The Chargers learned that they can not play down to their opponent in Week 5. It applies this week facing a Steelers team that’s 1-4 and are trying to avoid being on the outside looking in.
Los Angeles enters this game with a 2-3 record and are looking to keep their playoff hopes alive. Accomplishing this feat can be done in a few ways, but we list the three key things to do so.
Limit Conner
The Steelers rushing attack ranks near the bottom of the NFL. A lot of that’s largely due to the offensive line that’s struggling to create holes and because of it, Conner hasn’t been as productive this season.
With an undrafted rookie behind center and Jaylen Samuels out of Sunday’s contest, they will be relying heavily on Conner to pave the way and use this game to get back on track after a poor start.
The Chargers run defense has allowed slightly over 100 yards per game in the last three contests, which has been an improvement from the beginning of the season.
If they can erase a key part to Pittsburgh’s offense, it’ll fall on Devlin Hodges, who doesn’t have much starting experience, to guide the offense to success. Cornerback Casey Hayward should be able to limit a struggling JuJu Smith-Schuster, too.
Max protection
The Steelers defense has been on the rise the past couple of weeks and a lot of the credit goes to the dynamic pass rush that they possess. The unit ranks No. 3 in the NFL with 19 sacks amassed through five games.
The Chargers, who have a slightly new look with Forrest Lamp in the starting lineup, will need to be on their A-game against the pressure. Philip Rivers hasn’t been as quick to get the ball off compared years prior and has been taking the sacks.
If they’re able to buy Rivers enough time, he should be able to flourish against a questionable secondary that will be without cornerback Steven Nelson.
Unleash Ekeler
Ekeler experienced a bit of down performance against the Broncos. Even though he was an effective weapon through the air, he was not given as many carries as weeks prior. A lot of that could be due to Melvin Gordon’s return and they abandoned the run when they were playing catch-up.
Ekeler currently leads the team with 227 rushing yards at an average of 3.8 yards per carry. Everyone knows how elusive Ekeler is when he gets the ball out of the backfield, and the Chargers can’t sway away from something that’s been effective.
Gordon is expected to see an uptick of snaps, but that doesn’t mean they need to make Ekeler a ghost. They should still use him as a go-to pass catcher in the flats and give him 10-15 carries. It’s almost guaranteed that he will produce facing a Steelers run defense that has struggled.
