Pats Pulpit
The New England Patriots’ postseason drought is over. After three disappointing seasons that saw them fall short of playoff qualification, they have made it back to the tournament thanks to their 14-win regular season.
Their first game will take place against the Los Angeles Chargers, who finished the regular season in second place in the AFC West and with an 11-6 record. The team of head coach Jim Harbaugh will visit Gillette Stadium on Sunday night, so let’s get to meet them.
The Chargers are led by one of the NFL’s most talented quarterbacks, and yet the story of their season so far is the performance of their defense. A look at their key stats in the regular season illustrates this.
Record: 11-6 (2nd AFC West/7th AFC)
Scoring differential: +28 (14th)
Turnover differential: +2 (11th)
Offense: 21.6 points/game (20th), 333.8 yards/game (12th), 21 giveaways (t-17th), -0.016 EPA/play (24th), 0.021 EPA/dropback (23rd), -0.080 EPA/run (23rd)
Defense: 20.0 points/game (9th), 285.2 yards/game (5th), 23 takeaways (t-7th), -0.077 EPA/play (6th), -0.051 EPA/dropback (7th), -0.121 EPA/run (4th)
Statistically speaking, Justin Herbert and the Chargers offense have been relatively pedestrian so far. They have not been particularly bad in any category either, but also do not stand out in many areas — except one: they are as good as any team in football controlling the flow of the game, ranking second in time per drive (3:11) and fifth in plays per drive (6.5). Their scoring efficiency has not been quite at that level, but L.A. has proven itself capable of dictating how a contest goes.
That also is true on defense, where the Chargers are ranked fifth (2:40) and fourth (5.7) in those respective categories. In general, they have been impressive on that side of the ball. They are ranked in the top-10 in virtually all volume and efficiency stats both against the run and the pass, with the notable exceptions including yards per run (4.3; 18th). Even that is off-set by a fourth-place ranking in expected points added per run (-0.121).
While the Denver Broncos ended up locking up the AFC West and top playoff seed in the conference, the Chargers managed to give them a run for their money for large stretches of the season. Ultimately, however, they were undone by some struggles against inferior opponents early on and an inability to win games against other playoff hopefuls.
Still, L.A. ended the season winning 11 games — matching their record in their first season under head coach Jim Harbaugh.
Week 1: 27-21 win vs. Kansas City Chiefs (1-0)
Week 2: 20-9 win at Las Vegas Raiders (2-0)
Week 3: 23-20 win vs. Denver Broncos (3-0)
Week 4: 21-18 loss at New York Giants (3-1)
Week 5: 27-10 loss vs. Washington Commanders (3-2)
Week 6: 29-27 win vs. Miami Dolphins (4-2)
Week 7: 38-24 loss vs. Indianapolis Colts (4-3)
Week 8: 37-10 win vs. Minnesota Vikings (5-3)
Week 9: 27-20 win at Tennessee Titans (6-3)
**Week...
