Jesse Minter Rapidly affected Chargers Player with his calm demeanor during his first season as an NFL defensive coordinator, but as Denver Broncos Three touchdown drives in a row last Thursday, until the invincible Minter began to panic.
He spent just four days last week talking to his players about the appropriate response to make sure. Blowout loss to Tampa Bay will be once. They couldn’t afford to make it a trend.
“I was afraid that at one point, I might have said that,” Minter said with a small smile.
Then from the second quarter sack Joy kiss gave birth to the three-and-out. The Chargers held the Broncos out of the end zone for the final seven drives of the game 34-27 win Which brought the team to the brink of a playoff berth for the first time since 2022.
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“I think the momentum is real,” Minter said. “To get our momentum back to feel like a defensive unit, that’s huge.”
By holding the Broncos to six points in the second half, the Chargers regained their lead as the best scoring defense in the NFL, giving up 18.3 points per game. against the New England Patriots On Saturday, the Chargers (9-6) could become just the sixth team since 1970 to give up 20 or fewer points in eight road games in a season, and the first since the 2010 Chicago Bears.
For a defense hoping to keep momentum going into the postseason, the matchup is an important opportunity. The Patriots’ 17.3 points per game are 30th in the NFL. New England (3-12) ranks last in passing yards (178.5 per game). Rookie quarterback Drake May, drafted third overall in April, has intercepted at least one pass in seven straight games.
The Chargers, who can clinch a playoff berth with a win or tie, will try to win with a thin secondary because safety Marcus Maye (ankle) was placed on injured reserve Monday.
The team claimed May off waivers on November 27 to place safety Alohie Gilman on IR. May made a splash in his Chargers debut with a key interception in a win over the Atlanta Falcons, but left last Thursday’s game in the first quarter.
Already without Elijah Molden, who sat out the game with a knee injury, the Chargers suddenly needed the practice squad to call up defensive end Kendall Williamson. Coaches informed the 24-year-old, seventh-round Stanford pick, that he would be active for the game a few days in advance, but the plan was likely to involve special teams.
He then played 17 defensive snaps in his NFL debut, finishing with one tackle.
“When your number comes up, it’s a game-changing name,” cornerback Christine Fulton, who was also extended from the practice squad, said after Thursday’s game. “That’s a lot of credit to him because he doesn’t get a lot of reps in practice. So he stepped up in a big way.”
Williamson is the latest player to make an impact after working hard on the practice squad. Veteran safety Tony Jefferson has parlayed his practice squad reps into a starting role since Gillman went on IR, finishing with 20 tackles in three starts.
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Jefferson, who missed one game with a hamstring injury, played all 64 defensive snaps against the Broncos and had seven tackles.
“He’s a guy who, at the drop of a hat, can go in there and play multiple positions and go out there and execute the defense,” Minter said. and brings a little confidence edge when he’s out there.”
The Chargers have not yet opened Gillman’s practice window, although the 27-year-old is eligible to return this week.
Molden was limited in practice Tuesday after working with trainers on the sideline Monday, and cornerback Cam Hart was also limited as he works through concussion protocol. He missed last Thursday’s match.
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Punter JK Scott (illness) and linebacker Denzel Perryman (groin) were not seen on the practice field for the second straight day. Perryman re-injured his back last week in his return from a four-game absence. Backup quarterback Taylor Haneke was serving as a holder on place kicks along with long snapper Josh Harris and kicker Cameron Dicker. … Offensive lineman Trey Pipkins III missed practice with a hip injury.
This story was originally published by Los Angeles Times.
