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Week 16 Game Recap: Denver Broncos 3, San Diego Chargers 23
What you need to know
| Denver Broncos |
QB Jay Cutler has been known to have outstanding games, and terrible games. This game was one of the latter. He couldn't sustain any scoring drives, he completed under 50% of his passes, he turned the ball over three times, and he allowed the Chargers to get in his head and engage him in shouting matches from across the field. All in all, it was an ugly performance.
The running back situation sorted itself out a bit early on, only to be muddied again later. Selvin Young started and received the majority of the carries, but he didn't do much with them. Travis Henry was the backup, but by the fourth quarter Cecil Sapp was the goal line back (and bad one at that, as he was stuffed twice from inside the three yard line).
The Denver defense was terrible both defending the pass and the run. LaDainian Tomlinson went over 100 yards rushing early in the third quarter, and Philip Rivers played a smart and efficient game in leading his team to the easy victory.
| San Diego Chargers |
RB LaDainian Tomlinson put up his fourth straight 100 yard performance, en route to overtaking the lead in the race for the league rushing title. With Willie Parker out of the mix, it's likely down to a two horse race between Tomlinson and Minnesota's Adrian Peterson. One thing working against Tomlinson is that he seemed to re-injure a minor hamstring issue of a week ago. It's unclear how much he'll play next week, especially if the game gets out of control (as expected) against the Raiders.
QB Philip Rivers didn't make very many huge plays to help his team, but he also didn't make very many glaring mistakes. About the biggest blemish on his performance is the fact that he felt the need to engage the Broncos in several bouts of on-field trash talk with San Diego up big.
Slowly but surely, WR Chris Chambers is beginning to overtake TE Antonio Gates as the team's top receiving option. It's not quite at that point yet, and it's important to note that Gates is still likely slowed by his back injury suffered a few weeks ago, but it's no secret that Gates' role in the offense has been greatly reduced over the past few weeks (to the point that he had just three looks, and just one catch).
What you ought to know
| QB Jay Cutler, Pass: 14 - 32 - 155 - 0 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 3 - 42 - 0 |
Cutler had one of his worst games as a pro. Facing a relentless San Diego pass rush, he turned the ball over three times (all three as Denver was in the midst of a possible scoring drive), and the first came on the opening possession and really set the tone for the rest of the game. He couldn't get comfortable, and the San Diego players seemed to suggest after the game that Cutler just lost focus and stopped reading the defenses. If he's making bad reads, that's one thing. But if he's just not trying to make his reads, that is not a very good sign. Either way, the Chargers continuously had his number. By the end of the game, Cutler was on the field shouting back and forth with Chargers QB Philip Rivers. There was no reason for either player to be mixed up in such extra curricular activities, but even less so for Cutler, whose team was getting trounced by twenty points. This was a case where the stats truly do tell the story (four sacks, three turnovers, less than 50% completion percentage, zero touchdowns). That's pretty much all you need to know about his performance.
| RB Selvin Young, Rush: 10 - 39 - 0, Rec: 2 - 8 - 0 (2 targets) |
Young started the game and received the majority of the rushing duties, but he had little more success than backup Travis Henry. While Young averaged nearly four yards per carry, he didn't get nearly enough touches to be very productive with them. And since Jay Cutler was performing so poorly in the passing game, Young's opportunities to make plays were lessened even more. He came close to scoring when he took a reception down to the three yard line, but he was replaced on the next two plays by FB Cecil Sapp. Sapp was not only stuffed on third down, but on fourth down as well, resulting in a turnover on downs.
| RB Travis Henry, Rush: 4 - 11 - 0 |
Henry was a complete afterthought in this game, seeing just four total carries in the game and not receiving a single look in the passing game. He also completely fanned on a block attempt of Clinton Hart on a vicious sack of Jay Cutler. And just to make matters worse, when the Broncos finally got to the goal line, it was Cecil Sapp, not Henry, who received the goal line carries. About the only positive that can be taken from the game for Henry owners is the fact that Sapp failed to get into the end zone either time.
| WR Brandon Marshall, Rec: 6 - 75 - 0 (13 targets) |
Marshall somehow turned a six catch, 75 yard performance into a quiet affair. He had one long catch downfield for 27 yards, and fought off multiple tacklers on a run after the catch that was impressive. But he never scored or came close to, never dropped a potential big gainer, and basically put up decent stats solely because of his status as the team's number one wideout. Sort of like "somebody has to catch the passes...it might as well be him."
| WR Javon Walker, Rec: 2 - 14 - 0 (7 targets) |
Walker saw a decent amount of looks, but it is pretty evident that he's nowhere near the explosive player we're used to seeing out there. He has trouble getting off the line quickly, and he just doesn't look to be moving very smoothly or with much agility over the middle. Obviously it's a process for him to work himself back into game shape, but at this point he doesn't look to be very close.
| TE Tony Scheffler, Rec: 2 - 37 - 0 (8 targets) |
Scheffler was far more active than his two receptions would seem to indicate. Aside from Brandon Marshall, Scheffler was the high man as far as targets for the Broncos. And when they got into key situations, more often than not it was Scheffler who was the top option. He was targeted near the end zone for a near-touchdown late in the third quarter, but the ball was tipped up in the air and intercepted by Clinton Hart. Scheffler was then thrown to three more times during the course of the second half, so it's not like they went away from him following the turnover. Unfortunately for him, all three passes resulted in incompletions as Cutler pretty much fell apart in the second half.
| PK Jason Elam 1 - 1 FG, 0 - 0 XP, 3 points |
Elam, who isn't used on kickoffs, didn't even see the field until his 23 yard field goal late in the third quarter. It was also his last action of the game.
| DEN Rush Defense |
The Chargers didn't average very many yards on the ground for the game, but starter LaDainian Tomlinson did. And a lot of the reason for the decrease in yardage as the game went on could have had something to do with the fact that Philip Rivers left the game early (and Denver didn't need to respect Billy Volek and the passing game), LaDainian Tomlinson left the game early, and the Chargers had a big lead so Denver knew they'd be running the ball almost exclusively. Those three combinations factored into San Diego struggling to move the football in the second half. Of course, they ran wild in the first half as Tomlinson simply could not be stopped. Even veteran S John Lynch allowed his frustrations to boil over. Following a Tomlinson run, his helmet rolled off onto the ground. The normally cool-headed Lynch picked the helmet up and flung it about ten yards downfield, resulting in a personal foul penalty. It was that kind of a day for Denver's rush defense, which was continuously carved up by Tomlinson all throughout the first half.
| DEN Pass Defense |
Seeing as how the Chargers barely threw the ball after half time, it's tough to get a gauge on how much Denver was actually tested in this phase. One thing that's for certain is that if the first half were a test, the Broncos didn't do very well on it. They were burned by bad luck on a couple of occasions, as Antonio Gates and Vincent Jackson each made incredible catches on one sequence during a drive, and Chris Chambers landed in the end zone rather than fumbling the ball away (something that was about a 50-50 proposition during the time Chambers was airborne on his touchdown). But the Broncos also made a lot of their own bad luck. They could muster no pass rush against Philip Rivers, and he seemingly had all day to throw. They couldn't really cover the San Diego receivers, who were seemingly open all over the field. And All-Pro CB Champ Bailey came up holding his hand briefly following a pass defended on a deep ball intended for WR Vincent Jackson. The possible injury wasn't mentioned again and it shouldn't be an issue for next week, but you'd do well to keep your eyes and ears open anyway just in case.
| QB Philip Rivers, Pass: 17 - 25 - 189 - 1 TD / 0 INT |
If nothing else, Rivers has proven to his teammates and the rest of the world that he plays with fire and intensity. In this game, however, he almost let it go a bit too far. Rivers was jawing with CB Champ Bailey for much of the contest, and by the end of the game he had a few comments that he was shouting across the field to fellow QB Jay Cutler. Rather than letting his performance speak for itself, Rivers engaged in shouting matches with the opposition seemingly for the fun of it. He was seen on the sidelines almost laughing at the Denver players, and it doesn't bode well for settling any future bad blood between the two clubs. As for his play on the field, he completed 68% of his passes, didn't turn the ball over, and spread the ball evenly to a number of receivers. The touchdown pass he threw was more the result of a great effort by Chris Chambers than anything Rivers did. And he had several players make a couple of remarkable grabs along the sideline that also helped to beef up his stat line (not to mention sustain the drives). So it's not as if Rivers played flawlessly; a lot of his production came courtesy of him getting the ball to the right people and letting them do what they do with the ball in-hand. But a lot of times, in this offense, that's really all that's required. At this point in the season and in his career, it would appear that Rivers may finally be learning that.
| QB Billy Volek, Pass: 1 - 3 - 1 - 0 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 4 - -2 - 0 |
Volek's performance essentially let Chargers fans see just how valuable Philip Rivers is to the team. Volek fumbled the snap on his second play under center, and he completed just one of three passes for a grand total of one yard.
| RB LaDainian Tomlinson, Rush: 19 - 107 - 1, Rec: 2 - 7 - 0 (3 targets) |
Tomlinson passed Willie Parker of the Steelers and opened up a large lead on Minnesota's Adrian Peterson for the league's rushing title. In his last four contests, he has 546 yards on just 83 carries (6.6 YPC) and six rushing touchdowns. He's added another 61 receiving yards and another score in the passing game. In this game, he once again put up the bulk of his damage in the first half before mostly giving way to the backups once the Chargers got out to a big lead. Right from the outset of this one, it was pretty apparent that Tomlinson was going to have his way with the Denver defense. He had several nice open field runs featuring spin moves, cut-backs, and his previously reported hamstring issue was not a concern at all. However, he did come up barely grabbing at his hamstring late in the second quarter and it was reported afterwards that he did re-aggravate it just a bit. He said after the game that he wanted to go back in, but HC Norv Turner opted to err on the side of caution and only give Tomlinson four more carries the remainder of the game before calling it a day. He reached the 100 yard mark for the fourth game in a row and the sixth time this season by the midpoint of the third quarter. And to top it all off, Tomlinson also added his 15th touchdown on the year, marking the fourth consecutive season he's reached that milestone.
| RB Darren Sproles, Rush: 6 - 17 - 0, Rec: 4 - 7 - 0 (6 targets) |
Despite Tomlinson and Turner's combined workload (29 touches between them), Sproles managed to secure a role of his own, with ten offensive touches. While he wasn't nearly as productive as he was a week ago against the Lions, it let us know that Norv Turner isn't going to hesitate to use him in certain situations going forward.
| RB Michael Turner, Rush: 7 - 11 - 0, Rec: 1 - 8 - 0 (1 targets) |
Turner spelled LaDainian Tomlinson, who was nursing a hamstring issue, at various points both in the first and second halves. But this was a very workmanlike performance from San Diego, and the win didn't include very many big gains. Turner's evening basically consisted of running straight into a pile of defenders and getting tackled after very minimal gains.
| WR Chris Chambers, Rush: 1 - 8 - 0, Rec: 4 - 71 - 1 (5 targets) |
Once again, Chambers continued his outstanding run of consistency. In standard scoring leagues, Chambers has put up between seven and twelve fantasy points in every game but one since Week 10. Despite the Chargers barely throwing the ball in the entire second half (just once in the fourth quarter), Chambers put up very solid stats on very limited targets. Chambers managed to find the end zone in this game, though it wasn't without a bit of a close call. He caught the ball over the middle, dove towards the end zone, was hit in mid-air, momentarily juggled the ball, and then maintained possession as he hit the ground and rolled into the end zone. The play went for a score, but it was literally inches from being a fumble at the goal line.
| WR Vincent Jackson, Rec: 4 - 46 - 0 (6 targets) |
Jackson didn't put up monstrous numbers, but he once again asserted himself well within the offense and has seen his role go from #1 receiver to afterthought and now he's firmly entrenched as the #2 guy after Chris Chambers. And while he didn't score or put up big yardage numbers, he was targeted on one pass in the end zone that was poorly thrown by Philip Rivers, and later he made one of the best catches of the entire season. He stretched along the sideline and completely laid out, all the while maintaining his feet in bounds and snagging a fingertip grab before falling out of bounds. The play was challenged by Denver but ultimately ruled a catch.
| TE Antonio Gates, Rec: 1 - 24 - 0 (3 targets) |
Gates continued his curiously quiet second half of the season with just one catch on three targets. It wasn't just that Philip Rivers didn't make very many good passes to Gates; it's that Gates was rarely open. He dropped the first ball thrown his way, a very catchable pass along the sideline (and a pass that Gates hauls in 99 times out of 100). Although he did somewhat make up for the drop later on when he hauled in one of the prettiest one-handed grabs you're going to see along the right sideline.
| PK Nate Kaeding 3 - 3 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 11 points |
Kaeding connected on all three of his field goal attempts, with the long coming from 40 yards out. This was despite suffering a bruised lower left (plant) leg on the opening kickoff. It isn't expected to affect him going forward.
| SD Rush Defense |
Obviously it still counts in the box score, but aside from a big 21 yard burst by QB Jay Cutler, the Chargers pretty well shut down the Denver rushing attack. Starter Selvin Young was held completely in check, with his long gain going for just ten yards. And the only time Denver threatened from in close on a potential scoring drive came early in the fourth quarter. After a Selvin Young reception gave the Broncos the ball at the three yard line, Cecil Sapp came in and was subsequently stuffed both on third and fourth down to maintain the 23-3 advantage for the Chargers.
| SD Pass Defense |
The Chargers frustrated and bewildered Jay Cutler all game long, and they never came close to allowing anything remotely resembling a big play out of the Denver receivers. They sacked Cutler four times, intercepted him twice (one off a deflection that wasn't entirely his fault), and forced a fumble on Denver's opening possession. One of those sacks came courtesy of Clinton Hart off a safety blitz, and the sack consisted of Hart basically dumping Cutler into the ground. DE Luis Castillo also returned to action after injuring his leg in the Minnesota game earlier this year, and he made his presence felt by adding another sack. The San Diego front really set the tone for the entire evening, and they didn't really let up once. By the end of the game, the two teams were jawing at each other back and forth with Cutler involved right in the middle of it all. It appeared that he was a bit shell-shocked after his abysmal performance, and it seemed apparent that San Diego had managed to get into his head a little bit. Cutler was only intercepted twice, and as noted only one of them was his fault, but the truth is that he threw several other passes that could have or should have been intercepted, but weren't.
