MINNEAPOLIS _ The start to the Chargers' first-half woes in the running game Sunday seemed difficult to top, what with how easily Vikings running back Jerick McKinnon bolted through their interior defense as a bullet might paper, good for 35 yards on the opening carry.
It was a bad start.
The finish was even worse.
Late in the second quarter, running back Branden Oliver slammed his right fist into the new turf of U.S. Bank Stadium, part of the same old story for San Diego. It had sustained a major loss, this one an ominous Achilles injury that cast a pall in its third exhibition game, a 23-10 loss.
In the Chargers' second game, nine days earlier against Arizona, they lost two players to season-ending injuries.
Tight end Jeff Cumberland, who was expected to make the 53-man roster, ruptured his Achilles tendon. Rookie guard Donavon Clark, who was headed for the practice squad, tore his anterior cruciate ligament.
It'd be premature to say Oliver will follow the way of Cumberland.
But certainly, with him being carted off the field, early indications are not promising.
His indefinite loss creates multiple holes on the 53-man roster, Oliver not only the Chargers' third running back but also their top kickoff returner. Wide receiver Isaiah Burse is an option for the latter role if the team carries a fifth wide out. Cornerback Craig Mager took the first return rep of the second half. Kenneth Farrow and Dreamius Smith are options as the third back.
Of course, the team has the No. 3 waiver priority.
It is expected to actively scour the waiver wire for roster reinforcements following the NFL-wide cutdown from 75 to 53 players on Sept. 3. So, it's possible that Oliver's replacement at running back is a non-Charger.
Farrow, an undrafted rookie from Houston, has impressed at times on the practice field, but he missed much of training camp to injury. He has missed the past two exhibition games, including Sunday's. Smith saw heavy work in the second half in place of Oliver until exiting in the fourth quarter with an undisclosed ailment. That left fullbacks Derek Watt and Chris Swain as the only available running backs; Melvin Gordon and Danny Woodhead were done for the day.
Oliver entered the NFL in 2014 as an undrafted rookie from Buffalo.
He led the Chargers in rushing that season, totaling 582 yards with three touchdowns. In 2015, he played eight games before a season-ending turf toe injury
McKinnon had eight carries for 56 yards, darting past reserve-reserve nose tackle Ryan Carrethers on his first attempt. Carrethers started in place of Brandon Mebane, who was a healthy scratch. Mebane's excused absence allowed the team a look at its line depth with top reserve Damion Square being suspended the first four games of the regular season for violating the league's substance-abuse policy.
It was a bad look.
Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater had a 22-yard run, juking past safety Adrian Phillips.
The Chargers' rushing game was temporarily buoyed by a 39-yard Gordon touchdown through a wide interior running lane, the likes of which Gordon hasn't seen since his time at Wisconsin.
The Oliver injury, however, cast a shadow over most first-half positives.
