The Chargers are still trailing the Steelers 21-0 at the halfway point.
Here are three things that stood out in the second quarter.
Missed tackles are costly
The Steelers had the ball for 9:09 to start the second quarter. It was a 14 play, 86 yard drive, in which the defense struggled to stop. A lot of it falls on the shoulders of the players that couldn’t bring down James Conner, who brought at least one tackle every time he received the ball.
Getting owned in the trenches
The defensive line can’t clog up holes, which is allowing Conner to have a field day. On the other side of the ball, the run game for the Chargers is nearly nonexistent because the offensive line can’t get any push and Steelers defenders are doing a nice job of corralling ball carriers from the backside, too. Philip Rivers had a little bit more time compared to the first quarter, but he is still facing the heat.
Why not go for it?
The Chargers were 4th-and-6 at the Steelers 33-yard line, but they decided to be conservative and get on the scoreboard with three points as opposed to cutting the deficit to 14 points. Rookie Chase McLaughlin missed the field goal, leaving many wondering why coach Anthony Lynn wasn’t more aggressive.
