Chargers - Raiders Report Card Recap

Written by Travis Chesney | 10 December 2010

The Chargers received a Christmas gift early this year…unfortunately it was a large lump of silver and black coal.

The surging Chargers looked unstoppable and the Raiders looked as if they had given up on their season a few weeks early. After 60 minutes of football, the roles had certainly reversed. Year after year of dominating the Raiders came to a sudden, shocking halt this season as for the second time, the silver and black crushed the Chargers.

Rivers was rattled, the running game went nowhere, and there seemed to be nothing the Chargers could do to stop the Raiders on either side of the ball. Outplayed in every aspect, the defense was outran, the offense stunned and the special teams again making blunder after blunder.

QB – D

Philip Rivers didn’t necessarily have a terrible game. With virtually no protection upfront, Rivers had his eyes on the surging linebackers as opposed to receivers downfield. Excuses are excuses though, and Philip will have to find other options if the front can’t protect him. He still put up 280 yards and was hurried into a very poorly thrown interception.

RB – F

Ryan Matthews has been a disappointment all season long, unable to catch a break. It was probably best that he was able to sit this game out. The fiery “bowling ball” Mike Tolbert couldn’t get through the front line of the Raiders defense, and Sproles was knocked clear out of the game. Support up front is crucial, but Tolbert just couldn’t get anywhere.

WR – B-

280 yards has to come from somewhere, and despite the largest number owned by Antonio Gates, the receiving corps did everything they could to bail out their brutalized captain. Malcolm Floyd and Seyi Ajirotutu kept a high average on the catches they could pull in, and still had respectable numbers.

TE – A

Antonio Gates did what he could do, injury and all. Despite the throbbing pain, Gates manages to hit the field day in and day out, giving the Chargers at the very least, an opportunity to get back in the game. Leading on receptions, caught an easy TD pass, Gates went out to the field and did exactly what he had to do.

OL – F-

If in a game with no sacks the QB takes the linemen out for dinner, perhaps after this one Rivers should leave some old PB&J sandwiches in their lockers. No holes, no push, this was not the line that has been fighting to protect their teammates in the past few weeks. This was the line Bolts fans were afraid of at the beginning of the year. If they don’t step up soon, the Bolts’ playoff hopes are over.

DL – F

The stat sheet doesn’t lie, and the one sack from Antwan Applewhite, and the long list of tacklers that comes before even reaching a lineman shows a strong weakness the D-line can’t deny. The Raiders ran all over the Bolts, and showed that without Antonio Garay, there might as well be no line at all.

DB – C-

A for effort. F for execution. Comes out to an average grade for the Chargers’ defensive backs. Bouncing off of opponents and left in the dust of the Raiders’ quarterback and halfbacks, it was a troublesome outing for the Bolts’ D. They did keep the Raiders to 117 passing yards, just not quite at the level that could take the Bolts to the playoffs.

ST – C-

Another Chargers game, another bout of bad special teams luck. This time, Sproles couldn’t hold onto the ball and again, the Chargers looked hurried every time a kicker was on the field. Kaeding still went 2 for 3, and there were no breakaway runs from the feared Jacoby Ford. All in all, another average performance, something that turns disastrous in a game where other Bolts just can’t step up.

Coach – C

Where does the blame go when players fail to perform? The play calls seemed solid, but the Chargers couldn’t find an answer, even in a late-game surge. Everything seemed to have the right set-ups, but just fell apart on the field. Overall, just a poor performance. At the very least, the team seems to be accepting blame as opposed to pointing fingers.