Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Gavino Borquez

Chargers EDGE Tuli Tuipulotu making early impression: ‘A real bright spot for our defense’

The Chargers’ pass rush brought the heat on Sunday.

They pressured Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill 14 times and sacked him a whopping five times.

Buy Chargers Tickets

It was a collaborative effort, but rookie Tuli Tuipulotu made his presence felt. The team’s second-round pick finished with three pressures and a sack.

“He has made a lot of progress,” Brandon Staley said. “He has made a lot of plays through two games and has been a real bright spot for our defense. He continues to improve. He’s been a playmaker for us for two games.”

Tuipulotu saw an uptick in playing time as Joey Bosa was on a limited snap count e was playing through a hamstring injury that kept him out of practice all of last week.

Tuipulotu was often used in pressure packages with Bosa and Khalil Mack lined up, which created mismatches and stressed blockers with their speed and power.

Tuipulotu’s most notable rep in the subpackages came on Bosa’s first sack. Tuipulotu occupied and split the left tackle and left guard to allow Bosa to loop around freely.

But Tuipulotu had one-on-one opportunities, including on his lone sack. He was lined up off the edge and went speed to power against the left tackle, which he bullied into the backfield and then disengaged to get to Tannehill.

Tuipulotu was also credited with four run stops on the day.

The Chargers need to work on defending the deep passes, but it helps when the pass rush is a well-oiled machine to minimize the amount of time for quarterbacks to get rid of the ball. Tuipulotu should continue to be a vital part of it.

Remember that Tuipulotu just recently turned 21 years old, so the best is yet to come.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.