Chargers lose to Saints 13-7, drop to 0-2 in preseason

The Los Angeles Chargers took the field for their second preseason game on Sunday night.

Though the final score wasn’t as lopsided as it was last week, the Chargers still lost the game and had another underwhelming performance as the New Orleans Saints came out of L.A. with a 13-7 victory.

Now, preseason losses don’t necessarily hurt, but here’s a few of the things that stood out in a negative way.

The offensive line, which fans are hoping is much better than the one team has fielded in recent years, allowed eight quarterback sacks. That is not a typo.

The defense gave up another huge touchdown play as Saints running back Alvin Kamara broke a 50-yard touchdown run for the game’s first score.

Philip Rivers was held out of the game and the Chargers quarterbacks again played subpar football. Kellen Clemens and Cardale Jones combined to go 17-of-32 for 160 yards with one interception.

The offense did not score any points in this game. The Chargers’ lone score came on a 99-yard interception return by Dexter McCoil on a pass thrown by Saints No. 3 quarterback Ryan Nassib.

No one stood out for the Chargers on offense. The team rushed for just 66 yards on 29 attempts, a 2.3-yard average. Melvin Gordon had eight yards on five carries. Branden Oliver gained just 10 yards on seven attempts and Andre Williams was again given the most carries, gaining only 23 yards on 11 carries.

That’s not going to cut it.

Jamaal Jones led the team with five catches for 47 yards, but he also lost a fumble, which isn’t going to help him make the team.

More from Bolt Beat

• LA Chargers: 3 early takeaways from 2021 minicamp thus far
• LA Chargers: Drue Tranquill takes a jab at Gus Bradley’s defense
• LA Chargers second-year players: Nothing to lose and a lot to gain
• LA Chargers: Why running back could be a big issue for the Bolts
• LA Chargers: Chris Rumph’s upside is Melvin Ingram-like, but better

On the defensive side of the ball, Chris McCain continues to be a surprise. He had a sack in this game, as did Desmond King. Melvin Ingram and Tre Boston split one.

But aside from the play from McCoil, it was a very lackluster performance for the Chargers. Given these two performances, it’s going to be hard to get the new fanbase excited as the regular season is fast approaching.

The Chargers will face the Los Angeles Rams next Saturday night in a game that will take place inside the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. We should expect to see the starters get plenty of extra work in that one.