EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The run game that was promised has not yet materialized for the Los Angeles Chargers.
The inefficiency on the ground has undeniably been a key factor in the offense’s overall lackluster start to this season.
Through six games and seven weeks, the Chargers rank 24th in expected points added per play on offense, according to TruMedia. They are 30th in success rate and 25th in offensive points per game. Keying in on the run game specifically, the Chargers rank 24th in EPA per play and 27th in success rate on designed rushes. Just for context, the Chargers have been successful on 35.2 percent of their designed rushes, according to TruMedia. From 2021 to ’23, the Chargers were successful on 37.2 percent of their designed rushes.
Coach Jim Harbaugh hired offensive coordinator Greg Roman, in part, to establish a consistent rushing attack. In February, Roman said he wanted to build a “strong, powerful identity” on offense.
“If you really talk to most defensive coordinators in this league and got them off to the side when they’re playing a really good running team,” Roman said then, “they’re sweating a little bit.”
He also asked a rhetorical question: “Can you imagine Justin Herbert with a great running game?”
Thus far, the Chargers have not brought this vision to life. They have shown promising glimpses of what they can be in the run game. The Carolina Panthers game in Week 2 was the best example. There have also been more recent examples of polished blocking, cohesion and control of the line of scrimmage, like against Denver Broncos in Week 6.
The consistency is just not there yet. And it seemed to come to a head in Monday night’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
The Cardinals entered this game with a struggling run defense. Through the first six weeks of the season, they ranked 28th in rushing success rate. If there was going to be an identity-forming game for the Chargers rushing attack, this was it. Go out and dominate a weaker opponent.
The Chargers finished with their lowest rushing total of the season on designed runs, 51 yards.
“Certainly wasn’t as productive as we would have liked,” Roman said.
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So what happened?
There were a few factors.
First, the Cardinals devoted more resources to the line of scrimmage. Roman has a reputation. It is no secret how he and Harbaugh want to play offensively. The Cardinals were aware of how they had struggled to defend the run this season. And so they adjusted schematically to protect against that weakness.
Most notably, they regularly played with five defensive linemen on the line scrimmage in their nickel package, a grouping typically referred to as penny. In a 3-4 defense, which the Cardinals run under coach Jonathan Gannon, that means two edge rushers, three interior defensive linemen, one off-ball linebacker and five defensive backs. And in these packages, the Cardinals played with big interior personnel.
Even when the Chargers came out in lighter personnel groupings, the Cardinals stuck with their penny package.
Here is an example in the first quarter. The Chargers were in 11 personnel, meaning three wide receivers. The Cardinals matched with five defensive linemen, three on the interior and two on the edge.
“They were definitely geared up to stop the run,” Roman said.
That was part of the equation.
The Chargers also did not execute when they had opportunities. And the film shows that these issues extended to virtually all the players involved in the run game. It was not one player consistently missing blocks at the point of attack. As Harbaugh said this week, “It was some taking of turns.” That included all the offensive linemen, the tight ends and even the running backs.
“Every one was a little bit different,” Roman said. “The backs missed a couple cuts, as well.”
This is just one example from the first quarter. The Chargers faced a second-and-5. They set up in a two tight end formation with Eric Tomlinson and Stone Smartt aligned to the left.
As Herbert took the shotgun snap, left guard Zion Johnson pulled.
Herbert handed off to running back Kimani Vidal on a stretch play to the strong side, behind the two tight ends and the pulling Johnson.
Vidal ran left. Left tackle Rashawn Slater, circled in yellow, immediately sealed off his man, defensive lineman L.J. Collier. Tomlinson, circled in red, progressed to the second level and engaged linebacker Kyzir White.
As Vidal reached the edge, Johnson, circled in pink, got leverage to seal off edge rusher Julian Okwara. However, as that happened, White swam past Tomlinson.
Vidal got to the edge. He should have been one-on-one with cornerback Starling Thomas V. A running back on a cornerback in space is the matchup a coordinator is trying to scheme up. But because of Tomlinson’s missed block, the seal was broken and White was able to attack Vidal.
Vidal was bottled up.
And he was smothered after a 1-yard gain.
This is not an attempt to pile on Tomlinson, who is a good blocker and had some fine reps in this game. Instead, this is an attempt to show how just one missed block can turn a run from a likely explosive carry into an unsuccessful play.
“We just got to execute better,” Roman said.
To Roman’s credit, he leaned into what was working. The Cardinals, to a degree, sold out to stop the run. That rarely — if ever — happened to the Chargers in the previous three seasons. Defenses would try to take away Herbert and the passing game, and they would effectively dare the Chargers to run. Those Chargers offenses were so one-dimensional that they struggled to consistently capitalize on those advantageous run looks.
The opposite happened in this Cardinals game. At least partly because of the Cardinals’ game plan, the Chargers had more opportunities in the passing game. Herbert finished with 349 yards passing on 39 attempts. It might have been a career game if not for seven drops. Roman was pressing the right buttons when he realized the running game was not in sync. Herbert’s health continues to improve as he moves past his early-season high ankle sprain.
“Justin was hot, he was moving around better, and I shifted away from the running game,” Roman said.
The rushing performance against the Cardinals was a disappointment. No question about it. But there remain reasons for optimism. It is clear the Chargers are better coached in the running game. It is clear the scheme is better, cleaner and sounder. Slater and right tackle Joe Alt both missed time earlier this season, and that stunted the chemistry development up front. Slater missed a game and a half. Alt missed one game. That stretch has skewed the numbers within a small sample of just six games.
“You got to be realistic in terms of player availability,” Roman said.
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The Chargers are still learning Roman’s layered and intricate rushing offense. They are still seeing looks for the first time and adjusting on the fly, even within individual snaps.
“I don’t think we’ve nailed down that identity yet,” Roman said. “In order to do that, it takes a real consistency week in and week out, and that’s what we’re building towards.”
Roman has been cultivating this identity since he was hired in February, But, he said, “when you start up a new program, it never really jumps out like that.”
The run game has to improve. The Chargers are hoping time on task will help provide the solution.
“Do I like our run game? Yeah,” Harbaugh said this week.”Do I think we got the guys up front to have a strong run game? Yes. Do I think I have the backs and the tight ends that we need to have a really good, great running game? I do. That’s how I feel.”
(Top photo of J.K. Dobbins being stopped on a run play: Christian Petersen / Getty Images; screenshots via NFL+)
