Bolts From The Blue
The Chargers were only picked to win by one analyst on NFL Network’s pre-game broadcast ahead of last Friday night’s game against the Chiefs and I’m sure there were a whole lot more around country who thought this was a sure-thing for Kansas City.
Oh, how sweet it is that they were all so wrong.
Justin Herbert was stellar, the defense made just enough plays, and the Chiefs made enough mistakes to help the Chargers seal the victory with their final drive. After Kansas City hit a field goal to bring their deficit to six points, the Bolts never gave the ball back. This was a Jim Harbaugh-type win through and through.
It was an overall phenomenal team win and that is being reflected in their game grade here from CBS Sports’ John Breech. For their efforts, Breech gave the Chargers a A- which is one of the best handed out in Week One.
“The Chargers might want to ask the NFL if they can play all their games in Brazil. Going into Week 1, the Chargers had lost seven straight games to the Chiefs, but Justin Herbert made sure to end that streak by playing a nearly perfect game,” says Breech. “Not only did the Chargers QB threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns, but he sealed the win with a 19-yard run on third-and-14 late in the fourth quarter. Herbert was dominant on third down in the game, completing 7 of 8 passes with two touchdowns along with the 19-yard run. Quentin Johnston caught two TD passes, which tied a career high, and Keenan Allen, who didn’t sign with L.A. until August, caught seven passes for 68 yards in his return to the Chargers. This team has suffered some devastating losses in franchise history, but was able to hang on here and even though it’s only been one game, the Chargers feel like they’re going to be dangerous this year.”
I don’t think anyone can argue this grade for the most part. The Chargers were dominant and held the lead all game long. Despite the Chiefs authoring some huge momentum-swinging plays, Harbaugh’s crew hung in there, took their share of blows to the body, and still managed to pass the gut-check to finish the game their way.
