Chargers 14, Chiefs 27
By David Neville, Chargers.com
09.07.03 - The Chargers knew Sunday’s 2003 season opener was going to be tough.
For one, they were playing in one of the NFL’s most difficult road venues, Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium.
Secondly, they were up against the league’s top scoring offense from a year ago.
And third, they were facing a Chiefs defense which had made several significant upgrades during the offseason.
When everything was said and done, the combination of the three was too much for the young Chargers to handle, as they fell to the Chiefs, 27-14, in front of 78,048 red-clad fans.
After spotting the Chiefs a 24-0 first half lead, the Bolts rallied for 14 points in the second half on touchdown passes from quarterback Drew Brees to tight end Josh Norman and wide receiver Eric Parker, but it wasn’t enough.
“I think it’s obvious the Chiefs are a much better football team,” said Head Coach Marty Schottenheimer. “That was reflected in the outcome. I was disappointed defensively that we didn’t tackle nearly as well as we need to tackle against a good football team.
“Then on the offensive side of it, we dropped too many balls. I thought we threw the ball extremely well, but you have to catch it. Those two things, in my view, are the things that led to our downfall today.”
Despite the outcome, the Chargers should benefit from Sunday’s game in several ways. For starters, the numerous young players on their roster on both sides of the ball, have now received a taste of the speed and fury of an NFL game against a top-quality opponent on the road.
They also learned a valuable lesson about how penalties, mental mistakes, dropped passes and missed opportunities, or what Schottenheimer calls “self-inflicted wounds,” can hurt your chances of winning.
“I told the club coming in here, ‘We’re going to take some body blows early in the game because of this crowd and because this is a good football team.’ And we did,” said Schottenheimer. “And I told them we’d have to withstand them and come back. And we did that. We just didn’t come back far enough.”
The Chargers’ ultimate downfall on both sides of the ball can also be traced partly to their ability to convert on third down. San Diego converted just three of 13 (23%) third down opportunities. On the other hand, the Chiefs were six of 15 (40%) on third down.
The Chiefs opened the scoring on the game’s first possession with a 24-yard touchdown run by running back Priest Holmes, capping a six-play, 68-yard drive that put Kansas City up 7-0 with 11:37 left in the first quarter.
It was the start of a productive day for Holmes, who rushed for 85 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries while adding 98 yards on seven receptions for 183 combined yards from scrimmage. Chiefs quarterback Trent Green also had a solid outing, completing 21 of 32 passes for 282 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Unlike Green, Brees had a rough day at the office. His final numbers – 18 of 33 for 202 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions – would have been better had the Chargers not dropped at least five passes, including both of the passes that were intercepted. Brees was also pressured consistently throughout the game and was sacked three times. The pressure can be attributed in part to the Chargers falling behind early.
“Our quarterback had to move around today to make some plays,” said Schottenheimer. “And he did that: he moved around and made some plays. But when you’re behind as we were, everybody in the stadium knows that you’re going to throw the football. It makes it a little more difficult for anybody on the offensive line. We ended up with as many sacks as they did, but the only thin that matters is the final score. And the final score is that we’re short 27 to 14.”
After Holmes’ touchdown, wide receiver Eric Parker gave the Chargers good field position in the first period with a 15-yard punt return to Kansas City’s 49-yard line. Unfortunately, the Chargers came up empty when a Brees pass bounced off wide receiver Reche Caldwell’s shoulder pads, with the ball careening into the air before safety Greg Wesley hauled it down for an interception. The interception followed a bizarre series of plays, including a pass interference call against the Chiefs that would have given the Chargers first and goal at the one-yard line. But the call was overruled by a second official who belatedly called pass interference against the Bolts as well, nullifying the original penalty.
On the ensuing possession, the Chiefs increased their lead to 14-0 with a five-yard touchdown run by Holmes with 1:21 left in the first quarter, capping a nine-play, 59-yard drive.
Green gave the Chiefs a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter when he found wide receiver Johnnie Morton open in the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown pass.
Kicker Morten Andersen improved Kansas City’s lead to 24-0 with a 42-yard field goal with 4:25 left to play before halftime.
As one would expect, the first-half numbers were all in Kansas City’s favor. After two quarters, the Chiefs had compiled 281 yards of total offense, including 197 passing and 84 rushing. In comparison, the Chargers had 49 net yards of offense at the break, including 19 rushing and 30 passing.
By game’s end, Kansas City had out-gained the Chargers 390 total yards to 232. The biggest disparity was in rushing yards, where San Diego had 64 yards compared to Kansas City’s 131.
Second-year cornerback Quentin Jammer came up with one of the few highlights for the Chargers in the third quarter with an athletic, diving interception. The play was so remarkable that the Chiefs challenged the call on the field, but after review, the original ruling stood and the Chargers took over at their 49-yard line. It was the first career interception for Jammer, the Chargers’ top pick in 2002.
The Chargers converted the turnover into seven points when Brees hit Norman for a 21-yard touchdown pass, making the score 24-7 with 8:16 left in the third quarter. Norman’s touchdown capped a five-play, 51-yard drive.
The Chiefs answered Norman’s touchdown with a 37-yard, 10-play drive resulting in a 46-yard Andersen field goal that made the score 27-7 with 2:22 remaining in the third quarter.
The Chargers got their second takeaway of the game when safety Jerry Wilson crushed Green on a sack, separating the Chiefs quarterback from the ball. Defensive end Marcellus Wiley recovered the fumble, giving San Diego the ball at Kansas City’s 23-yard line.
This time, the Chargers couldn’t convert the turnover into points after Tomlinson was held for no gain on both third and fourth and short, essentially ending the Chargers’ chances for a miracle comeback.
The Chargers tried a little razzle-dazzle later in the fourth quarter on a punt return when Parker fielded a punt and then tried to pass it back across the field to rookie cornerback Drayton Florence. But Florence was in front of Parker, making it an illegal forward pass. The Chargers ended up taking over at their own 33-yard line.
The Chargers tacked on a 20-yard touchdown pass from Brees to Parker to make the score 27-14 with 4:32 left in regulation. San Diego covered 67 yards on six plays for the touchdown.
San Diego had another late opportunity to add some more points, but Brees was intercepted for a second time, this time by safety Shaunard Harts on a pass intended for Caldwell, sending the Chargers back to San Diego with a record of 0-1 heading into their 2003 home opener next Sunday against the Denver Broncos at Qualcomm Stadium.
“This one football game that we didn’t play to the level that we are capable of playing,” said Schottenheimer. “My feeling is, and what I’ve told the football team, starting at the outset of this week, we’re on a journey. Kansas City is not the destination. We’re on a journey, and our journey is to try and get better each and every week so we have an opportunity to compete in the end for a championship.”
09.07.03 - Kicker Steve Christie’s extra point in the third quarter was the 400th of his career.
Tight end Josh Norman led the Chargers in receiving yards with 64 on four catches. His touchdown catch in the third quarter was the second of his career. He also had a touchdown catch in the Chargers regular-season opener at Cincinnati last year.
Running back LaDainian Tomlinson led all Chargers receivers with five catches. Tomlinson had 61 total yards from scrimmage, including 34 rushing on 13 carries and 27 receiving.
Safety Kwamie Lassiter led the Chargers in tackles with nine. Linebacker Donnie Edwards was second with eight tackles.
Defensive Adrian Dingle was credited with two sacks, but the second one should have gone to Marcellus Wiley.
Injuries
Cornerback Sammy Davis left the game in the third quarter with a lower leg contusion and did not return.
Regarding Davis, Schottenheimer said: “It doesn’t appear to be serious at this juncture, but I still have to talk to the medical staff.”
Tay Cody, who came into the game when Davis exited, was forced from the game a short while later with a hamstring injury. He also did not return.
Inactives
The following eight players were declared inactive prior to Sunday’s game: tight end Stephen Alexander, defensive tackle Jacques Cesaire, tight end Antonio Gates, cornerback Kevin House, defensive end Otis Leverette, punter Mike Scifres, tackle Courtney Van Buren and linebacker Matt Wilhelm.
Alexander was replaced in the starting lineup by Josh Norman on the Chargers’ first play from scrimmage
Im not a big fan of Kansas City, perhaps because im from St. Louis and because K.C. has our old coach (Vermeil) who we let go (big mistake) so we could have Martz (UGH!). They also have our old QB (Trent Green) who was put second because Warner came in and took us to the bowl that year....and we won...so Trent was out for good injury or not. AND even though KC is in the AFC and we are in the NFC....I still dont like em....they always start out good and end up blowing it in the end.
I do however LOVE Steve Christie (Chargers Kicker) who used to be on my Bills team (my first and foremost favorite team....even over the Rams)
Gotta Love Steve!
Good luck next week Chargers!! (unless your playing Buffalo)
I was so unimpressed with the Chargers on Sunday. That wasn't a seasoned team that stepped out on the field. They have let go of too many people who made a great difference on the team... especially Junior Seau. He really helped to hold our defense together. Sure, he's getting older, and had some problems with his leg, but the guy can play.
We have all this young, cocky talent, and they aren't impressing us here. A lot of San Diego has really given up on them. That's sad. I just don't see a lot of hope for this team, the way they are playing.
Breez was overthrowing all day. Too many times did we just not push hard enough on a play and let it through, to a completion of many 1st downs for KC.
And Marty... oh boy. Coach get's on tv after the game and said that he said it wasn't too bad and that he would like to see them play a little better next week.
A LITTLE BETTER? How about winning a game! Don't they remember the past TWO seasons? I sure do!
Originally posted by KJ I was so unimpressed with the Chargers on Sunday. That wasn't a seasoned team that stepped out on the field. They have let go of too many people who made a great difference on the team... especially Junior Seau. He really helped to hold our defense together. Sure, he's getting older, and had some problems with his leg, but the guy can play.
We have all this young, cocky talent, and they aren't impressing us here. A lot of San Diego has really given up on them. That's sad. I just don't see a lot of hope for this team, the way they are playing.
Breez was overthrowing all day. Too many times did we just not push hard enough on a play and let it through, to a completion of many 1st downs for KC.
And Marty... oh boy. Coach get's on tv after the game and said that he said it wasn't too bad and that he would like to see them play a little better next week.
A LITTLE BETTER? How about winning a game! Don't they remember the past TWO seasons? I sure do!
I would have thought that Marty would have been more prepared considering who knows more about KC than he does? What he said was pretty much close to what Martz said about the Rams.....pathetic! Listening to coahes excuses is about the worst thing that can happen to a fan.....I know...we had to listen to Martzs' excuses yesterday.....I cringed every time he made a new excuse! Not a good thing to do to the fans!
Cocky talent.....well that seems to be all over the NFL now....the money these guys get paid is almost to the point of ridiculousness. I think that every young player should start out with a certain amount and then get paid on their abilities. To give them taht kind of money...well...that just makes them that way, and then they dont have to prove themselves because the money is already there. How sad! Its all over the NFL right now.
Getting rid of Junior was a HUGE mistake.....geez, how do you get rid of one of the best defensive players in the league? Especially when he was a HUGE part of that team?
I wonder if they might consider putting Flutie in...he may be old...but I really like him as a QB. I doubt it though...it seems that once a team gets their sights on a QB they pretty much stick with him....
These coaches and owners are gonna have to be really careful about what they say.....after all its the people that pay for the tickets and give them the revenue they need to put a good team together.
I love football...I just hate to see these players getting millions before they have proven themselves worthy of it.
