Lots has been mentioned after the game about our secondary looking pretty good (including Goodman) and really only gave up one touchdown to a nice route and play by Chambers (W.Allen) and one long pass to Vincent Jackson. We also know that the defense shut down the run extremely well all game. Most i've heard about for sealing the win was the LT goaline stand, even in polls for turning point play of the week (SIrius NFL.com) One play that Bell and I coudn't see who else was in on that was being over looked was the Chambers stop at the 2-3 yard line, the play he got injured on. That was so close to tying the game chambers basically had to fall over, our secondary stepped up and was not letting him gain another inch. I believed that itself tempered the comeback and really set the tone for the LT goaline stand, if the chargers would have scored there, it would have been an even more interesting finish. So, props to the secondary for one heck of a game, we didn't get a lot of sacks or pressure Rivers as much as we'd like, but our secondary still shut down Chambers, Jackson and Gates for almost the entire game. I for one was questioning their basic intensity level, and just knowing where to be on coverages all season. I thought yesterday they really proved to me they are capable of playing smart in the secondary, and further proving you don't need interceptions to prove your a good unit and can limit a team from passing / scoring at will on you. Way to go Secondary, unbelievable game, and great heart stopping chambers when he was so close, that was a HUGE play in my opinion, almost or as big as the LT goaline stand.
Channing was the other guy helping Bell make that tackle. Excellent post, and I agree. The same can be said about our receivers. Both units have been much maligned all season and both have stepped up big time the past two games.
Have to admit, one area that has vastly improved in this defense is the tackling. The secondary is doing a great job of stopping the ball carrier, be it a pass or run play. They've really come together...heck, even Chris Crocker had a nice play or two.... However, there was one breakdown that turned into nothing that could have been devastating when Rivers overthrew a wide open Jackson on a deep pass in the middle of the field...can't exactly recall when it was in the game but we lucked out there because either the coverage was blown or Jackson beat the stuffing out of one of our DBs....
We got in Rivers' grill almost all game long. The only times where Rivers didn't quite get as much pressure were the ones on the 42 yard play to Jackson and the TD pass to Chambers. Otherwise, a pedestrian effort in coverage bolstered by superb pressure but a very good job in tackling.
