LA Chargers vs. New England Patriots
Hello Bolt Nation! Welcome to Talking Touchdowns!
The Chargers are coming off their third win in a row–no hocus pocus–they really are! Next up, they will jet off to New England, the home of the witch trials, to face the reigning Superbowl Champs, the New England Patriots.
Offense
- You ask and you shall receive, I guess! Last week, I talked about the Chargers needing to build a lead and they did it! Travis Benjamin had two touchdowns before the half. He ran for 65 yards on a punt return for his third touchdown as a Charger and sealed the deal in the fourth with a 42-yard touchdown catch.
- Even though our run game wasn’t going well, when the pressure was on to close out the game, they did it. The Chargers were able to control the fourth quarter and never gave the ball back to Denver.
- Philip Rivers seems to have stopped forcing the big plays and it looks like he’s begging to play with more controlled aggression. He has shown that he is able to connect with Travis Benjamin and more recently rookie Austin Ekeler. He said in an interview following the victory over Denver that digging themselves out of the past gives them the confidence that they need going forward.
- The Patriots O-line dominated the Atlanta Falcons, with 21 of 29 passing, 249 yards, and controlling the clock when the score was fairly close. Rob Gronkowski continues to be a huge asset to Tom Brady and the Patriots’ passing game. He is able to exploit matchups on the outside and find holes. He has shown to step up in the place of Julian Edelman, and he will be who the Chargers defense will need to look out for this week.
Defense
- Although the game against the Broncos was the biggest lead the Chargers have had in awhile, they missed a couple of opportunities to further their lead with dropped picks. This didn’t have a huge effect, thanks to our strong defense who was controlling the game.
- The pass rushing duo of Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram has not lost momentum! They put the pressure on Trevor Siemian and allowed no points for Denver’s offense. Thank the lord! Bosa had two sacks last week which brings him to 7.5 sacks for the 2017 and we’re not even halfway through the season! Not to mention, Melvin Ingram had one sack, now bringing him to 8.5 sacks this season.
- Last week, the Patriots defense nearly shut down one of the top five offensive lines in the NFL. They had some big stops in the red zone, limiting them to just 22 percent on third downs.
Game Prediction
I won’t lie, this is going to be a matchup that really tests the Chargers and it won’t be an easy fight. Fingers crossed our boys can keep the momentum and continue the winning streak! Go Chargers!
[NFL-Chargers-footer] [NFL-Crucial-Catch]Photo Credits:
- Los Angeles Chargers on Wikimedia Commons by San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers
- Gillette Stadium on Wikimedia Commons by Bernard Gagnon
- Travis Benjamin on Wikimedia Commons by Jeffrey Beall
- Philip Rivers on Flickr by Jeffrey Beall
- Atlanta Falcons on Wikimedia Commons by Atlanta Falcons
- Rob Gronkowski on Wikipedia by Wellsogan
- Julian Edelman on Flickr by Jeffrey Beall
- Denver Broncos Logo on Wikimedia by NFLCommunications.com
- Joey Bosa on wikimedia commons by Jeffrey Beall
- Melvin Ingram on wikimedia commons by Jeffrey Beall
- Trevor Siemian on flickr by Jeffrey Beall
