The Athenaeum Forum

Well Justin Jones Color Rush Jersey , that was boring鈥?Ducks to avoid in-coming projectile)Hang on a second - let me finish before you lash out in a fit of blind rage. What I meant to say was that was boring in the best possible way.Granted, the Los Angeles Chargers 20-6 victory over the hated Raiders wasn’t exactly sexy, and they didn’t hang 40 on them, as some predicted, but they ultimately overcame a sleepy first half to win a divisional game that was never really in doubt.You can poo-poo this win if you want to, but from where I sit, the Chargers dominated most of this game, avoided costly mistakes, and really didn’t have to extend themselves or dip too deep into their bag of tricks to do it. That bodes well for this team moving forward.With that out of the way, let’s take a look at my five observations from the Raiders game:路Derwin James, Adrian Phillips and Jatavis Brown were everywhere: This trio of Chargers defenders accounted for 29 tackles in filling in the injured Denzel Perryman. James was outstanding in coverage, provided A+ run support and also got after Derek Carr as a pass rusher. Phillips and Brown were absolutely relentless in run support and were the definition of sideline-to-sideline linebackers on Sunday.路MGIII grinds the Raiders into pulp: Melvin Gordon was the offense in Oakland. He accounted for 165 yards and a touchdown on 23 touches, including 14 touches for 127 yards from the 3:33 mark of the second quarter until the end of the game. He fueled both of their touchdown drives and effectively ended the game with his 66-yard touchdown catch-and-run at the beginning of the third quarter.路A plan for Nwosu: Uchenna Nwosu was pretty quiet in his first extended action last week, and it was due in large part to a lack of a plan as a pass rusher. This week, Gus Bradley helped Nwosu by drawing up a handful of stunts and twists with interior linemen and it paid off with fairly consistent pressure and a half-sack. It was a nice bit of coaching by Bradley Kyzir White Color Rush Jersey , who is clearly looking for ways to help the second round pick find his way to the quarterback.路Rivers was out of sorts: I know people are going to be quick to defend Philip, and that’s fine because it comes with the territory, but I thought Rivers looked out of sorts in Oakland. He was uncomfortable, even jittery, in the pocket and made some awful decisions with the game still in doubt. The interception he threw to former Charger Marcus Gilchrist, for one, was about as poor a decision/play he’s made all season, and there were a few others that were just as bad on Sunday. Don’t get me wrong, he has been outstanding for most of the season, and is clear MVP candidate, I just think it’s something worth monitoring with big games looming in December.路Chargers adopting Lynn’s toughness, grit and resilience under fire: I know, it sounds corny, but hear me out. This team has faced a great deal of adversity this year (slow starts, poor third down play Virgil Green Color Rush Jersey , inconsistent red zone play, unreliable kicking game, key injuries, late game adversity) and still sits at 7-2 the week before Thanksgiving. To their credit, they continue to scratch and claw for every inch they get on the field, which is awfully reminiscent of what their head coach has gone through during his 26-year career as a coach and player.Well, there you have it; those are my observations from Sunday’s game in Oakland. I, for one, am enjoying the sudden abundance of boring games that are rarely in doubt, and hope for more down the stretch. This team feels like it’s building toward something big, and the fact that they continue to win games when they still clearly have plenty of room for improvement is encouraging, to say the least.We have stumbled upon the bizarro universe my friends, and I, for one, don’t want to go back. Here’s hoping this becomes the new normal. Ah Caleb Sturgis Color Rush Jersey , it’s that special moment when we sit down on Tuesday morning and complain about how various media outlets perceive our team! If you’ll recall, last week the Chargers beat the Steelers in a marvelous upset, but their Power Ranking average actually dropped almost a point. It didn’t make much sense then, but hey... it told us what we were looking to find out: They still don’t believe in the Chargers.What about this week? The Chargers dispatched a lowly foe that fought much harder than predicted. In fact, it was a genuine game! The end result was that the Chargers moved to 10-3, unfortunately still just behind the Chiefs. However, perennial top-5-candidate Patriots lost in devastating fashion to a hook and ladder play in Miami. It was a bit beautiful, I can’t lie. With both the Rams and the Patriots stumbling, was there a chance for the Chargers to move up the ranks?SB Nation1 New Orleans Saints 2 New England Patriots 3 Los Angeles Rams 4 Kansas City Chiefs5 Houston Texans 6 Chicago Bears 7 Green Bay Packers 8 Seattle Seahawks 9 Los Angeles Chargers [editors note: What the flippidy flap??]10 Dallas CowboysESPN.com1. New Orleans Saints2. Kansas City Chiefs3. Los Angeles Rams4. Los Angeles Chargers5. New England Patriots6. Chicago Bears7. Houston Texans8. Dallas Cowboys9. Seattle Seahawks10. Pittsburgh SteelersNFL.com1. New Orleans Saints2. Kansas City Chiefs3. Los Angeles Rams4. New England Patriots5. Los Angeles Chargers6. Chicago Bears7. Houston Texans8. Seattle Seahawks9. Dallas Cowboys 10. Baltimore RavensCBS.com1. Kansas City Chiefs2. New Orleans Saints3. Los Angeles Rams4. New England Patriots5. Dallas Cowboys6. Chicago Bears 7. Seattle Seahawks8. Los Angeles Chargers9. Houston Texans10. Indianapolis ColtsBleacher Report1. New Orleans Saints2. Kansas City Chiefs3. Los Angeles Rams4. Los Angeles Chargers5. Chicago Bears6. New England Patriots7. Houston Texans8. Dallas Cowboys9. Seattle Seahawks10. Baltimore RavensUSA Today1. New Orleans Saints2. Los Angeles Rams3. Kansas City Chiefs4. Los Angeles Chargers5. New England Patriots6. Chicago Bears7. Houston Texans8. Dallas Cowboys9. Seattle Seahawks10. Baltimore RavensPro Football Weekly1. New Orleans Saints2. Los Angeles Rams3. Kansas City Chiefs4. Los Angeles Chargers5. New England Patriots6. Chicago Bears 7. Houston Texans8. Dallas Cowboys9. Seattle Seahawks10. Pittsburgh SteelersAnd there you have it. Another confusing week.Last week it was CBS that received the dubious honor of “dork of the week” for dropping the Chargers from 4th to 9th because they won over the Steelers. This week they at least improved the Chargers ranking by one (roll eyes), but there is a more odd and confusing title holder this week: Our very own SB Nation.Last week their article was titled “The Rams and the Chargers are the two best teams, fight me,” placing the Chargers at #2. Cool!This week the same author shot the Bolts down to... number 9? And they don’t even explain WHY?!Watch out, folks. This dorkitude appears to be communicable. Warn your friends and family, and steer clear of comment sections!Average Ranking: 5.4Most Common Ranking: 4.0Chargers Playoff Chances: >99%Chargers Super Bowl win Odds with a win this week: 16%Chargers Super Bowl win Odds with a loss this week: 5%Chargers December win % 2017-2018: 85.7%-Jason “Good Reason to be Excited” Michaels