Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen expressed his frustration by listing everything the offense did wrong during the 27-24 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.
“Pretty much beating ourselves,” Allen said in his postgame news conference before realizing he was repeating himself. “We shouldn’t have lost, for sure.”
Initially, Allen was irritated about the game he expected them to win on Sunday, but then his frustration grew. For Allen, the Chargers have beaten themselves far too many times during his nine seasons with the team.
“The frustration with me is every year,” Allen said. “It’s the same thing every year. Beating ourselves. Same thing over and over.”
The loss to the Patriots was the latest in a career filled with one-score defeats for Allen, the longest-tenured Chargers player. This was supposed to be the year when the heartbreaking finishes and flat performances disappeared.
Allen got his hopes up with a young star quarterback, an innovative head coach and their 4-1 start to the season. But a familiar storyline has resurfaced during the Chargers’ two-game losing streak with stagnant offensive performances against the Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens.
“Good question,” Allen said when asked how the Chargers can stop beating themselves. “I don’t have the answers.”
It’s understandable to hear Allen unload nine years’ worth of frustration into one postgame news conference. The team has struggled in its past two games, before and after its bye week, but it’s not a dire situation with 10 games left in the regular season.
Perhaps the Chargers are no longer viewed as Super Bowl contenders, but they’re still a playoff-caliber team. They’re second in the AFC West with a 4-3 record and won their first meeting with the division-leading Las Vegas Raiders (5-2).
“I don’t know if this game had anything to do with the past,” said Chargers edge rusher Joey Bosa, in his sixth season with the team. “I think Coach (Brandon) Staley made that pretty clear in the team meeting today that we’re a pretty different group. We have a whole new group of coaches. We made some mistakes yesterday. I don’t think it’s time to panic or start looking here or there to blame. We’re 4-3, which is a lot better start than I’ve had most of the other years that I’ve been here.”
For the Chargers to get back on track, they’re going to need to improve on the offensive line, a familiar issue for those who have been around the organization for years.
The Chargers revamped their starting offensive line in the offseason, but they lacked depth and that’s been exposed with long-term injuries to right tackle Bryan Bulaga and right guard Oday Aboushi.
Quarterback Justin Herbert has seen frequent pressure coming from the right side of the offensive line with backups Storm Norton and Michael Schofield filling in. That has led to Herbert rushing throws and overthinking.
“That is probably something we have to watch,” Herbert said about the pocket pressure. “I felt like they gave me enough time. It is on me to make those throws and to get the ball out quicker. I thought those guys up front did a great job blocking and I feel comfortable behind those guys.”
Herbert isn’t known for being critical of teammates, but Staley didn’t shy away from the protection issues that have occurred the past two games. Staley said the offensive line has struggled to protect Herbert because the team has failed to execute on early downs.
“To live in the drop-back game, very few people can protect the passer,” Staley said. “Very few people in the National Football League can protect the passer when it’s a known pass. That’s the big takeaway for me from this game.”
Staley said he’s had no issues with offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi’s play-calling the past two games and plans on sticking with Schofield and Norton on the right side of the offensive line.
“For now, we’re going to stick with those two guys,” Staley said. “I believe in both of those guys and we need to continue to coach and play better around those guys.”
Staley isn’t allowing the Chargers to believe they’re the “same ol’ Chargers” because he knows the root of the problems offensively. But they need to quickly improve the execution on early downs or players’ frustrations will continue to grow.