Watched the game again, took some notes. Here's what I got:
Other than a few big plays here and there, the defense didnt play all that bad, particularly up front. Lots of tackles for a loss. Branch actually seemed to get a fair amount of pressure at times, and it looked like he may have been held a fair amount. I think it's becoming obvious why Poz has so many tackles: it's because he's never close enough to a receiver to break up a pass :/
Boy, the offense was tough to watch at times. Bortles, Robinson, and Hurns were all bright spots. Joeckel gave up too much pressure again for a top pick tackle. Beadles saved his [BLEEP] on one play by picking up a block that let bortles run free. Idk why we are paying toby so much money to be the third and one guy. Also, if he's gonna be the "third and one guy", why all the qb sneaks, and the draw play to denard? Cecil also shoulda come off the field before that pick. He literally did NOTHING to even impede the defender the slightest bit.
But my biggest beef? Playcalling. In the first half it was good for the most part. However, with a minute to go and one timeout, down 3, we try one throw and then decide to run the clock out, knowing full well that SD got the ball to start the second half. Then in the second half, our script changed. We started playing the short game offensively. I didnt count a single PA bootleg in the second half. Then on a big 3rd and 2 we call a play that has nobody running a route beyond 3 yards (why not spread them out a bit and take what comes free underneath? Dumb.)
It just seemed like we got away from what was working in the first half (a more downfield, PA based attack). I actually came away more frustrated with the 2nd half offensive playcalling than with the defense.
I have been wondering if the last minute before halftime was Jedd Fisch not wanting to put too much pressure on Bortles or Bortles not knowing how to manage the clock.
Had nothing to do with Bortles and clock management. They ran 2 running plays after an incomplete pass..... I assume it was lack of trust from Jedd. But given how momentum had swung, and with SD getting the ball after halftime, it wouldve been nice to be aggressive there.
Gus likes to talk about the players not trusting each other. I think jedd needs to start trustinf his guys more.
The last minute of the half was probably them not wanting a turnover and giving SD a chance to score again before the half ended.
Quote:The last minute of the half was probably them not wanting a turnover and giving SD a chance to score again before the half ended.
You cant play conservative like that with plenty of time on the clock. That's how you lose games. You gotta play to win, and a FG was certainly attainable with a timeout and 50 some seconds. I understand that a turnover was what they were hoping to avoid, but i think that's a poor philosophy for a 0-3 team. And we kept going for it on 4th, so it felt like an odd time to all of a sudden get conservative
Quote:The last minute of the half was probably them not wanting a turnover and giving SD a chance to score again before the half ended.
Good point. The Chargers did have all three timeouts.
Quote:Good point. The Chargers did have all three timeouts.
They wouldnt have had enough time to do anything anyway. Had we missed on 2 more passes, they pry only get the ball back with 30 seconds in their own territory
Being afraid to put a drive together with a timeout and a little under a minute was inexcusable. Was basically saying we are okay with the moral victory of being down 3
Quote:Gus likes to talk about the players not trusting each other. I think jedd needs to start trustinf his guys more.
I agree with you there. I do think that some of it had to do with it being Bortles' first start. Hopefully the playbook opens up more. He proved that he can extend the play to make the downfield throw. He even stepped up in the pocket a couple of times in the first half. No reason to not play to his strengths.
Quote:They wouldnt have had enough time to do anything anyway. Had we missed on 2 more passes, they pry only get the ball back with 30 seconds in their own territory
Plenty of time for a field goal with a couple of timeouts and Rivers as your QB.
Quote:You cant play conservative like that with plenty of time on the clock. That's how you lose games. You gotta play to win, and a FG was certainly attainable with a timeout and 50 some seconds. I understand that a turnover was what they were hoping to avoid, but i think that's a poor philosophy for a 0-3 team. And we kept going for it on 4th, so it felt like an odd time to all of a sudden get conservative
Relax. It was the first start for the rookie QB. It's okay to be conservative in that situation to avoid making a critical mistake that blows up in your face. I have absolutely no doubt that had they gotten aggressive there and tried to force the ball down the field to get into field goal range, and Bortles threw a pick that went the other way for a touchdown, people of your ilk would be blasting the play calling that way as well.
Quote:I agree with you there. I do think that some of it had to do with it being Bortles' first start. Hopefully the playbook opens up more. He proved that he can extend the play to make the downfield throw. He even stepped up in the pocket a couple of times in the first half. No reason to not play to his strengths.
No doubt they will develop more trust for the rookie as the season progresses, but to rip them for being conservative in this instance is just silly.
I had no problem with them running out the clock to go into half time only down 3.... at that point we were doing well. no reason to risk a 3 n out throwing the ball and letting SD get the ball back to score before half
Quote:I had no problem with them running out the clock to go into half time only down 3.... at that point we were doing well. no reason to risk a 3 n out throwing the ball and letting SD get the ball back to score before half
Exactly. It was the smart play.
Quote:Relax. It was the first start for the rookie QB. It's okay to be conservative in that situation to avoid making a critical mistake that blows up in your face. I have absolutely no doubt that had they gotten aggressive there and tried to force the ball down the field to get into field goal range, and Bortles threw a pick that went the other way for a touchdown, people of your ilk would be blasting the play calling that way as well.
I was looking forward to seeing how Bortles handles hurry-up situations. If Fisch wanted him to run the one-minute offense, a pick six would have been caused by trying to score in a short time.
Quote:I was looking forward to seeing how Bortles handles hurry-up situations. If Fisch wanted him to run the one-minute offense, a pick six would have been caused by trying to score in a short time.
Thanks for the analysis.
Quote:No doubt they will develop more trust for the rookie as the season progresses, but to rip them for being conservative in this instance is just silly.
I wouldn't say it's silly. It was pretty obvious what was working in the first half. I understand San Diego changed up their coverages on the back end to take away the long routes. It's why the big play to Harbour in the 2nd half was still him catching it underneath with YAC. But you shouldn't abandon what was working in the first half. Even with a rookie QB, the play calling should reflect his strengths.
Quote:Relax. It was the first start for the rookie QB. It's okay to be conservative in that situation to avoid making a critical mistake that blows up in your face. I have absolutely no doubt that had they gotten aggressive there and tried to force the ball down the field to get into field goal range, and Bortles threw a pick that went the other way for a touchdown, people of your ilk would be blasting the play calling that way as well.
You can call high percentage pass plays. 50 seconds wouldve been more than enough time.
Quote:I had no problem with them running out the clock to go into half time only down 3.... at that point we were doing well. no reason to risk a 3 n out throwing the ball and letting SD get the ball back to score before half
Things werent going well. Your defense had already given up 2 quick scores. Strong likelihood that SD was gonna score when they got the ball to start the second half