With kicker Cameron Dicker as their only source of points, the Chargers lost 17-15 to the Arizona Cardinals on Monday in State Farm Stadium.
Here’s what we learned from the game:
Chargers need all hands on deck
The receivers were the Chargers’ biggest concern entering the season. They’re still the biggest concern approaching the mid-way point.
Down top pass-catching options Monday in Quentin Johnston (ankle), Derius Davis (hamstring), D.J. Chark Jr. (groin), the Chargers turned tight end Will Dissly into a leading receiver. The tight end who is more known for his run-blocking ability was targeted 11 times, finishing with a career-high eight catches for 81 yards.
“Will was balling,” head coach Jim Harbaugh said.
But Dissly still dropped multiple passes, as did several teammates. The miscues became especially costly late as the Chargers got inside the Cardinals’ 30-yard line three times in the second half to only kick field goals each time.
Read more: Chargers only produce field goals and defense allows last-second loss to Cardinals
The receivers sat together in a tight group in the locker room after the game addressing some of their struggles supporting quarterback Justin Herbert.
“I think just for us, being a friendly receiving option, or really any receiving option for Justin is huge,” said Simi Fehoko, who has five catches for 89 yards in the past two games, which is more than he’s had in any of his previous NFL seasons.
The running game was almost nonexistent Monday, finishing with 59 yards on 22 carries. The Chargers (3-3) have rushed for at least 128 yards in each of their three wins while failing to crack 62 in any of their three losses.
“We got to get J.K. [Dobbins] a seam and let him hit some of those long runs,” center Bradley Bozeman said. “He’s a great runner, and we didn’t do that today.”
With a rotating cast of receivers and a dormant run game, Herbert still threw for a season-best 349 yards. It was his 26th career 300-yard game, tying him with Dan Marino and Andrew Luck for the fourth-most by any player through their five pro seasons, but, according to Opta Stats, he became the first NFL quarterback to throw for as many yards as he did Monday and earn a 97.1 passer rating while failing to score an offensive touchdown in a loss.
Fourth-quarter woes continue for Chargers defense
While the offense has done little to dispel its preseason question, the defense is still trying to address its own lingering problem.
Again, the Chargers gave up a second-half lead, repeating fourth-quarter struggles from losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Kansas City Chiefs. While players said they were more attuned to the importance of containing a mobile quarterback after getting burned by Denver’s Bo Nix last week, Cardinals star Kyler Murray ripped off a 44-yard touchdown run on the second play of the fourth quarter that gave Arizona a brief lead.
James Conner, who is one of the NFL’s best at forcing missed tackles, won the grudge match against one of the league’s most sure-handed tackling defenses. The running back had 101 yards rushing, the most allowed to a single player by the Chargers this season.
Read more: Who’s available? Loss in Arizona shows Chargers’ Justin Herbert needs another receiver
Conner made plays all over the field, including a forced fumble that prevented the Chargers from grabbing any early momentum off a first-possession interception. Conner chased Teair Tart down to strip the ball after the defensive lineman came up with an interception on a tipped pass by Khalil Mack. Tart’s interception and a fumble forced by Cam Hart were plays that nearly fulfilled the Chargers’ weekly goal of two takeaways, but the ball ended back up in Cardinal hands both times.
“I feel like we played good in some spots, but overall, wasn’t a clean day by the defense,” safety Derwin James Jr. said. “We didn’t capitalize on [their] mistakes. … We just got to be better.”
Dicker is Chargers’ reluctant offensive MVP
Dicker matched a Chargers record with a 59-yard field goal in the second quarter and then hit a second 50-yarder as time expired in the first half. He is just the second kicker in franchise history to make multiple 50-yard field goals in a game, now with two such performances.
With the offense struggling to find its way, the Chargers are happy to have Dicker to bail them out.
“He’s been automatic,” Herbert said. “He’s been so steady, and to be able to go down, and especially when you get in red zone like that, and know that you got points in your back pocket, you’re able to be more aggressive. It didn’t go our way unfortunately tonight, and he came up with some big field goals. But we got to do a better job as an offense.”
Dicker, who signed a contract extension before the season that made him the fifth-highest-paid kicker in the NFL, made all five of his attempts Monday and is 15-for-16 on field goals for the season and seven-for-eight on extra point attempts.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
