Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers recap: Chargers march away with an easy win

It would be very easy to pile on Kansas City Chiefs fans' misery by describing how terrible they looked against the Chargers on Sunday but I'm not going to do it.  Yes the offense was horrid but consider this: after all the smoke clears from this blowout if you take a look at the AFC West standings this is what you see:  Kansas City 8-5, San Diego 7-6.  So I ask you, long suffering Chiefs fans, would you rather lose 0-31 & still be in first place, or win 31-0 & be in 2nd place with three games left in the regular season?  San Diego had a lot more to play for & yes they looked liked a Super Bowl team in this one.  But it was only one game, one loss.  No matter how much KC stunk they can only be assessed one loss per game.  It may be disturbing to see your team collapse at Denver & again at San Diego but take heart.  They still have a chance to win the division & host a playoff game.  Last year at this time Kansas City was 3-10.  Isn't 8-5 now a whole lot more fun?

As to the game, well, it proved to be a mismatch.  The Chargers scored touchdowns on three of their first four possessions to take a 21-0 halftime lead while the Chiefs were punting on their first four possessions.  KC then added four more punts in the second half to complete the perfect game: eight punts on eight possessions that didn't end at half.  San Diego rang up 426 yards & 25 first downs compared to 67 yards & 5 first downs for KC.  The Chargers were 11 of 15 on 3rd down conversions while KC was 0 for 11.  Possession time was 40 minutes to 20.  By just about any measure this game was not close.  The better team won.  On this particular day.        

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Gardner's Grades:

Offense:  F     Poor Brodie Croyle, he of the 0-10 record as an NFL starter, went 7 of 17 for 40 yards but the gameplan was ultra-conservative & didn't allow for much in the way of passing from Croyle even after the Chiefs fell behind.  Clearly the Chiefs need Matt Cassel to run this offense to have a chance to win.  Jamaal Charles signed a five year, 32.5 Million dollar contract extension on Saturday & celebrated on Sunday by rushing ten times for 40 yards.  Dwayne Bowe caught one pass for three yards.  Thomas Jones had three carries for one yard.  We thought the debacle in Denver was the lowlight of this season but the offensive output in this game trumped even that lowly effort.  

Defense:   C-     This unit allowed San Diego to score four touchdowns & one field goal on nine possessions.  They were able to force two punts.  They came up with a fumble recovery by Wallace Gilberry & a nice interception by Eric Berry, his third of the season.  Considering how woeful the offense was & how long the defense had to be on the field vs the #1 ranked offense in the NFL it actually was not a horrific effort overall. 

Looking ahead:

Many people now favor the Chargers to win the AFC West by virtue of their easy schedule down the stretch (vs the 49'ers this Thursday night, at Cincinnati & finally home to host the Broncos).  Given that the playoff road in the AFC appears to run through Pittsburgh & New England the Chargers have a steep climb ahead of them if they wish to play in their 2nd Super Bowl.  They also have a history of playoff collapses so we remain skeptical of their overall chances. 

Meanwhile Kansas City travels across the state of Missouri to play for the Governor's Cup vs the up & coming St. Louis Rams who are in a battle of their own to win the watered down NFC West.  Thanks to the proximity of the two franchises, & the relatively short history of the Rams in St. Louis, there should be a rather strong contingent of Chiefs fans on hand for this game, including yours truly.  Assuming Matt Cassel is back this one has the feel of a very close contest between two teams on the rise.  The Rams may have an edge at quarterback given the play of their impressive rookie Sam Bradford & Cassel's questionable status.  Two of the best backs in the NFL, Steven Jackson & Jamaal Charles, should provide strong rushing attacks for both teams.  It could come down to the play of the defenses who are very closely matched.  Stay tuned!

By Allan Gardner
ProFootball-fans.com Kansas City Chiefs Correspondent