Chargers vs 49ers: Thoughts on the game

Aug 7, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates (85) on the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

I didn’t get to write on the San Diego Chargers game against the San Francisco 49ers last night, so I will quickly put my thoughts down on this post for you to read this morning.

We lost the game, but…

WHO CARES… THIS IS PRESEASON

The part of the game that we most should be interested in was when the 1s were in the game. The offense looked good when they were on the field, except that they were unable to convert on a couple of short yardage situations.  The 4th down lay in the red zone as a gamble that we usually don’t see out of Mike McCoy and the fact that we failed might give him more reason to kick field goals in that spot.

The offense did look good though and they were moving the ball down the field on the 49ers defense.  Philip Rivers missed on one pass and it was on a deep ball to Ladarius Green that he didn’t put out far enough.

This offense will move the ball down the field. I have no doubts about it.

Antonio Gates may not be able to create separation like he used to, but he still knows how to create enough room for Philip Rivers to get him the ball. His move in the end zone found him wide open for an easy touchdown.

The defense looked strong as well. Corey Liuget was playing out of this world on the defensive line. All the talk about the crap play up front must have motivated the big man to do some things. The defense was active and around the football. Eric Weddle stripped Colin Kaepernick on one run and Liuget also got the strip sack on another drive.

The defensive front clogged up the running game as well. There were a few times that the middle of the field was open, but Kaepernick was unable to hit his man.

CB Steve Williams looked like toast covering Bruce Ellington yesterday. There still is a lot for the kid to work on. Blaine Gabbert looked like he was picking on him all day.  We might need him during the year, so we will have to watch how he develops.

Brad Sorensen was all over the place with the football. I am not sure what the team will want to do with him. Final cuts are at the end of the week and he will be one that we have to watch. Do we really need to keep 3 quarterbacks on this roster?

The punt return game still looks shaky. Punt returners were having issues catching the ball and left yards on the field. We don’t have a real upgrade on the roster in this part of the game. Branden Oliver might be the team’s kick returner out of camp though.

There was talk in the game about the first unit offensive line having issues protecting for Kellen Clemens. I think it is more about Clemens holding onto the football longer than Philip.

I hope Kwame Geathers is good. Seeing him leave on a cart was tough. He will be a big part of the defense if he is able to get back onto the field.