Getting physical: RB Lindsay helps “establish the run.”
CARSON, CALIF.» When the game needed to be put on ice, the Broncos turned to No. 30.
That was the case on many Sundays back in the 1990s when Terrell Davis was the cornerstone of the Denver rushing attack. And it was the case on this Sunday, too, when Phillip’s Lindsay’s fourth career 100-yard game pushed the Broncos to a 20-13 win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
Lindsay scampered for 114 yards on 15 carries with a touchdown, and also added four receptions for 33 yards. The Denver native remained humble about his game-swaying performance, deflecting praise to his offensive line. But he also acknowledged the large burden he needs to take on in order to help turn around the Broncos (1-4).
“At the end of the day, we all have to stick together, and whoever is hot, has to get hot,” Lindsay said. “Today was my day to get hot and help spark the team.”
Denver’s offense lacked an identity through the first four games. But on Sunday in a soccer stadium, in front of what felt like a Denver home crowd, that identity was discovered by letting Lindsay grind and gash the L.A. defense.
“For the past couple weeks, we either got behind or were playing catch-up, and we weren’t able to establish the run like we wanted to,” Lindsay said. “Today, we wanted to be able to seal the deal by running the ball at the end of the game.”
The Broncos did just that in the fourth quarter after letting the Chargers hang around. Lindsay nailed Los Angeles’ coffin shut with a pair of big runs on Denver’s final drive, first for 32 yards to get into Chargers territory. Then, he had a 13- yard run on third-and-long that put the team in range for Brandon McManus‘ 46-yard field goal that made it a two-score game.
But even in the wake of the team’s first win and a strong individual performance, Lindsay was far from satisfied, saying he left some yards on the table.
“The offensive line works their butts off every time to get you a hole; sometimes, you want to go off and do your own thing and improvise, when it’s really about trusting the system and trusting what (the defense) gives you,” Lindsay said. “There were a couple times I could’ve bounced it back (into the hole) and had another explosive play.”