The best and worst graded Chargers vs. Miami Dolphins
The Los Angeles Chargers came up just short on Sunday 36-34 against Miami in the team's season opener. It was a tale of two sides of the ball, with one being as good as the other was bad. The Chargers' offense was effective all game long, especially on the ground, with the offense rolling up […]
The Los Angeles Chargers came up just short on Sunday 36-34 against Miami in the team's season opener. It was a tale of two sides of the ball, with one being as good as the other was bad.
The Chargers' offense was effective all game long, especially on the ground, with the offense rolling up 234 yards on 40 rushes. However, it wasn't enough to overcome the Miami Dolphins explosive offense, the defense allowing Tua Tagovailoa to throw for 466 yards and Tyreek Hill to pull down 215 of those for 2 touchdowns.
Not surprisingly, Pro Football Focus' weekly grades for the Chargers' roster reflect the strong performance on one side of the ball and poor one on the other side. Here are the top and bottom five grades from Sunday.
Top five overall grades
- LT Rashawn Slater – 80.9. Slater was the best player on the field for the Chargers on Sunday. He completely shut down Dolphins OLB Bradley Chubb, which earned him a sterling 88.0 pass rush grade.
- RB Joshua Kelley – 75.5. He ran hard, totaling 91 yards on 16 carries with a 2-yard touchdown. A 78.7 running mark matches his performance, as he hit the open holes and ran well through contact.
- RB Austin Ekeler – 74.8. He had 16 rushing attempts, the same as Kelley, and he took them for 117 yards and a score. He also added 47 yards on 4 catches. His longest run was 55 yards and longest catch was 35. What is there left to say? He simply makes plays.
- C Corey Linsley – 74.2. It's fitting that another offensive lineman made the list, with how well the unit performed overall. The Dolphins' defensive front was mangled in the run game, and the pressure up the middle throughout the game was minimal – at least until the final drive.
- TE Donald Parham, Jr. – 71.5. Parham was in 39 snaps, just under half of the offensive total, but he made the most of them, with 3 catches for 21 yards and a touchdown, which helped overshadow a 63.2 run blocking mark.
Bottom five overall grades
- LB Kenneth Murray, Jr. – 29.4. A nightmarish day for Murray and pretty much the entire defense. The middle of the field seemed, at times, completely unoccupied, as Miami pass catchers flashed through open all game. Murray's 30.0 coverage grade confirms many of those misses were his responsibility.
- EDGE Joey Bosa – 44.0. Tua wasn't sacked even once and was largely unbothered by the Chargers' pass rush. OT Austin Jackson handled Bosa throughout the game. A very forgettable day for #97.
- CB J.C. Jackson – 45.0. It might seem weird to give this low a grade for a player with an interception, but Jackson otherwise struggled. He committed a terrible pass interference penalty on the first half's final timed down, setting up a field goal that ended up being very important. He was beaten over the top on a touchdown to Hill in the second half.
- DL Sebastian Joseph-Day – 45.4. Appearing in a little over half (36) of the Chargers' 67 defensive snaps, Joseph-Day put up a score of 38.1 in run support. He was at least better (60.2) in 26 pass rushing snaps.
- CB Michael Davis – 47.0. Davis was beaten twice for touchdowns by River Cracraft and on the game winner to Hill. A 50.2 run support grade didn't help the overall mark either.
Chargers HC Brandon Staley explained his odd decision prior to loss vs. Dolphins
Not much else to it.
Featured image via Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
