls, but, for the most part the plays worked, they kept Philip upright...they moved the chains...and they took time off the clock. All eyes were on Mike Harris, who I’m sure was as nervous as hell starting play. They gave him a lot of help with running backs and tight ends sliding over to assist blocking on the left side, but give the kid credit. He held up pretty darn well. The passing game featured a lot of screens and quick hitters to running backs. Fine with me. Gates, Meacham, Royal, and Floyd all got involved and had some good catches...especially Floyd. Gates dropped two balls, one in the end zone, but it sure was nice to see him running at full speed out there and taking hits. 

Also qualifying (for the most part) in the ”good stuff” category was the defense. Not a great game by any stretch but they were solid all around. Their run stuffing was excellent. Holding McFadden to 30 something yards is a major accomplishment for the guys up front. Donald Butler stood out to me. He looked fast, in position, and dangerous all night. He is also a sure tackler. This guy, in only his second full season, sure looks like a gem. The new guys, Ingram and Kendall Reyes, looked good. The defensive line was getting some push. Atari Bigby had some nice hits and provided some MUCH needed physicality in our secondary and I thought old man Jammer looked rough and ready. He got jobbed on a bad pass interference call but he seemed solid all night long.

And, then there was the play of the Special Teams. The punting apocalypse that happened to the Raiders last night was similar to our special teams problems two years ago. That poor dude trying to long snap looked like one of those rugby dudes rolling the ball out of the scrum. Terrible. And, the blocked punt was a thing of beauty. Lost in these mishaps was the fact that Eddie Royal looked good on punt returns and Richard Goodman looked good on kickoffs. The hero of the night however proved to be Nate Kaeding. Coming off of a missed season caused by his single kickoff in 2011, he blasted 5 field goals. All right down the middle. Off the dirt, off the grass, did not matter. He nailed ‘em. Good for you Nate. We need you.

So. What was not so good. Well.....it was the same cast of characteristics. We simply cannot score touchdowns in the red zone. The Raiders so completely self-destructed in this game with penalties, boneheaded plays, drops, and turnovers, we should have put it away early. I don’t know if it is play calling or what...but having the ball that many times inside the 20 without scoring TD’s ain’t gonna work against a real team. There was a drop or two....and Philip airmailed a sure TD ball to Floyd. But mostly it was just plays that got blown up. You can point to the positives...no turnovers and we did get field goals...but this just has to improve. The lack of a real running game is a big part of this failure. We had a total of 34 yards on the ground. Ouch. This limits the options and allows teams to play our receivers with confidence.

The other thing that was disappointing was the third down defense and overall lack of a pass rush. Again, the same old thing. Sure, we got going late with some sacks, but that was only when the Raiders finally chose to try to throw the ball downfield. No pressure for much of the night. The saving grace was the Raiders have no downfield threats with their two best receivers out. I thought Cason played soft, so a real receiver back there would have done some damage. As it was, we just got the drop pass to McFadden over and over again. It moved the chains, but did not add up to much.

So, how to summarize?  Uh....as I mentioned in the lead paragraph....there is just not a lot to say. I must apologize for this post but, much like the lingering impacts of the preseason, the ANALYSIS is not yet in mid-season form. That being said, you can only call ‘em as you see ‘em, and this game was just kind of blah. But, in keeping with my optimistic hope-filled thematic (that was penned in the afterglow of my coveted Stanley Cup win) I will just say the following:

We won the game. We beat a Divisional opponent. We beat a Divisional opponent on the road. Our QB played with poise. Our defense was solid. We are in first place in the Division. Our record is the same as the Patriots and the Broncos and the Ravens and the Jets. Yes, we have a lot of work to do. But that is OK. Opening games can be sloppy. This one was but we are better for it. We open up our home slate next weekend against a banged up Tennessee team. That is all good.

And, perhaps most importantly, football is back baby.

BOLT ANALYSIS: KICK OFF

And here we are. On the cusp of the 2012-2013 season.  Wednesday night, the Cowboys and the Giants opened things up for the good ‘ol NFL. Did not see all of the game, but I did see a pretty darn good looking Cowboys team beat up on the defending champs. The Cowboys have led a similar life to the Chargers. They have underachieved, relied on a hot and cold QB, struggled to get teams off the field, had moments of brilliance and, ultimately, they have choked when it counted. A very similar story to our Boyz. So, it was nice to see that team play a complete game and win one to start the season. There were a lot of questions about their O-line, their secondary, and about the play of Tony Romo. All those questions were answered, at least for one game.

And in other news yesterday...RG3 makes a splash, the Broncos and Peyton look fast and solid, the Jets destroy the Bills (without Tebow), the Patriots look as solid as ever, just plugging in pieces and everything seems to work, the Browns cannot buy a win. Ah Week 1 in the NFL....it is a blunderbuss of emotions, hopes and expectations. As the ANALYSIS always says however, you must take things on an even keel. Don’t get too up or too down. Teams that shoot out of the gate are often found wanting in the stretch. The difference between 1-0 and 0-1 is just not a whole heck of a lot. So, where will the Chargers fit into this madness? We will find out tonight.....but , we should probably talk about it first.

If the last preseason game was any indication of how this season will go, we are in DEEP trouble folks. For those of you unlucky enough to watch it, it was hideous. A 35-3 beatdown at the hands of the 49ers that was embarrassing from start to finish. Our first team offense had two series against their backups (they rested all 11 starters). These series’ ended in a fumble by Gates and an interception by Rivers. Their offense effortlessly blew apart our D the entire evening. We honestly looked surprised that they were playing hard. Penalties, turnovers, missed blocks, dropped passes. Horrible.  Regardless of the outcome, perhaps more unnerving is the fact that we just looked spiritless. ALREADY? These are guys trying to make a football team and they look like they would rather be playing X-Box. Uh oh.  But, as you know, the preseason does not count. It is a good thing.

It is up to the ANALYSIS to try to have a take on this thing. What kind of team will we be?  Who will show up against the Raiders tonight? Let’s start with who won’t show up: 

•             Jared Gaither, our $24 million left tackle, has played one practice. One. He still has “back spasms” yet he has had at least 3 MRIs and seen at least 3 specialists. Whenever the Chargers camp is quiet and coy...the situation is bad. This has all the makings of an epic mistake of a signing. The guy has been cut twice...there was some history there. He will not play tonight and it looks impossible that he will play any time soon. Instead, an undrafted rookie out of UCLA will start at the most important protective position on the team. Wait, is that the UCLA that gave up over 50 points to both Oregon and UCLA and scored, uh, almost nothing in those games. Yep...that is the team. How does this stuff happen? How does a professional team end up with nobody to play a position of this importance? AJ...what the heck? This is not just the impact of having an inexperienced guy out there (and I wish you all the luck in the world Mike Harris). The other huge impact is that they need to dumb down the playbook, keep running backs in pass coverage, and go simplistic on their schemes.

•             Ryan Mathews. He won’t play tonight. He has been working hard to get back from his broken clavicle. Suffered on his ONE carry of the preseason. He wants to play, but I doubt he will...leaving Ronnie Brown as our featured running back. We shall see how that goes. At least he has a lot of experience.

•             Vincent Brown. As described in an earlier ANALYSIS, he broke his ankle in the preseason and will not be seen until Week 8 at the earliest.

So, who will show up and play well? Followers, I have no clue on offense. Our offense has been horrible. Rivers has looked out of sync and did not get to play much in preseason games. Although Gates has looked good, I have real concerns about Robert Meacham and Malcom Floyd...they have not been open and have not been on the same page as Philip. Eddie Royal has hardly played, and our running game has been dismal. Our offensive line has not played together in a game situation at all and we feature very little depth on the line.

Things have been brighter on defense...at least up until the 49er game. The defensive line and linebackers have looked solid, pass rush has been OK, tackling has been OK. Our secondary has been spotty...Weddle and Cason have been good....the others have not played much. Special teams has looked good...Kaeding seems back in form and we seem to have good coverage.

So what does all that mean? Will we put it all together and get after the Raiders on Monday? Folks, back in the day, a younger, cockier ANALYSIS used to make predictions. Predictions on how many wins the Bolts would have, predictions on playoff teams, predictions on just about everything. An older, wiser, and better looking ANALYSIS does not do that anymore. So many seasons of failed expectations. Seasons where everything looked good coming out of the gate have devolved into 8-8 finishes. Seasons (like last year) started 4-1 and failed miserably. We have been through it before. Keep in mind, this team has not won a playoff game since after the 2008 season. That is quite some time now.

So, no big time predictions coming from here. But, what I will do is predict what will happen tonight. I think tonight’s game will be a sloppy affair. I think both teams will need some time to get into the swing of things. I think both defenses will play well. I think, however, that the difference in the game will be the fact that the Raiders have a consistent runner in Darren McFadden. That type of consistency tends to win the day. Will a Charger loss spell doom for the season? Of course not. Realize we have a lot of new faces on this team, it will take time to gel. And, who knows, just like the fans of the Cowboys, Redskins, Cardinals, Buccaneers, Falcons, and Broncos did today...maybe we wake up tomorrow with that extra burst of energy....that extra spring in our step...

Let’s kick it off.