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Beast of the East

Daniel Turner Written by Daniel Turner, Wednesday November 18 2009
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The San Diego Chargers have long been viewed as big fish in a small pond. Beating up on the Raiders and Chiefs assure them of four wins a season. If they split with the Broncos they are already heading toward a playoff spot. Of course, once they make it and meet up with the likes of the Steelers, Colts, or Patriots things don’t go as easily as they do when the Chargers are feasting on the AFC West.

 

But, something is different this season. At least that appears to be the case following the past two weeks. The Chargers may have derailed the reeling playoff hopes of the Giants and sent the Eagles into a two game tailspin.  Hell, if the Chargers were in the NFC East they would be tied with the Cowboys looking down upon the Giants and the Eagles. Since Dallas is as Eastern as Oklahoma City is Northwestern in the NBA perhaps the Chargers should petition to be moved to the division that houses the Giants, Eagles and geographically challenged Cowboys.

 

For awhile it looked like the Chargers may be struggling just to tread water in their own division before ripping off a four game win streak that included the two NFC East opponents. Yes they did drop one to the Steelers and lost game one to the Broncos, but their wins over the NFC East were not flukes. They squeaked by the Giants, but topped the Eagles by 10 points. That includes having to buckle down once the Eagles scored 14 in the third quarter. The Bolts held the Eagles scoreless from there on in and managed to walk away with the win on a day when Donovan McNabb had 450 yards passing.

 

A balanced attack is serving the offense well as they spread the ball around both in the air and on the ground. Rivers threw for 251 yards that also resulted in two touchdowns. That type of economy is called ball control when you win games. Using 205 passing yards to produce 3 TDs against the Giants is even more economical. Limiting Eli Manning, the guy who snubbed the franchise by stating if drafted he won’t play, to 251 yards was both good defense and pay back for someone who opted for greener pastures; even if those pastures are composed of artificial turf.

 

While it can be argued that coach Norv Turner’s familiarity with the Giants and the Eagles could have been an advantage it must be noted that when he shared the same division with both teams it was rarely in his favor. In the weeks to come Norv will get to reacquaint himself with two teams he has even closer relations to, the Cowboys and the Redskins. A sweep of the NFC East table could send the Chargers into the post season looking like something they haven’t resembled in quite some time; a team to be contended with in the playoffs. If they still come up short to the likes of the Colts maybe they should consider a move to the NFC East.
 


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