Bolts From The Blue
The Chargers beat the Broncos on Sunday afternoon in dramatic fashion thanks to a walk-off field goal by Cameron Dicker as time expired. The Bolts rallied back from down 10 in the second half to tie the game in the final minutes before ultimately having the ball at the very end.
This was a full team effort by the Chargers and that shows in this week’s snap counts. Due to injuries around the team, the Bolts needed help from just about everyone in all three phases of the game, including a number of rookies who made their NFL debuts.
Let’s go ahead and take a look!
In a second consecutive game where tight end Tyler Conklin was having a rough time, rookie Oronde Gadsden stepped in to match his snap total (22) while putting together one of the most impactful performances of the day against the Broncos.
Due to several injuries up front, both Jamaree Salyer and Austin Deculus saw double-digit snaps at right guard and right tackle, respectively.
Running back Hassan Haskins saw seven snaps in place of the injured Najee Harris and he’s likely to be the team’s RB2 going forward.
Ladd McConkey led the wideouts in snaps with 80 while Quentin Johnston and Keenan Allen played 75 and 56, respectively. Through three games, it sure seems like the attention being grabbed by McConkey is benefitting both QJ and Allen greatly.
Without Khalil Mack, fourth-round rookie Kyle Kennard saw his first seven NFL snaps against the Broncos. Another rookie in cornerback Nikko Reed made his debut, but it was just a single snap.
Four defensive players played every single snap against Denver. They were safeties Alohi Gilman and Derwin James, linebacker Daiyan Henley, and cornerback Tarheeb Still.
Your top three defensive tackles in snap share were Da’Shawn Hand (63 percent), Teair Tart (54), and rookie Jamaree Caldwell (42). Justin Eboigbe out-snapped Naquan Jones 12 to nine on the night.
The Chargers played a lot of Dime personnel (1 LB, 6 DBs) as Troy Dye was second in linebacker snaps at just 73 percent.
Despite Denzel Perryman’s injury, the Chargers only used two off-ball linebackers against Denver. Backups Del’Shawn Phillips and Marlowe Wax saw zero snaps on defense but made an impact on special teams with 27 and 21 snaps, respectively. Those two, along with safeties Kendall Williamson and R.J. Mickens, have been solid through three weeks.
