Vin+ 3,121 Posted October 18, 2013 http://hosted.stats.com/fb/preview.asp?g=20131020030&home=30&vis=24 (AP) -- The San Diego Chargers have yet to climb over the .500 mark in their first six games under coach Mike McCoy. A matchup with the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars might help them finally break through. After beating a division-leading team, the Chargers will try to drop the Jaguars to 0-7 in Sunday's visit to Jacksonville. Following an inconsistent start to McCoy's tenure, San Diego (3-3) might have gotten just the spark it needed with a 19-9 victory over AFC South leader Indianapolis on Monday night. The Chargers held the Colts nearly 19 points under their season scoring average and got another strong performance from rookie receiver Keenan Allen. Allen had a season-best nine catches and topped 100 yards for the second straight game. He also scored the game's lone touchdown on a 22-yard pass from Philip Rivers early in the second quarter. Running back Ryan Mathews contributed a season-high 102 yards on the ground after averaging 46.8 in his first five games. Mathews was forced to exit San Diego's previous contest, a 27-17 loss in Oakland on Oct. 6, because of a concussion. "I thought this was a turning point for our season," Rivers said. "That doesn't mean it's going to take care of itself, but 2-4 would have been quite a bind to be in. We've got to get Jacksonville next week before the bye and find ourselves at 4-3 and see what happens the rest of the way." San Diego will try to improve to 4-3 by adding to Jacksonville's worst start in franchise history. The Jaguars (0-6) are the first team since the 1984 Houston Oilers to lose each of their first six games by double digits but might have gotten a boost from last week's performance against unbeaten Denver. Jacksonville entered last week's game against Denver as a 27-point underdog, one of the largest in NFL history, but trailed by only two points in the third quarter before the Broncos pulled away. McCoy is among those who aren't taking Jacksonville lightly. "This is going to be a very good football team we're playing. Everyone gave (Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning) a lot of flak last week for saying hey, this is a very good football team and his comments were correct, I believe, about what type of team it is," McCoy said. Jaguars quarterback Chad Henne finished with a season-high 303 yards against Denver while starting in place of an injured Blaine Gabbert (hamstring). Justin Blackmon caught 14 of his 27 completions for 190 yards. "There were some positives that we can take from this game," linebacker Paul Posluszny said. "Moving forward, we can learn from this game. We definitely need some improvements in some areas. We're definitely headed in the right direction." Henne is expected to start again Sunday and Blackmon will try to add to his 326 yards since returning from a four-game suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy. Blackmon's play could prove pivotal if leading receiver Cecil Shorts III is out with a shoulder injury. "I'm very hopeful (about playing)," Shorts told the team's website. "I'm very stable structurally – nothing broken or cracked – but it's a lot of pain. It's a matter of how much I can handle and take. We still have time to improve between now and Sunday. My goal is definitely to get prepared like I'm playing." Blackmon was starring at Oklahoma State and Shorts was a rookie the last time the Jaguars faced the Chargers on Dec. 5, 2011. Shorts scored a 5-yard touchdown on his lone reception in a 38-14 home loss while running back Maurice Jones-Drew had 97 rushing yards and a team-best 91 receiving. Jones-Drew hasn't topped 71 yards on the ground in any game this season and hasn't caught more than two passes. Rivers connected on three touchdowns in the win over Jacksonville and has totaled seven in three career matchups while averaging 312.3 passing yards. Unlike Jones-Drew, Rivers hasn't seen a drop in production this season as he's third in the NFL with 1,847 yards and tied for second with 14 touchdowns. Rivers topped 400 yards in three of his first five games before finishing with 237 in the win over Indianapolis. San Diego has won the past two meetings with Jacksonville by a combined 76-27 margin. The Jaguars will also try to avoid their fourth loss in five matchups with the Chargers before next week's game in London against San Francisco. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KempBolt 498 Posted October 18, 2013 34 20 I totally get people picking the Jags here (cross country trip, 10:00 am PST start, etc), but there are some factors working for the Chargers too. 1) They've already won an early start on the East coast against Philly, so there should be confidence about their capability to do so. 2) Their next two weeks are the bye and the lowly Redskins, so looking ahead shouldn't be an issue. 3) They got pants by the Raiders, so deep down they all have to know that they're not good enough to overlook anyone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cheese Head 11 Posted October 18, 2013 Chargers looked good on Monday Night vs. the Colts. Even though the Jags did a half decent job against the Broncos I think they fall to 0-7. Chargers: 27 Jags: 16 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theMileHighGuy 656 Posted October 18, 2013 (edited) Bolts won't overlook another team, even one as bad as the Jags. Blackmon and Shorts (if he plays) may have big games, but it won't be enough to win. 30 20 Edited October 18, 2013 by theMileHighGuy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CampinWithaMissingPerson 2,025 Posted October 19, 2013 23 17 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241 Posted October 20, 2013 31-17 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CampinWithaMissingPerson 2,025 Posted October 20, 2013 Jags offense at home this year: 35 drives, 0 TDs, 9 points, 6 turnovers. :rofl: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vin+ 3,121 Posted October 21, 2013 I hope Blaine comes back next week. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KempBolt 498 Posted October 21, 2013 At least Gus Bradley has got Sen'Derrick playing up to his talent level. It's never been an issue of ability with that guy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BwareDWare94 723 Posted October 21, 2013 I can't believe people thought the Chargers would lose to the Jags after beating the Colts. Come on. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KempBolt 498 Posted October 21, 2013 I can't believe people thought the Chargers would lose to the Jags after beating the Colts. Come on. Well... we did go lose to the Raiders after beating you guys so I can kind of see their point. The Chargers are inconsistent until they aren't. Hopefully this is the start of them not being so up and down. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
