On top of everything else for the Chargers, Sunday was a slow day for the celebration committee.
After back-to-back games filled with dances and demonstrations, the Chargers defenders had their revelry silenced in their 41-38 last-play loss to Detroit at SoFi Stadium.
“A lack of energy,” safety Derwin James Jr. said. “We didn’t get no celebrations off no plays, no turnovers.”
At the urging of defensive coordinator Derrick Ansley, the Chargers had playfully and wildly partied on the field after each of their five takeaways against the Chicago Bears and New York Jets.
Ansley even formed a 10-player committee and directed them to choreograph the group’s moves in advance of each game.
But the Chargers failed to generate a takeaway against the Lions, Justin Herbert’s first-quarter interception the game’s only turnover.
Instead, the defense was routinely thrashed, James blaming a lack of “want to,” prompting a follow-up question about the Chargers’ defensive effort.
“I don’t want to blame it on nothing,” James said. “We didn’t come and play. We didn’t get it done today. We didn’t play right on defense.”
There also was this: On an afternoon when there were a combined 73 pass attempts, neither quarterback was sacked. The Chargers entered Sunday with 31 sacks, tied for the second most in the NFL.
“The way that they play, the ball is out [fast],” coach Brandon Staley said. “They throw a lot of screens, a lot of keepers, where it’s well-protected. We couldn’t get it into a third-down-and-long type of football game. … They blocked us, they beat us today.”