Chargers’ Brandon Staley asserts ‘full confidence’ in self, defense

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Los Angeles Chargers locker room was mostly silent. Quarterback Justin Herbert and safety Derwin James spoke quietly while many other players stared ahead, seemingly in a mix of disbelief and frustration.

Their 23-20 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday was the Chargers’ fifth loss by one score this season.

It was another game in which the opposing offense had one of its better outings against the Chargers.

Last week against Los Angeles, the Detroit Lions’ rushing attack gained 200 yards, including 177 yards and three scores in the first half. It was the most the Lions had won in a half in at least 30 years.

Sunday was the passing offense of Jordan Love and the Packers.

Love threw for 322 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. It was the most passing yards of Love’s career and the first time the Packers threw for more than 300 yards since 2021, when Aaron Rodgers was their starter.

“We’re just tired of it,” Chargers safety Alohi Gilman told ESPN. “Something has to change.”

In a furious response to a reporter asking if he would consider significant changes on defense, Chargers coach Brandon Staley said he wouldn’t — as he also did days after the loss Lions.

“I have full confidence,” Staley said Sunday. “As I told you from the beginning, I have full confidence in the way we play. Full confidence in myself as a playmaker, in the way we teach and in the way we plan. Full confidence in this. We need to bring this group together and do it cohesively…And that’s where we are.

“So you can stop asking that question, okay? I’m going to call the defenses…so we’re clear. So you don’t have to ask that question again.”

No player could pinpoint exactly what the Chargers (4-6) needed to change. James noted that if “one to two plays” went differently in games this campaign, the Chargers’ 0-5 record in one-score contests could be different. But the Chargers are seemingly always on the wrong side of these situations.

There was a lot of blame to be had on Sunday.

Los Angeles receiver Keenan Allen had a career-high three dropped passes, including two in the red zone.

“I was definitely on the bulls—at the start of the game,” Allen told ESPN. “Three falls, two of them on the goal line. … I just have to be better.”

Fellow forward Quentin Johnston dropped a pass on second down with 23 seconds left in the fourth quarter, which would have put the Chargers within field goal range.

“I feel like the game definitely could have gone the other way if I would have just caught that ball. Lack of concentration on my part,” a visibly upset Johnston said. “I dropped the ball. I’m a receiver. They recruited me for one reason: it’s to catch the ball. And I couldn’t do it.”

The Chargers dropped six passes, including three in the red zone. Both totals were the team’s highest since ESPN began tracking drops in 2006.

“There were a lot of other things that caused us to lose today. It definitely wasn’t our defense. It was the way we played as a team. … Stop talking about one unit because That’s not what happened today.” Our team lost, and I’m fully responsible for that, and I take full responsibility for that, but we lost as a team today ‘today. And that’s the scenario. ”

Brandon Staley, Chargers coach

Then there was the red zone offense. The Chargers entered the day scoring on 72 percent of their red zone drives, second-best in the NFL. Against Green Bay, they were 0-3 in the red zone.

Yet the Chargers’ defensive struggles have been exacerbated due to the continued weakness of that unit under Staley, who was hired three seasons ago for his defensive prowess. When he was D coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams in 2020, Staley’s defense was the best in the league, finishing first in yards and points allowed per game.

But he didn’t have that impact with the Chargers despite the presence of established players such as Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack and James. Coming into this game, the Chargers ranked 30th in defensive efficiency, 29th in points allowed per game (24.6), 31st in yards per play allowed (5.7), and 29th in third down conversion rate ( 42%) during Staley’s tenure.

Staley, however, was annoyed by questions about his defense’s play after the game, citing other factors that contributed to the loss and the defense’s progress.

“You act like we never played good defense,” Staley said. “That’s not the truth. That’s not the truth. You’re acting like we haven’t made any improvements. Today in the running game we played outstanding. We rushed well the quarterback. What we need to do better is the passing game. And that’s where all our attention is. And that’s where it will continue to be.

“A lot of other things caused us to lose today. It definitely wasn’t our defense. It was the way we played as a team. We didn’t play well enough in the red zone on offense. We We also dropped a lot of passes. OK? We gave up some killer sacks. OK? We did that as a team. Stop talking about one unit because that’s not what happened today. Our team lost, and I take full responsibility for that, and I take full responsibility for that, but we lost as a team today. And that’s the scenario.”

The Chargers will next face the AFC No. 2 seed Baltimore Ravens (8-3) on Sunday night at Sofi Stadium.