Last Updated on 12/29/2022 by てんしょく飯
The Los Angeles Chargers defense is no longer a weakness, but a strength, after a 20-3 win over the Indianapolis Colts as Brandon Staley’s team on Monday night, December 26, local, to clinch a playoff spot.
They’ll need to continue this defense heading into the postseason.
The Chargers allowed only 173 yards and 10 first downs to the Nick Foles-led Colts offense, which recorded three more interceptions while holding them to 0 of 10 on third down success and 1 of 4 on fourth down success.
Staley said via the team’s official website, “The defense worked really well together on the field. They played really well. They put forth a great effort in everything they did, and they were really disciplined.
That’s what we were hoping for in the run game, in the pass game, in the pass rush, in our own time, on third and fourth down. It was a perfect performance.”
The Chargers defense recorded seven sacks and three interceptions against Foles, the most in a single game since Week 16 of the 2016 season, the first time in club history that a team has recorded seven sacks and three interceptions without allowing a single touchdown. It was the first time since Week 5 of the 2014 season against the New York Jets (0 points, 151 yards) that the Chargers last held an opponent to less than three points and 200 yards.
Wide receiver (WR) Keenan Allen said, “Zero third down successes out of 10 on the other side is just a testament to how great our defense is. It’s amazing. If you can’t move on third down, it’s hard to score. We didn’t score as many points as I would have liked as an offensive team, but it doesn’t matter because our defense played very well. If we can help each other out like we did today and get better each week, we should be a formidable team.
The Chargers have held their opponents to 17 or fewer points in each of their last three wins. Their records of holding opponents to 11.3 points and 225.3 yards per game since Week 14 are both tops in the NFL during this time.
Running back (RB) Austin Aikeler said of the defense, “They’ve been shining the past few weeks. We’ve been able to come into games in our own form because they’ve been able to keep us in check,” he said.
That’s great. We have some good teams in front of us, so we need to continue this defense going into the postseason.”
Certainly Monday night’s win was against a Colts offense that has been disappointing for most of the season, but the optimism of the last three weeks does not seem to be a temporary surge for the Chargers, but a sign of team unity. If players like Joey Bosa return from injury, the Chargers’ chances for postseason results will increase even more.
Quarterback (QB) Justin Herbert said, “I don’t think we’re playing our best football yet. The defense has done an unbelievable job the past few weeks. I think the offense can be better. I think we can limit turnovers and that starts with me.”
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