EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The Los Angeles Chargers’ run defense has grown from a notable blip into a concerning trend over the past three weeks, and it is a phase that will be tested this weekend.
The Indianapolis Colts are bringing the league’s best rushing offense to SoFi Stadium on Sunday. Running back Jonathan Taylor leads the NFL with 603 rushing yards. The Colts also rank first in rushing success rate and expected points added per designed rush, according to TruMedia.
The Chargers have allowed 394 rushing yards on designed attempts over the past three weeks, according to TruMedia. Only four defenses have allowed more in the span.
Coordinator Jesse Minter’s unit has plummeted in efficiency rankings as a result. For the season, the Chargers rank 27th in defensive rushing success rate and 23rd in defensive EPA per designed rush, according to TruMedia. However you slice it, the Chargers are a bottom-third run defense in 2025. Last year, they finished seventh in defensive EPA per designed rush and 16th in success rate.
“We all look at ourselves, and we’re all chasing to improve in that area,” Minter said this week. “We know it’s something we need to work on, with a big challenge coming in this week.”
Part of the slide has undoubtedly been the absence of edge rusher Khalil Mack, who is the Chargers’ most consistent run defender. The issues started to pop up as soon as Mack landed on injured reserve with an elbow injury he suffered in Week 2. In Week 3, Denver Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins bounced a run to the outside left and scored from 41 yards out. Chargers edge rusher Caleb Murphy lost badly at the point of attack on the play, and safety Alohi Gilman, since traded to the Baltimore Ravens, missed a tackle.
In Week 4, the New York Giants debuted some new schematic wrinkles with quarterback Jaxson Dart making his first NFL start. The Giants leaned heavily into run-pass option concepts and the designed quarterback run game. The changes caught the Chargers off guard early in the game. The Giants averaged 4.7 yards per carry on the ground in the first half, though the Chargers tightened up in the second half. The Giants averaged 2.7 yards per carry in the final two quarters.
The issue has come to a head over the past two weeks. The Chargers have allowed back-to-back 100-yard rushers. In Week 5, Washington Commanders rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt set a career high with 111 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries. In Week 6, Miami Dolphins running back De’Von Achane rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. The Chargers ranked 30th in defensive rushing success rate in Weeks 5 and 6 at 43.2 percent, according to TruMedia. For context, the league average in that span was 58.4 percent.
The Chargers are giving up far too many explosive runs, and they are leaky against the run in the red zone.
The Chargers have given up eight designed rushes of at least 15 yards in the past three weeks, including a 49-yard touchdown to Achane. Only the Dolphins have allowed more such runs in that span, according to TruMedia. Last season, the Chargers allowed explosive rushes — defined as 12 yards or more — on 7.2 percent of opponent-designed rushes, which ranked 11th in the league. This year, that rate has jumped 9.7 percent, which ranks 27th.
The Chargers have allowed five red zone touchdowns on designed rushes this season. Only five teams have allowed more.
In 2024, the Chargers only allowed five red zone touchdowns on designed rushes the entire season, the fewest in the NFL. Of those five, only two of the touchdowns went for more than 3 yards. This season, all five of the red zone touchdowns the Chargers have allowed on designed rushes were from more than 3 yards out.
From a personnel standpoint, the Chargers need Mack back, and he is trending in a positive direction. The Chargers opened Mack’s 21-day activation window on Tuesday. He is eligible to be activated at any time. When asked Thursday if he feels like he could play Sunday against the Colts, Mack said, “For sure.” Although he later said he would leave the decision up to general manager Joe Hortiz and coach Jim Harbaugh.
Linebacker Daiyan Henley has been playing at less than 100 percent while recovering from a severe illness. He is slowly rounding back into form. Safety Derwin James Jr. has been playing with a wrist injury. The Chargers have also been missing linebacker Denzel Perryman, who has been on IR since Week 1 with an ankle injury. Perryman’s 21-day window was opened last week. Perryman is one of the Chargers’ most physical run defenders.
There is also the scheme component. Opponents are starting to call the same plays and concepts, in the red zone and in the open field, on explosive plays. One of those concepts is a pin-pull play, with the guard and center pulling to the edge and the tackle down-blocking. Achane’s 49-yard touchdown came in this concept. The Commanders also produced an explosive run in the open field on this concept.
The fixes for the open-field explosives feel like fundamentals. The Chargers need to set a firmer edge. They need to align correctly. They need to tackle better. Block destruction is one of Minter’s defensive pillars, and the Chargers have not been destroying blocks on some of these explosive runs.
“Oftentimes it’s one thing or one technique, one leverage, one alignment on a motion call we could be better in, in certain situations,” Minter said.
The red zone issues are more alarming. The film shows that opposing offenses have identified a tell in the Chargers’ run defense.
The Chargers have allowed three untouched touchdowns to the outside left in the past two games. Croskey-Merritt had two such runs in Week 5, one for 15 yards and one for 5 yards. Achane had one such run in Week 6 for 4 yards.
On all three plays, the Chargers were in man coverage. On all three plays, the opposing offense motioned an eligible receiver from left to right pre-snap to force all of the Chargers’ cornerbacks to one side of the field. On all three plays, at the snap, the opposing offense had a tight end isolated on the formation to the left side with James in man coverage.
This is the first play, Croskey-Merritt’s 15-yarder in Week 5. The Chargers’ defensive backs were in man coverage on the Commanders’ pass catchers, with assignments circled in yellow.
Commanders receiver Deebo Samuel went in motion from left to right, and Chargers cornerback Donte Jackson followed him.
As Samuel reset, all three Chargers cornerbacks — Jackson, Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart, circled in yellow — were to one side of the field. James, circled in orange, was in man coverage on Commanders tight end Zach Ertz.
As quarterback Jayden Daniels took the snap and handed off to Croskey-Merritt, James was focused on his man coverage responsibilities on Ertz.
James recognized run, and the play turned into a foot race.
Later in the same game, the Commanders came out in a jumbo look, with an extra offensive lineman and two tight ends, all aligned to the left side of the formation. The Chargers were in man coverage again, with the assignments noted in yellow.
Tight end Ben Sinnott went in motion, and Still followed.
At the snap, the Chargers again had James isolated on the tight end, this time John Bates, the lone eligible receiver to that side of the field. They are circled in orange. Both Chargers cornerbacks, in yellow, were on one side of the formation again.
As Daniels handed off to Croskey-Merritt, James could not play downhill because he had to respect his man-to-man coverage responsibilities. Bates engaged James.
Croskey-Merritt bounced to the outside left and won another foot race with James.
Now onto Week 6. Early in the fourth quarter, the Dolphins set up inside the 5-yard line, and the Chargers were once again in man coverage, with the assignment indicated in yellow.
Tight end Darren Waller went in motion from left to right, and Still followed.
Both Chargers cornerbacks, circled in yellow, ended up on one side of the formation. James, again, was isolated in man coverage on the single tight end to his side, circled in green.
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa pitched to Achane to the left. James was four yards off the line of scrimmage because of his coverage responsibility.
Achane won the foot race.
Since Minter took over at the start of 2024, the Chargers have played the lowest rate of man coverage in the league at 15.2 percent, well below the league average of 25.3 percent, according to TruMedia. However, in the red zone, that rate of man coverage jumps to 32.3 percent, only slightly below the league average of 37 percent.
The Commanders and Dolphins leaned into this coverage tendency and schemed up plays to put James in conflict on the edge.
The Chargers are not playing good run defense right now. It is personnel. It is performance. It is scheme.
They must tighten up in their toughest test yet Sunday against the Colts.
(Screenshots via NFL+)
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