After an exciting comeback win in Arizona, the Chargers left a lot to be desired in their preseason finale.
The first quarter was particularly brutal as the Bolts found themselves down 14-0. They gave up two rushing touchdowns, the second of which was the result of great field position conceded by a Billy Volek fumble.
It got better though as Ryan Mathews had a productive evening. He provided the highlight of the night in the second quarter with a 56 yard touchdown dash. Altogether Mathews carried for a team high 78 yards on five carries.
The score at the half was 14-7.
Kicker Nate Kaeding hit a 23 yard field goal in the third quarter to remain perfect on field goal attempts this preseason. The 49ers also hit a field goal in the third, and the score going into the fourth quarter was 17-10.
Scott Tolzien had taken over at quarterback for Volek in the first quarter and performed well. He finished with 16 completions on 23 attempts which was good for 226 yards. He had both an interception and a touchdown in the fourth quarter. The touchdown was for nine yards and was caught by Seyi Ajirotutu.
The 49ers had hit a field goal in the fourth quarter before the Charger touchdown and the final score was 20-17.
Laurent Robinson was the top receiver of the evening for the Bolts with 120 yards on six catches. It will be very interesting to see who makes the final cut at wide receiver with the level of competition at that position.
The Chargers turned over the ball three times in total. In addition to the Volek fumble and the Tolzien pick, running back Jordan Todman fumbled.
The Bolts also came up with a couple turnovers. Dante Hughes and Marcus Gilchrist both had an interception on the night.
The main question at this point is who will make the squad and who won’t. That decision will be made over the weekend, and the question will immediately shift to whether or not the Chargers are ready to take on Adrian Peterson and the Minnesota Vikings.
The meaningless football is out of the way, and from here on out it counts.
Original Story:
http://socalsportshub.com/2011/09/02/...
