The Los Angeles Chargers, for all intents and purposes, have already been eliminated from the playoff picture. Only one team that's started the season 0-4, the 1992 San Diego Chargers, has gone on to make the postseason.
Perhaps it's better if they coast into a pair of losses between now and their Week 7 bye, making the job of tearing down this roster slightly less strenuous when the trade deadline rolls around. That's probably the most likely scenario, anyways, given the sheer number of injuries they'll be dealing with over the next couple of weeks.
But if they're going to turn this season around, in any sense of the phrase, it's going to need to start with an unlikely win against the Denver Broncos in Week 5. Given the way the Denver offense has performed so far this season, there's at least a glimmer of hope to cling to there.
A win in Week 5 would allow the Chargers, no matter what happens next week against the Kansas City Chiefs, to enter the bye with some level of momentum. Here are three numbers that, by the end of the game, could very easily tell that story.
3 storylines to watch as the Chargers enter an uphill battle against the Broncos
1. Logan Taylor and Travis Burke's pressures allowed
The Chargers offensive line, even with its bookend tackles in Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt available, simply wasn't good enough. But there's not a ton to complain about when it comes to Alt and Slater's performances this season. Although Alt struggled with penalties through the first four weeks as he got acclimated to the tempo of the new offense, he allowed just three pressures across 130 pass-blocking snaps. Those are certainly All-Pro numbers over the course of an entire season. Slater, for his part, was struggling to reach the heights we've seen from him prior to his patellar tendon injury, but there was still some solid performance in there—he allowed eight pressures and one sack across 152 pass-blocking snaps.
But both players are out this week, and Slater has now been placed on the IR with a high ankle sprain. The Chargers will be forced to start a pair of rookies, Travis Burke and Logan Taylor, at their two tackle spots.
Burke showed some serious upside in the preseason, but there are still some concerns about his consistency and anchor in extended snaps against NFL pass rushers. Taylor, for his part, is virtually an unknown quantity—outside of the abysmal rep that led to the strip sack that ended Los Angeles' hopes at a comeback last week.
If this pairing can somehow escape this game having yielded, say, four or less combined pressures against a middling Broncos edge rusher crop, the Chargers' chances of coming away with a win will look much better.
2. Tre' Harris' average depth of target
With Quentin Johnston and Ladd McConkey both out of this matchup, the Chargers offense is almost certainly going to depend on Harris to be its primary receiving threat. The problem is that, without complementary weapons available, Mike McDaniel hasn't fully figured out how to leverage the clear YAC upside that Harris possesses.
He's gone for 13 receptions and 209 yards across four games this season, and he's been at his best and most consistently productive when he's been given the opportunity to run more intermediate routes and break off explosive plays with his legs. His average depth of target in Week 3, which was his most productive game of the season in terms of receptions, was only eight yards. That number skyrocketed to 16.0 in Week 2 and 18.0 in Week 4, meaning that McDaniel was attempting to use Harris more as a deep-ball threat than anything else.
But if this offense is able to unlock Harris as their primary pass catcher, it's going to require a host of targets for him in the places where McConkey would normally be catching the ball. This team can't simply depend on deep shots to keep it afloat, and Harris should be a major part of that gameplan.
3. J.K Dobbins' and RJ Harvey's yards per rushing attempt
Any hope Los Angeles has of coming away with a win here will depend on their ability to absolutely stifle the struggling Broncos offense. Sean Payton has taking over play-calling duties from the recently-anointed Davis Webb, which certainly tosses some variables into the equation. But it's largely been Payton's scheme, at the end of the day, and the Broncos are just 20th in the league in EPA/play this season on the offensive side of the ball.
Compared to the Chargers, who are ranked 31st in that category, this offense may as well be the best in the league. But the Los Angeles defense has showed enough fight to this point in the season, even without Derwin James Jr. and Donte Jackson last week, to believe they have a chance to capitalize on the Broncos' weaknesses.
Most notably, Denver is 28th in the NFL in yards per rushing attempt through four weeks. Their offensive line, projected to be one of the best in the league, has largely struggled to create space for the run, and neither Dobbins nor Harvey has emerged as the true threat the Broncos need. Dobbins has posted just 3.5 rushing yards per attempt this season, while Harvey has posted 4.1 on limited touches.
Payton may lean more into the pass against the Chargers, but stopping the run could at least give Los Angeles a chance to perpetuate Denver's struggles on that side of the ball.
Add us as a preferred source on Google