Chargers' keys to victory against the Texans
· Yahoo Sports
The Chargers continue to search for their first win, hosting the 2-5 Texans on Sunday as they hope to catch Houston napping after a bye week.
Here's what Los Angeles needs to do to get its first win of the year.
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Ride the hot hand
Los Angeles has had a three-man rotation in the backfield between Omarion Hampton, Keaton Mitchell, and Kimani Vidal, but instead of keeping all three of those players fresh, the timeshare has prevented any of them from getting into a rhythm. Both head coach Jim Harbaugh and McDaniel hinted at changes to that rotation this week, though Harbaugh said the Chargers will likely ride the hot hand a bit more against Houston. We've seen the Chargers suggest changes or acknowledge their lack of execution offensively this season before doing more of the same, so the offense will have to see a meaningful shift in snaps at running back on Sunday for those comments to mean much.
Find explosives
The Texans have dropped from second in defensive EPA/play last season to 23rd this season, but Houston still ranks 8th in success rate allowed. That's usually the hallmark of a unit being crushed by explosive plays, which the Chargers have largely been unable to create given how poorly their offense has performed. But with wide receivers Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston, and Tre' Harris healthy, LA will need to find a way to generate more of those plays to move the ball in chunks if they're going to take down the Texans. It would also probably help the Chargers' offense to cut down the number of plays they run to score, since Los Angeles is last in points per game this season at 14.1.
Protect the ball
With 17 turnovers and 10 interceptions from quarterback Justin Herbert - both figures that lead the league - the Chargers cannot be trusted to prevent giveaways until they prove they can avoid them for a full game. Herbert threw two more baffling interceptions last week against the Rams and is now the only passer in the NFL to throw a pick in every single one of his team's games this season. Especially if the Chargers are going to try to push the ball down the field more often in pursuit of explosives, avoiding negative plays and keeping small losses small instead of pressing and causing a disaster will be a huge point of emphasis on Sunday.
Keep Justin Herbert clean
Houston has two of the top 11 rushers in the league in terms of pressures forced - Will Anderson Jr. is fourth with 39, and Danielle Hunter is tied for 11th with 30. Anderson is also tied for the league lead with 7.5 sacks, and the Chargers are still without left tackle Rashawn Slater, who is on injured reserve with an ankle injury. That will present some additional challenges for the Chargers as they try to neutralize the Texans' pass rush, but LA will need to improve on the 23 sacks of Herbert they have allowed this season if they want to move the ball consistently.
Keep run game contained
Houston's run game has been among the worst in the league, despite an offseason that included a trade for running back David Montgomery, free-agent signings of Braden Smith and Wyatt Teller, and the first-round selection of Keylan Rutledge. Despite all of that, the Texans are 29th in rushing yards per game and no doubt spent much of the bye week looking for ways to catalyze that aspect of their offense. Los Angeles has allowed 124.6 yards per game on the ground, which ranks 23rd in the league, but individual defenders have played the run well at times this season. They'll need a cohesive performance to keep Houston from a get-right game in that phase.
Bottle up Nico Collins
Houston's leading receiver has actually not been Collins - instead, it has been sophomore Jaylin Noel with 331 yards - but Noel is on injured reserve, and Collins is back healthy after a brief absence of his own earlier this season. The Texans' No. 1 receiver has averaged 65.8 yards per game in the five he has played, and the Chargers have had mixed results against top passing options as they've navigated injuries in the secondary. With the options behind Collins down to Marvin Harrison Jr. and Kayshon Boutte, both acquired in the last three months via trade, LA would do well to force the ball to find other receivers.
Attack struggling offensive line
Texans quarterback CJ Stroud has been sacked 12 times this season, a little worse than league average but certainly not as bad as Justin Herbert's 23 sacks taken. Houston has dealt with some lineup shuffling on the offensive line as Rutledge started the year at center but has now shifted to guard with Evan Brown at center, while the Chargers' pass rush has been building steam with the trio of Khalil Mack, Tuli Tuipulotu, and rookie Akheem Mesidor. If they can get after Stroud consistently and make the Texans play offense on LA's terms, they could see more opportunities like Tarheeb Still's interception last week on Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford.
Get more consistent safety play
Despite the Chargers playing well on defense as a team, their safety play has struggled since Tony Jefferson moved into the starting role after Derwin James Jr. (hamstring) went on injured reserve. Jefferson has been a bright spot, consistently bringing physicality in the run game and making key red-zone stops. But between Elijah Molden, rookie Genesis Smith, and RJ Mickens, things have been a bit more up and down. Molden missed a one-on-one tackle on Kyren Williams that set up the Rams running back for a touchdown, and Smith and Mickens have both missed assignments in coverage that led to big plays this season. If the Chargers can get a strong game from that group, it'll likely come with a standout overall performance.
This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: Chargers' keys to victory against the Texans