To put it simply, The Chargers choked the game away.
Going into half time, the Chargers defense and offense were steam rolling the Jaguars. On the first play of Jaguars offense, Joseph day batted a ball up and it was picked by Drue Tranquil. The Chargers would then go on to score. Next three drives were the same. Asante samuel Jr came down with 3 picks. Outscoring the Jaguars 27-7 in the first half. Trevor Lawrence had thrown 4 picks. Our Offense was rolling!
Into the second half we go. Jaguar fans are quiet, and the few Charger fans are filling the stadium with their voices. The Chargers in the second half started playing conservative. Defense switched to a soft zone coverage, and ran Man coverage when Jags ran bunch formation. Trevor lawrence dialed in and hit all his checkdowns, and occasionally hit the 15 yard pass. Eventually, Trevor lawrence finds a wide open Marvin Jones in the endzone for 6. The score is 27-14. A couple drives later, and a mis-communication by Gilman, Trevor Lawrence launches a deep ball down the field and hits Zay Jones in stride for a 39 yard touchdown. Staley and co should realize that the soft zone coverage isnt working right?
Heading into the fourth quarter, The score is now 30-20. An unsettling lead for the Chargers, but plenty of a lead to get the job done. After a couple 3 and outs from the poor 2nd half Chargers offense, the Jaguars used their momemtum to drive down the field with ease. All Charger fans are now dealing with high anxiety, but they are used to a second half collapse. About 5 minutes left in the 4th quarter, The Jaguars go down the field with ease, and score. They score with 5 minutes left. The Chargers barely put up 3 points in the who second half. The score is now 30-28. With about 3 minutes, its plenty of time for the Chargers to put the game away and advance to the next round despite their collapse. However, Joe lombardi and Co. decides its best to not move the ball and take a 3 and out. It didnt help either that Herbert took a sack the first play. The Jaguars are unstoppable at this point. The Chargers defense manage to hold them to a 4th down. Expecting a QB sneak, Chargers DLine crowd the center. But Doug and the Jaguars had other plans. They run a outside run with Etienne for a 30 yard run, essentially ending the Chargers season.
So the break it down in bullet points, What happened.
Chargers Offense and defense were rolling in the first half. Holding Trevor Lawrence to 4 picks.
Score going into halftime is 27-7.
Coming into the 3rd quarter. Chargers offense is stalling, Not going anywhere.
Chargers defense decides to play soft zone coverage, allowing easy access to Jaguar receivers to find the hot spot and let Lawrence hit them.
In the entire second half, Chargers only put up 3 points.
In the end, Poor defense, and even worse Offensive play calling, the Chargers blow a 27-7 lead.
Heres what I expect to happen. Im expecting a brand new coaching staff next season. An Offensive minded head coach, with a defensive coordinator who can call his own plays.
The Chargers season is over.
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