The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Parts of upgraded defense debut vs. Rams
INGLEWOOD » When the 2021 season was done and the Chargers failed to advance to the playoffs with a pedestrian 9-8 record, their self-examination began, with coach Brandon Staley meeting with general manager Tom Telesco, president of football operations John Spanos and team owner Dean Spanos.
A consensus was reached. The Chargers’ defense simply wasn’t good enough.
It couldn’t match up to an offense that seemed capable of scoring at will at times and improved special teams, and it proved costly in the final analysis, ranking 29th in the NFL in points allowed and 23rd in yards given up. So, the rest of the offseason was devoted to bolstering the defense.
The results of all of their labor weren’t on display when the Chargers played host to the Super Bowl champion Rams in their exhibition opener Saturday night at Sofi Stadium, and they might not be until the regular-season opener Sept. 11 against the Las Vegas Raiders, and in the weeks to come.
The signs of a deeper and far more talented defense were evident — not necessarily by who was on the field Saturday, but by who wasn’t.
Khalil Mack, acquired from the Chicago Bears to form a pass-rushing tandem with fellow outside linebacker Joey Bosa, didn’t play Saturday and probably won’t if Staley sticks with his plan to keep the starters off the field until Sept. 11. Bosa also didn’t play against the Rams.
Defensive linemen Sebastian Joseph-day, a freeagent signee who won a Super Bowl ring with the Rams last season, and Austin Johnson, a free agent from the New York Giants, didn’t play. Linebacker Kyle Van Noy, a Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots in 2018, didn’t play.
Cornerback J.C. Jackson, a free agent from New England, didn’t play, either.
Expectations have been heightened.
“I expect us to play team defense,” Staley said when asked recently about his own expectations. “Last year, that was a weakness of our football team. I don’t expect that to be the case (this season). That’s why all of those guys are here.”
Of particular concern at season’s end back in January was the sorry state of the Chargers’ defensive line. The Chargers ranked a lowly 28th in yards-percarry last season and gave up 100 yards or more in 12 of 17 games. Joseph-day and Johnson were added to improve matters.
“They just have to be themselves,” Staley said of his initial expectations for a new and improved defensive line. “All of those guys that we acquired through trade or free agency, those guys are proven NFL players. It’s just being themselves.”
Asked specifically about Joseph-day, Staley said: “Sebastian is one of the top interior defenders in the league. We brought him here because he’s made up of all the right stuff. He’s an intense competitor. He loves the work.”
By adding Jackson and Bryce Callahan, a free agent from the Denver Broncos, and drafting JT Woods in the third round, Ja’sir Taylor in the sixth round and Deane Leonard in the seventh, the Chargers also beefed up their secondary beyond all-pro safety Derwin James Jr.
Not all the talent was on the sideline Saturday, though.
Defensive lineman Jerry Tillery, safety Nasir Adderley and cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. were in the Chargers’ starting lineup. Chris Rumph II, expected to be a backup to either Bosa or Mack, sacked Rams quarterback Bryce Perkins for a nine-yard loss, halting a first-quarter drive.
Cornerback Michael Davis broke up a pass from
Perkins to Brycen Hopkins along the sideline, on a third-and-12 play at the Rams’ 42 yard line in the first quarter. Troy Reeder, who might be a starting linebacker by Sept. 11, stopped running back Raymond Calais for no gain in the second quarter.