Nick Canepa’s Report Card: Chargers fail, flail in playoff loss to Patriots

Nick Canepa grades the Chargers following Sunday night’s 16-3 loss to the New England Patriots in the wild-card round of the playoffs:

Quarterbacks: F

Justin Herbert used his legs right away. So much was on him early as the primary runner. Got screwed when the referee missed an obvious blow to the head that gave the Pats a field goal. But Herbert missed a lot of stuff even when he had time to throw. Fumbled it away on a late sack and got shaken up in the process. Given the magnitude of the affair, it was probably his worst game since he was running around Oregon as a kid. Three points?

Running backs: C

Top rookie Omarion Hampton, questionable (maybe) all week, was activated. Kimani Vidal started, however. Hampton came in, lost two yards, and that was it for him. But Vidal ran well. He also picked up a Herbert fumble and ran for a first down.

Receivers: F

Versatile rookie Tre Harris caught the first pass. Ladd McConkey finally emerged, caught one pass and then dropped a big one. Once again, they couldn’t separate, even when Herbert had time to throw and had to take sacks. Just a pathetic performance.

Chargers’ offense fizzles in AFC wild-card loss to Patriots

Offensive line: C

Jamaree Salyer, who had done good work prior to injury, returned at left tackle. He had a nice illegal motion. Mekhi Becton, a big disappointment, did a fine job looking around during an early blitz and moved late.

Defensive line: B

The defense played its brains out. Teair Tart deflected a pass into Daiyan Henley’s arms at the Patriots’ 10. Tart had a third-quarter sack.

Linebackers: B

Odafe Oweh had a sack on the Pats’ first series, forcing a punt, and then had a monster strip sack recovered by Hand to halt a drive. Oweh had a third sack, forcing a fumble. Tuli Tuipulotu had a sack that could have mattered, but it didn’t when Tarheeb Still slipped on a first-down pass. Henley was into everything.

Secondary: A-

Tony Jefferson, the wily vet, was everywhere. Everybody got beat on the 48-yard catch and run by Rhamondre Stevenson. Derwin James Jr. was running around where he rarely could be found, but he got beat on a late touchdown thrown to Hunter Henry. Made a mistake going to man and allowed Patriots QB Drake Maye to run for 37 yards. Tarheeb Still matadored on a run.

Special teams: Incomplete

Cameron Dicker The Kicker made a 21-yard field goal to tie it at 3 in the second quarter. And with that, he rested. JK Scott simply hasn’t punted well for weeks.

Coaching: F

Jim Harbaugh should have kicked a field goal instead of trying to get a 4th-and-goal in the early going. No points after a pick. They kicked a field goal on fourth-and-short. Points are precious to this team. This was, as much as anything, a coaching loss — that and the fact New England played better. Offensive coordinator Greg Roman did a lousy job

Next opportunity: A

If the tackles come back whole, this could be a title contender. Seriously. The offense needs a rebuild — maybe a fall of the Roman Empire. The receivers are too talented to never get open. Getting 11 wins out of this bunch was a seminal miracle. The defense was terrific and really doesn’t need much. What’s needed most: luck.