Los Angeles Chargers

Chargers Week 3 power rankings from around the web

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Following Week 1 of the NFL season, many analysts who compile NFL power rankings put the San Diego Chargers anywhere between No. 24 and No. 29 in the league. That was after the team dropped a disappointing game to the Kansas City Chiefs in which it had built a big first-half lead.

Now that the Chargers have bounced back with a dominant 38-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in their home opener, will these same websites bounce the team up the ranks? That’s what we’re going to look at here.

While power rankings aren’t official, they do always spark up a good debate. Let’s take a trip around the web and see where the top sites out there put the 1-1 Chargers following Week 2.

ESPN: No. 19

The Chargers crack the top 20 on ESPN’s list, moving up six spots from last week. While some pundits out there may not give the Chargers any credit for beating the Jaguars, they need to remember that the same Jaguars team was being hailed as this year’s “comeback team” before any games had been played.

ESPN recognized this and even put a positive spin on San Diego’s Week 3 game against the Indianapolis Colts.

“The Chargers are 1-1 despite outscoring their opponents 42-3 in the first half this season. In Week 3, they take on the Colts, who have been outscored by 18 in the first half this season, and against whom Philip Rivers is 5-1 in his career” (including playoffs).

If Rivers can make it 6-1, they’ll knock the Colts to 0-3 in the process.

Sep 11, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; San Diego Chargers running back Danny Woodhead (39) makes a one handed catch during the first half against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

NFL.com: No. 21

Elliottt Harrison doesn’t rank the Chargers quite as high, but they do move up eight slots on his list over at NFL.com. At the same time, he does make some good notes concerning the team.

“The only reason the Chargers — who made a huge jump up — aren’t higher is because of the loss of Danny Woodhead to a torn ACL. That aside, we must show respect to a team that pushed the Chiefs to overtime — on the road, in one of the loudest houses in sports — in a Week 1 loss before steamrolling its second opponent as if the Jaguars were the Bucs’ defense in Tecmo Super Bowl. Not sure where that came from, but hand it to coach Mike McCoy and his staff for creating a game plan that served as a blueprint for how to take apart a pro football team piece by piece.”
Power Rankings side note: Why is it that Chargers cornerback Jason Verrett doesn’t get more pub?

It’s true that the Chargers may not be as “powerful” without Danny Woodhead, but the team showed it could bounce back from the loss of Keenan Allen so it should be given the benefit of the doubt here. Perhaps Dexter McCluster will be just as good?

Also, kudos to Harrison for considering the Chargers’ first-half performance against the Chiefs in his rankings.

Sep 18, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers running back Melvin Gordon (28) runs with the ball during the first quarter of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Qualcomm Stadium. San Diego won 38-14. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

USA TODAY: No. 22

USA TODAY moves the Bolts up four spots on its list, but that is still only good for No. 22.

“Good thing RB Melvin Gordon has had an awakening in Year 2 given offensive skill players (Keenan Allen, Danny Woodhead) continue to go down”, says USA TODAY.

Well, they’re certainly right about Gordon. He has had an awakening that has included three rushing touchdowns in two games. It’s also interesting to note that the Jaguars fell from No. 16 all the way down to No. 29 on the list, falling more spots than any other team in the league.

Sep 18, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers defensive back Casey Hayward (26) returns an interception thrown by Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles (not pictured) during the second quarter of the game at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Bleacher Report: No. 24

Chris Simms of Bleacher Report puts the Chargers at No. 24 in his latest rankings, but that’s up five spots from his rankings last week.

“Clearly, the Chargers learned from their big mistake in Week 1. They let up with a big lead against the Kansas City Chiefs and paid dearly for it. But they opened a 21-point lead, kept scoring and blitzing Sunday, and didn’t stop until the fourth quarter of a 35-0 blowout. San Diego didn’t need Keenan Allen to do it. Philip Rivers completed over 70 percent of his throws or handed off to Melvin Gordon on a 102-yard afternoon. It’s like Gordon is a completely different back than he was as a rookie. Remember: They’ve looked pretty good for six of eight quarters this year. They can clearly keep it up”.

Again, solid points. Simms also looks at the glass half full rather than half empty, like many Chargers fans. That said, this is clearly a team that can win games despite the adversity of injuries.

Sep 18, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) scrambles during the second half of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Qualcomm Stadium. San Diego won 38-14. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

FanSided: No. 24

George Stockburger of NFL Spin Zone puts the Chargers at No. 24 in his rankings and while that likely won’t bring a smile to many Chargers fans’ faces, it’s a five-spot jump from last week.

Here’s a snippet of what Stockburger had to say in his summary of the team.

“The San Diego Chargers lost Keenan Allen last week to a torn ACL, and it now looks like Danny Woodhead could be headed down the same path. The running back’s right knee buckled after an awkward tackle late in the first quarter, forcing him to be carted off the field. Fortunately last years first round pick Melvin Gordon looks to be healthy and found his stride. After a disappointing rookie season in which he failed to score a touchdown, Gordon had two touchdowns in the first half of last weeks loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Gordon scored a touchdown on the Chargers opening drive, and finished the game against the Jaguars with 102 rushing yards on 24 carries.”

Last week, the big question surrounded the wide receiver position and if it could hold up with the loss of Allen. Now, all the talk is about the team’s running backs.

However, it’s the defense that we should really be talking about. Let’s see how many of these guys catch on to that next week.