What caused the Chargers' meltdown against Ravens in Week 6?
The Los Angeles Chargers are widely regarded as one of the top two AFC teams in the entire league. That being said, they were routed by the even better Baltimore Ravens. While Justin Herbert has enjoyed some record-breaking performances as of late, he couldn't get anything going during the loss to the Ravens.
The Chargers dropped the ball quite literally after the Ravens clobbered them with a final score of 34-6.
What happened in the game against the Ravens that caused the Chargers to have a complete meltdown?
Why did the Chargers fall so easily to the Ravens?
Now that the Ravens are 5-1 and the Chargers have fallen to a 4-2 record, few would argue that the Ravens could be the most dangerous team in the AFC.
That's not to mention the 5-1 Buffalo Bills, but they could have their hands full with the Tennessee Titans on Monday.
One of the biggest reasons that the Chargers fell so hard is because the Ravens have one of the most dangerous rushing attacks in the league.
Latavius Murray, Le'Veon Bell and Devonta Freeman all scored on the ground. Lamar Jackson also added 51 yards, adding to the total 187 yards rushing on the day. The Chargers currently have the worst rushing defense in the league, and that fact was exploited by the Ravens, who just might have the best rushing dynamic in the league.
.@LataviusM to the HOUSE!
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The Chargers, like many teams, just can't stop the run from the Ravens.
This is even more shocking after the Ravens lost both JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards to torn ACL injuries.
The Chargers were overwhelmed, especially Herbert, who threw for 195 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT.
Two sacks and seven passes defended helped tip the scales for the Ravens defense. Even with Jackson throwing two interceptions of his own, the Chargers still could not get their offensive game going.
The Chargers also attempted to be aggressive in going for 4th down conversions, both of which failed, leading to two field goals for the Ravens.
The bottom line is that the Ravens were the better overall team.
The Chargers were 1-4 on 4th down and 3-12 on 3rd down conversions. They also had 4 penalties for 35 yards. Four penalties do not exactly ruin a game, but when playing against a team like the Ravens, mistakes will begin to pay dividends for an offensively competent side. The Ravens also had 27 first downs compared to the Chargers' 14.
Baltimore just found a way to score when it mattered, and the Chargers failed at every chance they got. Scoring is Justin Herbert's best quality, but the Ravens found a way to completely shut that down.
๐ ๐ผ๐๐ ๐ช๐ถ๐ป๐ ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ค๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐๐ต ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ต๐ฑ๐ฎ๐
๐ก๐๐ ๐๐ถ๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐
BAL Lamar Jackson - 35
HOF Dan Marino - 34
NE Drew Bledsoe - 32
PIT Ben Roethlisberger - 29
Jackson turns 25 on January 7th, 2022
@Ravens @Lj_era8
Lamar Jackson won his 35th game today against the Chargers, allowing him to pass Dan Marino for the most wins before their 25th birthday.
The Chargers will need to boost their defense if they are to remain a serious contender in the AFC, or they might suffer the same fate against the Ravens down the road in the playoffs.