EL SEGUNDO — Left tackle Rashawn Slater didn’t play because of a pectoral injury the last time the Chargers played against the Kansas City Chiefs. Right tackle Joe Alt also couldn’t play because of a knee injury. Quarterback Justin Herbert could barely move around the field because of an ankle injury.
So, the Chargers were limited in what they could do offensively against the Chiefs in Week 4 at SoFi Stadium. They could run some, but not a lot. They could pass some, but not a lot. They mixed and matched the run and the pass, but it didn’t work as planned as they were shut out in the final three quarters.
In the end, the Chargers dropped a 17-10 decision to the Chiefs, their sixth consecutive loss to Kansas City, and their 18th in the past 21 games. The Chargers were hardly themselves, though, battered and bruised and limping into their bye week with a 2-2 record to start the season.
The Chargers have won six of their eight games since losing to the Chiefs, including a 17-13 victory over the Atlanta Falcons, when they also weren’t at their best. It wasn’t necessarily injuries that hampered the Chargers’ malfunctioning offense last Sunday, although they were without injured running back J.K. Dobbins.
“A lot of things to clean up, a lot of things to clean up,” Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman said, repeating himself for emphasis. “I’ve got to do a better job. I’ve got to get Justin some better stuff in the game. Get him a better opportunity to do what he can do. We’ve got to run the ball better.
“You can’t beat the Chiefs dropping back (to throw) 60 times.”
Herbert and the Chargers barely beat the Falcons by passing only 23 times.
Well, it was actually 24 passes, counting punter JK Scott’s pass on a fake punt.
Overall, the Chargers gained only 187 net yards against the Falcons, and they didn’t score an offensive touchdown. Cameron Dicker kicked three field goals and rookie cornerback Tarheeb Still returned an interception 61 yards for the Chargers’ only touchdown of the game. Herbert was sacked five times.
The Chargers could only blame themselves and praise the Falcons’ defense for their lackluster offensive outing Sunday. Slater and Alt were healthy, having long since recovered from their injuries. Plus, Herbert has been sound for weeks, if not months, with his ankle injury just ancient history.
The playbook should be wide open compared to the game on Sept. 29.
Oddly, it looked more than a little one dimensional against the Falcons, though. Herbert seemed hyper-focused on rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey, completing nine passes on 12 targets to him for 117 yards. No other receiver, tight end or running back caught more than two passes, though.
No other receiver, tight end or back seemed to get open the way McConkey did.
“We really strive for balance,” Roman said. “We want to spread the ball around. Throw it to the open guy, the guy that’s open. … We want everybody involved. We want the defense to understand and recognize and respect the fact that anybody can get the ball and keep them honest.”
Gus Edwards, Dobbins’ replacement as the Chargers’ featured back, rushed for 32 yards on six carries, a solid 5.3-yard average per attempt. But, again, he carried only six times out of 17 total rushing attempts. Herbert rushed five times for 1 yard. Rookie Kimani Vidal rushed four times for 20 yards.
“Without going too deep into strategy, sometimes the less people know the better, I thought Gus ran well,” Roman said. “There was one play I got on him about, but other than that, I thought Gus played winning football at a high level. I’ve got to do a better job, No. 1, of game-planning and calling the running game.
“So, that’s part of it. The other part of it is playing in sync. When we do it right, we’re pretty damn good. That’s what we’re striving for because we know we can’t beat the Chiefs without running the ball well. History has proven that. So, it’s a little bit of the little things. It’s a lot of different things.”
EXTRA POINTS
Dicker was selected as the Chargers’ nominee as Walter Payton Man of the Year. … Safety Tony Jefferson did not practice because of a hamstring injury. … McConkey (knee/shoulder) was one of seven players whose participation was said to be limited. … Linebacker Daiyan Henley (knee) also was limited after sitting out Wednesday’s practice.