Chargers vs. Rams: Explosive Plays Offer Promise, but Mistakes Define Preseason Finale

The Chargers closed out the preseason with a 20-18 loss to the Rams, but the final score only tells part of the story.

For the Bolts, Thursday night's matchup offered a familiar preseason mix of encouraging flashes and frustrating mistakes. The offense generated explosive plays and moved the ball effectively, while several players made strong cases for larger roles. At the same time, turnovers, penalties and an inability to consistently get off the field on defense prevented the Chargers from finishing the night with a win.

That is preseason football in a nutshell: the result matters far less than what ends up on the evaluation sheet.

And for the Chargers, there was plenty to evaluate.

The Chargers did not waste time showing what their offense can look like when the ball is pushed downfield.

Justin Herbert's appearance was brief, but it produced the biggest offensive highlight of the night. Herbert connected with Quentin Johnston on a 65-yard touchdown, giving Chargers fans another reason to be excited about the potential of the passing game.

Herbert finished his limited work completing two of three passes for 74 yards and a touchdown.

The play to Johnston was particularly significant because it represented exactly what the Chargers need from their offense moving forward: explosive production.

Johnston has been one of the most closely watched players on the roster, and every big moment naturally attracts attention. On Thursday night, he delivered. He got behind the defense, Herbert found him, and the Chargers had the kind of vertical play that can completely change the complexion of a game.

It was only one preseason moment, and nobody should overreact to three pass attempts. But the chemistry between Herbert and Johnston was evident on the play.

The Chargers have spent the offseason building an offense capable of creating more explosive opportunities. The opening touchdown was a reminder of how dangerous that offense can be when Herbert is given opportunities to attack.

While Herbert and Johnston delivered the headline play, Greg Desrosiers Jr. may have been the Chargers' most productive player of the night.

Desrosiers Jr. finished with 118 rushing yards and a touchdown on just nine carries. His performance was highlighted by a 34-yard touchdown run, and he consistently created explosive plays whenever he touched the football.

Nine carries for 118 yards is the type of stat line that gets noticed.

Preseason production does not automatically translate into a major regular-season role, but performances like this can absolutely influence roster decisions. Desrosiers Jr. showed vision, burst and the ability to take advantage of open space. More importantly, he made the most of his opportunity when the Chargers gave him the ball.

“It felt good to showcase what I can do,” Desrosiers Jr. said after the game.

That statement accurately captured the importance of his performance.

For players competing for roster spots or expanded roles, the final preseason game is about putting something on film that the coaching staff cannot ignore. Desrosiers Jr. did exactly that.

The Chargers finished with 394 total yards and averaged 7.4 yards per play.

Those numbers should normally create a favorable result.

Instead, the Chargers lost.

The difference was the number of mistakes that repeatedly put the offense in difficult situations.

Los Angeles committed 11 penalties for 88 yards and lost two fumbles. Those self-inflicted mistakes made it difficult for the Chargers to turn their offensive production into a comfortable advantage.

The final turnover was especially costly.

With the Chargers trailing late in the fourth quarter, DJ Uiagalelei and the offense had an opportunity to drive for the winning score. Instead, the pocket collapsed, Uiagalelei was sacked and the football came loose.

The Rams recovered, ending the Chargers' final opportunity.

Uiagalelei finished the game completing 11 of 18 passes for 141 yards. There were encouraging moments throughout his performance, particularly when the offense was able to find rhythm. But the late fumble served as a difficult ending to an otherwise productive night.

Trey Lance had fewer opportunities to make an impact, finishing without a completion on two pass attempts while adding 22 yards as a runner.

The quarterback competition and depth chart decisions will ultimately be based on much more than one preseason game. Still, the finale provided another set of snaps for Mike McDaniel to evaluate as roster decisions approach.

The Chargers' defensive performance was not defined by massive explosive plays.

In fact, the Rams averaged only 4.1 yards per play and finished with 298 total yards.

The bigger issue was volume.

The Rams ran 72 offensive plays compared with 53 for the Chargers and controlled possession for more than 36 minutes. That meant the Chargers defense spent much of the night on the field.

For any defense, that is a difficult formula.

The Rams were able to sustain drives, keep the chains moving and force the Chargers to defend possession after possession. Even without giving up a massive number of yards, the defense could not consistently produce the stops necessary to get its offense back on the field.

That is the area the Chargers will need to address moving forward.

Defensive success is not always about avoiding explosive plays. Sometimes it is about making the critical stop on third down, ending a drive and giving the offense another possession.

On Thursday night, the Rams simply had too many opportunities.

Before the preseason finale, Jim Harbaugh made it clear what he wanted to see from his team.

“Just want it to be crisp and clean,” Harbaugh said. “I want to see improvement. ... Everybody is doing what they're supposed to do.”

The Chargers showed improvement in several areas.

They generated explosive plays. The offense moved the ball. Young players stepped up. Several players gave the coaching staff something to think about.

But the performance was not clean.

The penalties were costly. The turnovers were costly. And the defense's inability to consistently get off the field contributed to the Rams controlling the pace of the game.

Those are the types of mistakes that can be tolerated as learning experiences in August.

They become much more damaging once the regular season begins.

The preseason finale did not end with the result Chargers fans wanted, but there was no shortage of positives.

Herbert looked sharp in his limited appearance. Johnston delivered one of the biggest plays of the preseason. Desrosiers Jr. emerged as one of the night's most impressive performers. The offense demonstrated its ability to create explosive production.

Those are legitimate reasons for optimism.

At the same time, the Chargers leave the preseason with a very clear list of things that need to improve.

Ball security has to be better. The penalties have to come down. The defense needs to find ways to finish drives and get off the field.

The preseason is now over. The evaluations will continue, the roster will take its final shape and the Chargers will turn their attention toward games that count.

The most important takeaway from the Rams game is simple: the talent and big-play ability are there.

Now the Chargers have to prove they can pair those flashes with the discipline, consistency and execution necessary to win when the regular season arrives.