Maybe I'll just stick to what I've seen during the game and not try to figure out the team as a whole.
First off, that's the best game I've seen Ryan Mathews play in a long time (22 carries, 102 yards). It was also the biggest workload he's had since Week 13 of last year (25 carries, 65 yards) and the first time he's gone over 100 yards since Week 13 of 2011 (20 carries, 114 yards). Mathews also didn't fumble despite the Colts, knowing he has a fumble-prone past, were trying to strip the ball on almost every carry. Chargers still not trusting Mathews in the red zone, as Danny Woodhead is the back when they're inside the twenty, even on short yardage plays. As a team, the Chargers ended up with 147 rushing yards.
Interesting stat they showed during the game; Phillip Rivers is the only QB to throw for 400 yards in 3 of 4 games. He fell way short of becoming the first QB to throw for 400 yards in 3 games straight. He really started off slow, missing his first 6 passes. He ended up with a pedestrian stat line (22-33, 237 yards, 1 TD), but importantly, didn't throw an interception.
Rookie Keenan Allen has arrived. Since his first NFL start in Week 3 when he had just 1 catch, he's caught 5 for 80 yards, 6 for 115, 1 TD, and 9 for 107, 1TD. I thought he would eventually be the Chargers best WR before the year is over...I think he already is there now. Allen could have had 2 TDs, but Rivers under threw him in the end zone.
The defense did get lucky...Luck missed Darrius Heywood-Bey in the 2nd quarter when he beat the Chargers corner badly down the sideline which would have been a sure TD if the pass was on target. At the end of the 2nd quarter Toby Fleener dropped a ball when he was wide open that he might have scored on...had only one guy to beat. Colts ended up with a Adam Vinatieri 50 yard field goal. That's 11 points in a game the Chargers won by 10.
Despite all that, it was the best game the defense has played all season. Chargers did more blitzing in any game I've seen this year. Defensive Coordinator John Pagano also showed some creativity, pulling out what Jon Gruden called the "Amoeba Defense" because any where from nobody to only 1 or 2 with a hand down and the front seven constantly moving before the snap so you couldn't tell if it was a 4-3 or 3-4 defense. Chargers went to it on 3rd and longs and although they only got 1 sack, they got good inside pressure on Luck. They also held the Colts' rushing attach to 74 yards. Colts previous low this season was 20 points against the Dolphins in Week 2.
More kudos to the offensive line. The Chargers were once again missing two starters from the o-line. The Colts got two sacks, but none by Robert Mathis. Starting LT King Dunlap was back and he really shut down Mathis, who only recorded one tackle for the entire game. Regardless of the two sacks, Rivers wasn't pressured on very many throws and the first sack didn't come until the 3rd quarter (to be fair, Mathis did cause the sack by putting the initial pressure on Rivers).
A stat they showed during the game was that the Chargers are the first team to score on drives of 10+ plays in 4 consecutive possessions (12, 17, 11, 15); two before halftime and the first two after. The problem was the last 3 were field goals. This is just the way they've been able to win the 3 games, hold the ball for long drives, keep the opponents offense off the field which protects the suspect defense. Colts only had 9 drives for the entire game. One of the drives was with 1:41 in the half (ended in a Colts FG) and another was with 1:55 left in the game (ended in an interception). Colts also only had 1 drive in the 3rd quarter.
I'm reluctant to even mention that the Chargers are in Jacksonville next week to face the 0-6 Jaguars (and even more afraid to say they should win, considering what happened the last two games I thought they would win). Jags played the Broncos tough before Denver went 21-0 in the 2nd half. While the Jags haven't won a game they have two excellent WRs in Justin Blackman and Cecil Shorts. Last Sunday was the first game that the opposition didn't have a WR put up 100+ yards against the Chargers. Blackman's two games since coming back from a 4 game suspension; 5 catches, 136 yards and 14 for 190. Hopefully the Chargers defense can continue with the progress they made generating pressure on the QB against the Jaguars. Maybe Dwight Freeney's injury can be a blessing in disguise. IMO, the Chargers weren't generating much pressure with Freeney. Freeney's loss has forced Pagano to become creative which, in my opinion, give the Chargers defense a better chance of making plays.
On a side note: Congratulations to Reggie Wayne for catching his 1000th pass in the 3rd quarter. He picked up his 1001st also in the game to put him 8th all-time in catches. He'll likely pass Issac Bruce for 7th (1024 catches) before the season is over.
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