The Chargers offense hasn’t necessarily looked all that impressive over the past couple of weeks. Despite two straight wins against last year’s Super Bowl participants, a combined 38 points raised eyebrows amongst the media over the state of the Chargers’ offensively.
One person who laid those claims to rest? Jim Harbaugh? Despite the various questions concerning the play of the offense, especially the first half in their game against the Chiefs, Harbaugh was actually pleased, saying that the offense didn’t seem like it was struggling to him.
If you look at the stats, they would say otherwise. Herbert has combined for only 349 yards passing in the two wins and the run game is only averaging under four yards per rush. Asked specifically by ESPN’s Khris Rhim about what there was to like about the offense, here’s what Harbaugh had to say:
“Well the last two games, the Chiefs and the Eagles-I think they would’ve loved to have our offensive production in those two games,” Harbaugh said. “And those are really, really good teams,” Harbaugh said. “Don’t you think the Eagles would’ve rather had our offensive production or theirs? The Chiefs… ours or theirs? And against two really good defenses.”
Harbaugh’s Optimism vs. the Numbers
While it is a positive spin on the wins and most importantly, raises a good point about both the Chiefs’ and Eagles‘ offenses, their next three games could require more offensive output against several playoff caliber teams. As of now, they are only 19th in terms of points per game, scoring only 22.5 per game. As somewhat evidenced by Harbaugh’s comments, that has been offset by the play of the ninth ranked defense in the league, only allowing 20.3 points per game.
Still, what with an offense like Dallas to face this weekend, chances are there has to be a bit of balance between both sides of the ball. Dallas is a team that can hurt you through the air and on the ground, and this can’t be taken lightly. They are fourth in the NFL in points per game at 29.1 and first in yards per game. Harbaugh has said this is the most difficult offense the team has faced all year.
Upcoming Tests and Lingering Concerns
One last suggestion the offense is not where it’s needs to be is the blocking from the O-line. According to ESPN metrics, the Chargers rank last in the league in terms of pass block win rate and second to last in terms of run block win rate.
The overwhelming storyline would be if the Chargers can find a way to get the offense going over the next couple of weeks. They will face some of the NFL’s best defenses over the next few weeks and at some point, will face some of the top offenses in the league as well in the playoff. Chances are teams like New England and Buffalo won’t let up as they are top 10 offenses. The No. 1 seed and AFC West rival Denver Broncos are top 10 on both sides of the ball.
While Harbaugh is overly optimistic, the Chargers have to back up his words.
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