The Los Angeles Chargers are a tough team to get a good handle on. One week, they look like a Super Bowl contender and then the very next, they completely fall apart. That couldn't be clearer after the team handily defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 10, only to go to Jacksonville and be decimated by the Jaguars, 35-6.
That kind of loss may show that Jim Harbaugh's team may be much further away than many thought, particularly after the team jumped out to a 3-0 start to the season. After being defeated by four scores this past Sunday, the Chargers were expected to take a fall in the power rankings. But at 7-4 and still in the thick of the AFC playoff race, they couldn't fall too far.
Vinnie Iyer of AllSportsPeople dropped them from No. 11 down to No. 15 in his weekly power rankings.
"The Chargers are getting to be a wild ride under Jim Harbaugh, with the offense either going hot or cold (thanks to dangerously inconsistent Justin Herbert) and the defense somehow wilting against the run in Jacksonville. It's difficult to know whether L.A. Will surge or fade down the stretch", wrote Iyer.
That is a fair placement and a fair assessment. Unfortunately, it's hard to assess how good the Chargers are due to all of the injuries that the team has been forced to deal with, but it does seem clear that those injuries have greatly impacted the team in certain games.
Give Harbaugh credit for keeping the team in the hunt, but the team that showed up in Jacksonville on Sunday is not a Super Bowl contender or a threat to beat anyone in the playoffs. Being right in the middle of the pack is where the team should be. However, if the Chargers can get Omarion Hampton back on the field soon, that should inject some life into the running game. Still, it will be difficult to replace both starting tackles, Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt, who are out for the season.
Chargers fans had plenty to be optimistic about early in the season, but those hopes have quickly faded and one has to wonder if this season will turn out any better than last year, which ended in the Wild Card round of the playoffs.
Following their bye, the Chargers return in Week 13 to face the Las Vegas Raiders. They could get healthy, at least in the win-loss column, in that one.
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