Gästearea / Bannertausch » Ol' man Rivers keeps rolling along.

Philip Rivers threw two touchdown passes to Tyrell Williams — and the 36-year-old quarterback even threw a block — and Melvin Gordon had three TD runs as the Los Angeles Chargers banged around Cleveland rookie Baker Mayfield and the Browns http://www.chargerscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-russell-okung-jersey , 38-14 on Sunday.Rivers continued one of the best starts of his 15-year career, leading the Chargers (4-2) to their third straight win. Rivers finished 11 of 20 for 207 yards and had only one mistake, an interception midway through the fourth quarter.The Chargers did most of their damage on the ground with Gordon running for 132 yards and scoring on runs of 4, 10 and 11 yards. They had 246 yards rushing."There haven't been too many days where we've run for more than we've thrown," Rivers said with a laugh. "But I'll take them any time we can get them."Rivers and Williams connected on scoring plays of 45 and 29 yards in the first half, and Gordon's 11-yard run put the Chargers up 35-6.Mayfield's third start as a pro was a rough one. The No. 1 overall pick was sacked five times, tweaked his ankle when he slid on a sideline marker and threw two interceptions."We didn't execute," said Mayfield, who threw a TD pass to tight end David Njoku . "We didn't do our job. We weren't detailed. We didn't do the things that we talked about all week. That's the most disappointing thing. Any time you don't do your job — I'm at fault for the majority of that. I'm going to be very hard on myself but we have to be able to look at this and learn from it."The Browns (2-3-1) were blown out after playing five tight games — three going to overtime — and showed there's still a long road ahead.While young QBs like Mayfield, Carson Wentz and Patrick Mahomes may be the NFL's next wave, Rivers is showing that the old guys can still get the job done. He has thrown 15 TD passes with just three interceptions, and he did all he could to block Browns linebacker Jamie Collins to help Keenan Allen pick up a first down despite the Chargers leading 28-6."I'm not real comfortable out there," Rivers said. "But I stayed in front and did not get a holding, so that's a positive."The Chargers weren't surprised by Rivers' effort."That's Phil," said Williams, who had three catches for 118 yards. "He's competitive and he's going to stick his nose in there if he gets an opportunity. I'm not surprised at all."Los Angeles caught a break on Rivers' second TD pass to Williams.Left tackle Russell Okung clearly dropped back before the ball was snapped. Browns defensive end Myles Garrett stopped, assuming the play would be whistled, and several other players paused while Rivers lofted his scoring pass to Williams.Williams' first TD catch was more spectacular. Leaping with three Browns defenders around him, he wrestled the ball way from Browns safety Damarious Randall to give the Chargers a 14-3 lead.OWNER HONOREDFollowing the game, Chargers coach Anthony Lynn presented a game ball to the family of Alex Spanos, the Chargers owner who died earlier this week. Spanos, who was 95, bought the team in 1984.JUST FOR KICKSLynn was relieved the Chargers' kicking woes did not come into play."We made all our damn kicks — all the extra points, all the field goals, so that's an improvement http://www.chargerscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-mike-pouncey-jersey ," he said.Rookie Michael Badgley replaced injured starter Caleb Sturgis and made one field goal and all five extra-points in his pro debut after being signed on Thursday.Sturgis, who has been dealing with a quadriceps injury, missed a field goal and PAT last week. He also missed two extra points in L.A.'s previous game, and the Chargers came in leading the league with four missed PATs.BROWNS BLASTEDCleveland's first five games were decided by four points or less, but Randall wasn't concerned about the lopsided loss."Every team goes through a game like that," he said. "I'm honestly glad it happened early in the season for us, where we have time to correct what happened."THOMAS TRIBUTEThe Browns honored future Hall of Fame tackle Joe Thomas by adding 10,363 — the number of consecutive snaps he played over 11 seasons — to the club's ring of honor. Thomas retired following last season, which came to a premature end for him when he tore his triceps. He grudgingly retired in March."I love being in the locker room and the paychecks were really good — but my body just couldn't do it anymore," said Thomas, who wore an orange Mayfield jersey. "If it weren't for that, I would be out there today."INJURIESChargers: DE Christopher Landrum was shaken up in the fourth quarter.Browns: LB Joe Schobert (hamstring) left in the third quarter, and LB James Burgess (hamstring) went out in the fourth. ... WR Rod Streater suffered a neck "stinger" while covering a punt in the first quarter and did not return.UP NEXTChargers: Play Tennessee in London on Oct. 21.Browns: Visit Tampa Bay on Oct. 21__Surge or Static: You had one job! “YOU HAD ONE JOB!”That’s the statement I found myself saying far too often Sunday evening as I watched a number of Chargers players fall short of, you know, the most expected of expectations.While the score ended up being 38-28, it honestly felt much closer to 68-28 than reality.I guess when touchdowns come as easy as they did for the Chiefs, you can’t help but get washed away in the tidal wave of scores put up by the dynamic quarterback-receiver duo of Patrick Mahomes and Tyreek Hill.And while the final boxscore painted a different picture, fans likely left the stands that night with a terrible drowning feeling.In the first game of the 2018 season, with expectations as high as they’ve ever been, a pair of receivers in what was deemed “the best wideout group in the NFL” fell short of even the lowest of standards.On the flip-side, a pairing from the running back room enjoyed an outing that was about as pleasantly productive as it was efficient.As we meander over to the defensive side of the ball, fans and analysts alike got to see a highly-touted rookie vault over his expectation bar while a veteran continued to show no signs of progression in the weakest part of his collective skill-set.Although I don’t believe anyone expected this match-up to be “smooth sailing”, I don’t think many expected a number of over-sized mackerel to fly up and wallop them in the face, either.Some of you might also be wondering, “Why is Michael incorporating so many water-themed metaphors and similes?” Well Brandon Mebane Jersey , I don’t have an answer you, to be honest. It’s just “flowing” so well.....Alright, I’m done. I promise.Welcome, my friends, to the very first regular season edition of Surge or Static!SURGEDRBs Melvin Gordon/Austin EkelerFinally, finally, finally, the Chargers found a way move the ball effectively on the ground against a team they should have. In recent years, whenever the team has gone up against a dismal run defense, they’ve always found a way to make that weakness look like a strength. Like clockwork.In Sunday’s match-up against a Chiefs defense suddenly lacking in star-power, Gordon and Ekeler both found plenty of space to work with as they combined for one of the best rushing performances over the last several years. The two backs were wildly complimentary of each other as the offense never skipped a beat, regardless of who was in the backfield.Gordon got the lion’s share of the work, collecting 15 carries to Ekeler’s five. However, the latter was much more prolific, averaging 7.8 yards per carry to Gordon’s 4.3.As the game quickly got out of hand, Gordon and Ekeler were forced to abandon the ground for work through the air as the duo got absolutely pelted with targets while the Chargers played catch-up.The backfield received 18 total targets in this game which they turned into 14 catches for 189 yards and a touchdown. The score was an absolute beauty from quarterback Philip Rivers as he threw a perfect pass to Ekeler in the back corner of the endzone.In all, Gordon and Ekeler combined for 292 total yards from scrimmage and the lone touchdown.I don’t about you guys, but that’s pretty #good.Without tight end Hunter Henry in this offense, this is exactly the direction offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt needs to take this offense.S Derwin JamesThe long wait to watch James in a regular season game came and went and fans walked away with plenty of warm, fuzzy feelings. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), James was the team’s third-highest graded defender with a 70.0. If you watch him closely, you might think that’s a fairly pedestrian grade when juxtaposed with the film, but the tape doesn’t lie.James’ final line against the Chiefs included three tackles, the only sack for the Chargers on Sunday, and two pass deflections.One of those pass deflections came in the end zone on a full-extension swat by James just two plays before he corralled Mahomes for his first career sack.Sean Taylor comparisons aside Casey Hayward Jersey , fans should be extremely excited about James going forward, especially with the Buffalo Bills up next on the slate.StaticWRs Tyrell Williams/Travis BenjaminAfter an offseason chalk-full of praise about the Chargers’ wide receivers, they ended up being one of the most disappointing groups in the league on Sunday. According to PFF, Rivers left the weekend tied with two other quarterbacks after having four of his passes dropped.Three of those four passes were dropped by Williams (1) and Benjamin (2), with both dropping a pass in the endzone. That is very no bueno.Although Tyrell caught himself a touchdown, he finished with only two catches for eight measly yards. Benjamin, after dropped two long balls, finished with a single catch for a single yard.I don’t know how Rivers managed to stick by his “no cursing” policy after seeing his receivers metaphorically kick him in the nether-regions repeatedly.The only positive takeaway from their pitiful week one performance: we may see a lot more Mike Williams going forward after he took advantage of his limited snaps.LB Kyle EmanuelI’m not sure how to go about this section of the piece.I mean, I’ve been spouting out my thoughts on Emanuel for the last several years and, to my non-surprise, not a single thing has changed.In week 1 of 2016 when the Chargers visited Arrowhead Stadium, Emanuel showed his true colors in coverage as he was routinely exploited by Andy Reid as the malicious head coach forced him to chase running backs Spencer Ware and Charcandrick West all over the field, for his own sick amusement.At that point, two years ago, I started calling for the benching of Emanuel, at least, in that role he was being asked to play. Emanuel is a decent defender of the run, but he has proved to be as inept as anyone when asked to cover another football player.Not a receiver or running back. A football player. When Emanuel can’t cover a 5-foot-10, 245-pound fullback on a wheel route, it’s time he starts figuring out how to make the bench as comfy as possible.I mean, come on. Reid just came out and referred to Sherman as “a sausage with hands.”YOU GOT SCORED ON BY A PLAYER THAT WAS CALLED “A SAUSAGE WITH HANDS?!”Emanuel, meet bench.To no one’s surprise at all, Emanuel received PFF’s lowest grade for a linebacker in coverage. I’m just tired of repeating myself at this point.Who else do you guys think surged forward with their play on Sunday? Who do you think stayed static, or even took some steps back? Let’s talk about it.