Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots, Los Angeles Chargers Crossover: The Jim Harbaugh Effect, Drake Maye and More

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Los Angeles Chargers have their eyes on the playoffs while the New England Patriots would love to play spoiler Grinch style. Locked on Patriots, locked on Chargers crossing the streams here on Crossover Thursday. You are locked on NFL Crossover, part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your team every day. Chargers fans and Patriots fans, thank you for joining us here on this week 17 crossover episode of Locked On Chargers and Locked On Patriots. Daniel Wade representing Locked On Chargers. I'm Mike DeBate of Locked On Patriots.

Starting point is 00:00:44 And of course, folks, Crossover Thursday is presented by PrizePix. Download the app and use the code LOCKEDONNFL to win $50 instantly when you play $5. Pats fans and Bolts fans, we hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas holiday. And Daniel, thank you for joining me here today. Been looking forward to this crossover for

Starting point is 00:01:05 a while week 17 hard to believe the regular season is just about over that's chargers doesn't get any better than this on a saturday afternoon post christmas it does not i'm very excited about it i'm not much better to field the kind of holidays than having some football december football football in some cold weather i I'm really excited about it. I know Chargers fans are getting close. They're feeling it one win away from the playoffs. This is a huge game for them going into this weekend. Oh, without question.

Starting point is 00:01:33 You know, these two teams don't see each other that often, but there's a deep history here between the Patriots and the Chargers. Not always necessarily pleasant, some acrimony there, but bottom line, you know, there are a lot of memorable matchups between these two teams, both in the regular season and the postseason. Folks, could Saturday's matchup be another instant classic? Well, Dan and I hope to pique your curiosity on that very subject today, because we have

Starting point is 00:01:58 an action-packed show here for you today on Crossover Thursday. Daniel is going to bring Patats Nation up to date when it comes to the biggest stories from a Chargers perspective. Then we're going to flip the script and I'm going to provide everything you need to know about the Patriots. And lastly, we'll provide our respective Pats to victory for this Saturday afternoon matchup, 1 p.m. kickoff from Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. And Dan, let's kick things off from a Bolts perspective. Chargers are entering this game at 9-6. If the playoffs started today, the Bolts would own the sixth seed in the AFC. And without question, there has always been a ton of talent on both sides of the ball for the last few years when it comes to the Chargers. But the impact of Jim Harbaugh

Starting point is 00:02:43 on this club is palpable. It's absolutely obvious. You can see it. You the Chargers. But the impact of Jim Harbaugh on this club is palpable. It's absolutely obvious. You can see it. You can feel it. There's just a different aura on this team right now since Jim has taken the reins as head coach. Just his presence has elevated this team's performance on the field. But from an insider's perspective,

Starting point is 00:03:00 you see things that us mere mortals don't see outside of Chargers Nation. So how would you define the Harbaugh see outside of Chargers Nation so how would you define the Harbaugh effect on this Chargers club in 2024 man it's a night and day difference than what they have seen I mean you're talking about a team that is fresh off of hiring three first-time head coaches and going into the coaching search after this 63-21 blowout to the Raiders last week last year it was like, give me someone who's done it. Give me someone with a little bit of pedigree. Give me someone that is going to come into the room and demand the accountability from

Starting point is 00:03:33 this team, but also have the trophy case to demand that kind of respect from his team. Because every coach goes into a locker room trying to get the respect of that locker room, trying to do all the right things. But it just comes with a different kind of presence when you're talking about Jim Harbaugh, dude, who not only has the trophy case now, but also is out there, you know, pulling sleds in cleats, wearing wide receiver gloves, like playing catch with Justin Hurd before the game. I mean, Jim Harbaugh comes with a certain kind of pedigree and has brought that culture already. I mean, the culture has changed.

Starting point is 00:04:05 I mean, it's 180 degrees with what this team is right now. And I think part of it is going to play a huge factor in this game because I think if you're looking at kind of the statement wins for the Chargers, there's not a lot of them. But the one thing that they've been able to do consistently pretty much the entire season is take care of business and beat the teams they should beat. And I think we both say on paper, this is a game they absolutely should win.

Starting point is 00:04:26 And I think the biggest story going into this, as far as what's going to play a factor in that, is what J.K. Dobbins played. He's a dude who was on injured reserve, has missed the last four games, is now eligible to return. They did activate his return window. And without him, they've been pretty bad running the football. They weren't a great running team.

Starting point is 00:04:44 They weren't that prototypical Jim Harbaugh team, even with him. They always lacked the consistency. They always have been kind of searching for it. But you're talking about on paper, the Chargers should be trying to exploit the Patriots run defense and trying to be able to run the football. But without J.K. Dobbins over the last four games, the Chargers have averaged less than 75 yards on the ground per game. With J.K. Dobbins in the lineup, they averaged 118 yards per game. You're talking about almost a 50-yard difference for one player. So his status for this game, he is back at practice already. The practice reports aren't out yet, but J.K. Dobbins is out there at practice. His ability to play in a huge game this weekend, I think, looms large.

Starting point is 00:05:23 Oh, without any question. question again what it does is it automatically raises that level of anticipation especially here in new england in terms of the type of team they're going to be facing knowing that it's a harbaugh coach team it makes you find newfound respects for guys like dobbins and that running game which you know jim harbaugh loves to employ he's definitely going to be dialed in That kind of leads me quite nicely into my next question for you today, Daniel. And obviously, Justin Herbert remains one of the best quarterbacks in the league. He pretty much has been since he stepped on a pro football field. 18 touchdowns against only three picks.

Starting point is 00:05:56 Been doing that despite dealing with ankle injuries throughout the year. So very impressive for this kid to really show toughness and metal through an injury and be able to have the type of season he's having. He's getting some help from unlikely sources. Rookie Ladd McConkie that I know was a popular name here in New England as a potential draft pick last season. He's having a very good year. 69 receptions, 960 yards, five touchdowns.

Starting point is 00:06:21 Quentin Johnston is leading the team with eight touchdowns. And we haven't even really gotten into a point that you touched on just a couple of moments ago. And that's this running game that Jim Harbaugh would love to employ with JK and with Gus and getting those guys involved and really having that be a, not only a compliment, but maybe even a focal point when it comes to what this team would like to do offensively. Again, what's impressed you most about the Chargers offense this season, as opposed to what we've seen the last couple of years? I think that the commitment to the running game has been much better. I mean, there's always going to be a couple of games here and there

Starting point is 00:06:58 where it's just not going to be in the cards and the game flow just isn't going to allow for it. But I think the commitment to it has been a lot different this year, even if the success and the week-to-week success hasn't been there. But I do know that one thing this team wants to do over these final couple of weeks, especially when we're talking about December football right now, is get that thing going. Show over the last two weeks that you can have a consistent running game because when it does look good, and I think especially in this matchup it's going to be important you can have a game like last week where you're up by three late in the fourth quarter and finally after using the battering

Starting point is 00:07:32 ram all game and maybe not getting the results you needed you break a 43 yard run that totally flips the field position and leads to the touchdown that puts you up by 10 in that game and i mean i think if you're a patriots fan you only have to go back to last week josh allen wasn't great throwing the football in that game i mean just frankly that's what it was what carried them was their running game and i think when you're talking about justin herbert playing on two bad ankles another reason this team really wants to stay committed to the running game is so they can protect their quarterback the interior of their offensive line is not good they have a couple of bookend tackles if you really good about, but you have to get Justin Herbert there. You have to win the game. First of all, you're not in the playoffs yet. Go win the game. Second to that though, get the running game going and

Starting point is 00:08:13 protect Justin Herbert, because if you're having him drop back there 40 times and just giving him unnecessary risk and he gets banged up at all, any more than he is right now, going into this key stretch of the season that's a total disaster so I think that they're happy with the commitment they've showed to it this year I think they're happy that last week they were able to even in a game where they weren't running efficiently most of the game they were able to at least not have to put the entire load on Justin Herbert protect him a little bit and the success came later on in the game when they were able to break it open get the run game going and protect your quarterback.

Starting point is 00:08:46 Remember that, folks. I have a funny feeling we're going to be delving into that very subject in just a little bit. But one more question for you with regard to the Chargers. I don't want to make it sound like we're only concerned or there's only one focus here on the offensive side of the football. This Chargers defense has the opportunity to make life very difficult for Drake May because this defense is much more effective in the passing game than they are in defending against the run. The Chargers currently allow 213.8 yards per game through the air. That's 13th in the NFL. Very impressive there. 6.4 yards per pass play, which ranks 7th. That's where they really stand out, and they leapt off the page when it came to my reconnaissance that I was doing for this matchup coming into this game, Daniel. The secondary has been very good. That is a surprise considering some of the players that

Starting point is 00:09:34 they've had on injured reserve, but really got to give a lot of credit to Tarheib still. He's got four interceptions. As a unit, this team has takeaways uh christian fulton has been a solid addition on the opposite side of that secondary and how could i mention that secondary without mentioning derwin james one of the most versatile backs in the league for the benefit of patriots fans who are aching to see drake may air it out because good things happen when drake may can air out the football what about this chargers defense may make that tough for Drake to do this weekend? Yeah, I think it's the pass rush, right? Like that is the one place on paper when you look at where the Chargers could exploit the Patriots in this game.

Starting point is 00:10:14 You want Drake May to air it out. But you have to be at least fearful of that pass rush. And I think on the flip side, if you're looking at it from a Chargers fan's perspective, it's, hey, we're paying $70 million to two edge rushers this is a big game one game away from the playoffs those dudes have to show up the Khalil Max the Joey Bosa's have to show up Tuli Tupelo to has to show up but I think as much as Patriots fans want to air it out the best chance they're going to have to do that is by keeping the Chargers defense off balance. If you let them get into obvious passing situations and you let Jesse Minter, who has done really, really good job, especially against rookie quarterbacks, especially when you give them those third and longs to kind of give you something

Starting point is 00:10:53 crazy to look at and not know who's coming. And then you still have to win your one-on-one matchups against the Khalil Mack. You're going to have an issue, right? I mean, if you're looking at it, Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack versus Javante Jacobs, that's the, that's the matchup you're looking for. That's where you want to do it. And I think with the interior coming along the way they have kind of some unexpected contributors like a Puna Ford, like a tier tart, it'll be for the chargers. Hey, how do you get them in those obvious passing situations and not let them just let Ramondre stevenson get them into second and twos and third and ones and things like that because if you can get the chargers in those situations you can catch them guessing at times we've seen it on a couple of big plays they allowed texans

Starting point is 00:11:34 or the titans game third and short they go for a 50-yard touchdown you saw it again a couple of weeks ago same thing fourth and one t higgins 40 plus yard touchdown if you can get them in those situations where you catch them guessing drake may might be able to find some big plays down thing fourth and one t higgins 40 plus yard touchdown if you can get them in those situations where you catch them guessing drake may might be able to find some big plays down the field but if you get stuck in these third and tens with this pass rush and what they should do in this game it could be an issue yeah absolutely and you saw that as a tale of two halves with the new england patriots and the buffalo bills last weekend patriots came out early tested that secondary in buffalo found some mismatches.

Starting point is 00:12:06 Drake made some big plays. Buffalo makes some adjustments. All of a sudden, the prowess of Buffalo's pass rush came out and made life difficult for Drake in the second half. And the Patriots dug themselves a hole they could not get out of. And I think it comes back to a point that you made earlier, Daniel. These two teams, if we're being objective, the Chargers are a more talented team on both sides of the ball. I don't think Pats fans or Bolts fans will argue that point.

Starting point is 00:12:28 But the Patriots are proving that they can parlay that puncher's chance into solid results on the field. In just a moment, Daniel Wade and I are going to flip the script, and he's going to put me on the hot seat to help Chargers fans get a clearer picture of what to expect from the 3-12 Patriots. Don't let the record fool you. This team has got some fight. I'm going to explain why on this Crossover Thursday episode of Locked On Patriots and Locked On Chargers, right here on the Locked On Podcast Network,

Starting point is 00:12:55 your team, every day. Locked On listeners, today's episode is brought to you by our good friends over at Rocket Money. And here on this holiday season, and Daniel, I'll include you in this as well. Did Rocket Money help you all find any subscriptions you forgot about or that you were paying for twice? Yeah, I can see Daniel nodding his head. Folks, it happened to me. I had a few subscriptions that I didn't even realize I was still paying for.

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Starting point is 00:13:58 So don't delay. Do it today. Holiday season is the perfect time to cancel your unwanted subscriptions and reach your financial goals faster with Rocket Money. Go to rocketmoney.com slash locked on today. That's rocketmoney.com slash locked on. Rocketmoney.com slash locked on. Pats fans and Bolts fans, welcome back to Crossover Thursday here on the Locked On Podcast Network. Mike DeBate of Locked On Patriots and Daniel Wade of Locked On Chargers

Starting point is 00:14:30 crossing the streams on this post-Christmas Day edition. And Dan, I am supremely confident that Patriots Nation right now is brimming with your Chargers wisdom and counsel. They know about this team coming into Foxborough on Saturday. So turnabout is fair play let's flip the script and i know you're a fan of a few good men i am as well if colonel nathan r jessup were sitting here he would probably say when it comes to the new england patriots you have any questions for me council yeah i i think there's a lot of questions and i see the kind of

Starting point is 00:15:03 similarities in in jber and Drake May. We talked about it a little bit before the show, and we also talked a little bit before the show. Hey, you know, Patriots want to take a good loss here where Drake May looks good. Chargers clinch the playoffs. You know, maybe there's some sort of handshake agreement, you know, maybe a little poker room kind of deal that could be agreed upon. But when I look at this Patriots team, I think the biggest question that I have, as far as, you know, how this game could go poorly for the Chargers, right? When I look at kind of a doomsday scenario, because for the Chargers, you're one win away. The last thing

Starting point is 00:15:33 you want to do is leave this game and your playoff chances up to one week against the Raiders the last week of the season where you absolutely have to win it, right? No one wants to see that. For the Chargers, kind of one of the nightmare scenarios that plays out in my mind when I'm looking at this game, the Chargers going West Coast to East Coast, what the Chargers flaws are as a team right now is would the Patriots be willing to stick with the run enough, to be committed enough to the run,

Starting point is 00:16:00 to actually shrink this game and give themselves a chance and not kind of get a little loose with it maybe turn the ball over a couple times like can the Patriots stay committed and disciplined enough to maybe play a little bit more of a boring game in this one but also try to expose the Chargers potential biggest weakness defensively which is their running game because I look at last week and I see that 16 play 10 minute 91 yard drive and i look at that against the bills and them scoring that touchdown it's like well that could be a little bit problematic the charges have had some inconsistencies on offense so if you have a team that's shrinking the game like

Starting point is 00:16:34 that taking possessions away from you and then you have to kind of put so much importance on each drive and having to come away with points on it that could get close and leave the patriots in this game so do you think the patriots could actually, will they try to employ that game plan to maybe make it a little bit more boring? Take what the Chargers defense can give them, shrink the game and give themselves a shot. Yeah, I think the New England Patriots can do it. I think they'd like to do it. The only question is, is whether or not they will stick to it, like you said.

Starting point is 00:16:59 And I think that's going to depend on the run blocking that they're getting, which quite honestly, Daniel has been their Achilles heel. This team right now and the offensive line that's been blocking in front of it has not given Ramondre Stevenson the traction he needs to be able to break free and get those five ten yard runs those bursts through the lanes that are opened up because the lanes aren't opening up the holes simply aren't there they're scrapping for every single yard so if they're grinding down and they find an ability to take advantage of a line that's either struggling or a line that may include some mismatches, yes, I do believe they will commit to it. Alex Van Pelt has mentioned design runs, possibly even design runs for Drake May. That might be a

Starting point is 00:17:40 possibility. I know they're trying to do the best they can not to get this kid injured. And I think that's exactly what they should be doing. But you saw them do it a little bit more against Buffalo. They're opening things up a little bit, starting to realize that you have to show teams, whether it be for this year or showcasing for next year, that, hey, you know what? If we have a competent line in front of us and we've got a running game that we can rely on and use that outside zone to facilitate what Drake does well you have to account for him on every snap we're going to show you that he can make things happen on design runs we can even use him in the quarterback sneak in very

Starting point is 00:18:14 short yardage situations so I believe they would if the Chargers defense does give them the opportunity to run the football effectively yeah you'll see the Patriots take advantage of it because when Ramondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson, who I think never gets enough credit nationally for what he does for this team, Patriots Nation has really caught on to this kid as not being just a third down weapon and a receiver out of the backfield,

Starting point is 00:18:39 but someone who can take early down pressure off of Ramondre if he's struggling or if he's having difficulty holding onto the football. That's the other problem. Ramondre Stevenson leads the league with seven fumbles right now. You have to be very mindful of giving this kid the football, knowing that he has a penchant to cough it up. So all of these factors have to kind of meld into a perfect storm, Daniel. But to answer your question concisely, yes, I do believe they'll take advantage of it, but only if they're given the opportunity to do it. And the Chargers could give them that. And I think it's funny because we've dealt with the same thing a little bit in Los Angeles,

Starting point is 00:19:12 where Justin Herbert obviously has the physical tools to be a huge rushing threat in every single game. But how much are you going to overexpose him to that with the design runs? And I see a lot of that with Drake May, too. And I mean, the Chargers have struggled with mobile quarterbacks at times this season and if he gets a few of those third downs with his legs and something the chargers have been susceptible to that could change things right and i think that qb spy potentially day on henley maybe that gets involved a little bit but speaking of kind of just you know an antonio gibbs and somebody who's

Starting point is 00:19:40 flying under the radar i think for chargers fans you could fall into the trap of looking at the numbers for this Patriots defense and just being like, okay, well, what's special about it, right? What are you afraid of when you look at that defense? Yet, when I look at that defense, and after watching the last couple of games that I always do leading up to this, it's like, there's some players there, right? There's some good players. They've kept some of these games really close and kept the Patriots competitive. So if you're talking about what this game looks like from a

Starting point is 00:20:06 defensive perspective for the Patriots, and if they were to have a really good defensive performance, maybe who are the guys that Chargers fans wouldn't know of, or what that game plan looks like defensively that maybe Chargers fans might be underestimating going into it. Well, I think the secondary is coming into this game, playing some of their best football of the season. So absolutely. I know Chargers fans are well cued into christian gonzalez he's been their top corner he will continue to be uh this kid has exceeded expectations in new england and clearly someone that i know opposing offenses are always cued in on but i wouldn't take my foot off the accelerator when it comes to his supporting cast especially guys like jonathan jones and alex austin who-known cornerbacks, but guys that can come in and play the perimeter and the slot, respectively,

Starting point is 00:20:50 and do a pretty good job. Jonathan Jones took away Buffalo's top slot receiver in Khalil Shakir last week, and he did it with a very strong game plan, a veteran savvy that only Jonathan possesses on this team. He's well-versed in the Bill Belichickian style of secondary football, but he brings together a little bit of that new style. So he's going to continue to be someone to account for. Alex, again, is someone that can make plays on the perimeter. He has a tendency to get a little overaggressive,

Starting point is 00:21:17 so that may be an area where Justin Herbert can exploit and maybe kind of bait him into making a move, an offensive target that maybe he shouldn't be making. But there's a double-edged sword there as well, because sometimes that aggression can work to Alex's advantage. He nearly had a couple of interceptions against Buffalo last week. So these are the types of things that I would look at if I'm the Los Angeles Chargers. The front seven has struggled this year. There's no question about it. The guy you want to keep an eye on, if you're trying to run the ball, like we talked about in the previous segment,

Starting point is 00:21:49 Devon Godshaw is the guy that you need to try to neutralize because if he's drawing a double team or he's allowing that middle to close up into clog, that's going to give the Chargers some fits in trying to run the football. He's the name that I would watch there. And in terms of getting after the quarterback, Patriots haven't done a optimal job of doing that this year, but when he has the room and when he has the option, Keon White is someone with a very strong burst that can get after the quarterback. The absence of Christian Barmore, I think is going to be very tough to overcome for him. Christian usually takes on the double team, allowing Keon to get free. Without Barmore in the lineup, it's going to make that all that much tougher. But I would still keep

Starting point is 00:22:29 an eye on him because Keon has the natural athletic ability to still be able to make things happen from anywhere on the field. Yeah, I remember that when he was coming out. I mean, athletic freak too, presents problems. But I'm glad that Christian Barmore is not playing because one of the biggest weaknesses for the Chargers is that interior offensive line. And I think it was a great point you brought up about Jonathan Jones, because the Chargers offense, especially recently, if it's not running through Ladd-McConkie, it's not running for the most part. And I mean, that's three of the last four games,

Starting point is 00:22:55 the Chargers have gotten shut out for a half. Three out of four games, which showed you a little bit of the offensive inconsistencies. If he could have a really good game against Ladd-McConkie and force Greg Roman, which hasn't always been a strong suit, to evolve and find different ways to win, I think that plays in the Patriots' favor. Absolutely, Dan. We've looked at this from a Patriots' perspective, from a Chargers' perspective, but as Herm

Starting point is 00:23:17 Edwards would say, you play to win the game. Each team has a path to victory, folks. Dan and I have our thoughts on what that path will be, respectively. We're going to share them with you when Crossover Thursday continues right here on the Locked On Podcast Network, your team, every day. Locked On listeners, the NFL playoffs are almost here, but it is not too late to get in on the regular season action with FanDuel, America's number one sportsbook, because right now new customers can finish the season strong with $250 in bonus bets if your first $5 bet wins. FanDuel has so many ways for you to pick up a W. I love betting on which players will score a touchdown and how many points each team will score. Let's face it,

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Starting point is 00:24:45 Daniel, it's been a blast. We love crossing the streams, cross-country style when it comes to these two teams. But as the late great Gorilla Monsoon would say, if this were WrestleMania, the time for the talk is just about ended. I say that a lot on my show, folks. I love the quote. My listeners are rolling their eyes right now. Maybe Chargers fans liked it.

Starting point is 00:25:02 Hopefully they will. Bottom line, if the Bolts are to come into New England and grab this victory and defeat the New England Patriots, as we both agree they probably should, what are LA's keys to victory? Yeah, it's a quick question. I mean, give me a second. I was hoping to get a Gorilla Monsoon reference. I just wasn't sure we were going to get to it today, so I'm just thankful for that. But like I talked about a little bit, bring your A game. Like this is your one win away from the playoffs. Like the Chargers, the great thing about winning last week is you made it all but certain you're going to have a great chance to make it. But you also set yourself up for a potential

Starting point is 00:25:37 historic collapse too. And when you're talking about Chargers, Patriots, collapses, things like that, a lot of bad memories are going to flood into Chargers fans' brains. Take care of business this week. If the Chargers play a B or B-minus game, they might not come out of Voxborough with a win in this game. The Bills started a little lax, and they got down 14-0. So bring your A game. Get off to a fast start.

Starting point is 00:25:57 Can't keep turning the ball over like they have three times in the last two games. That's number one. Show up. I don't know if it's a trap game. You're one game away from the playoffs. There's no excuse. You also have extended rest. You're coming off a Thursday night football.

Starting point is 00:26:09 There's no excuse for the Chargers not to show up for this game and bring their A game. Secondly, win in the red zone. If you're talking about games like this, the key is to avoiding an upset, right? Look at the Chargers. The only sub-500 team they've lost to this season was the Cardinals. What happened in that game? The Chargers kicked five field goals. That were the only points-500 team they've lost to this season was the Cardinals. What happened in that game? The Chargers kicked five field goals.

Starting point is 00:26:26 That were the only points that they got that entire game. That could make the difference in a game like this. New England ranks 31st in red zone touchdown percentage. Los Angeles Chargers have the best red zone defense in the league. That is what could determine a matchup like this and determine whether this is a game Chargers fans are sweating in the fourth quarter, as they are many Sundays for eternity, or if you have a comfortable cushion that you feel good about this team and you don't feel like they're letting the Patriots hang around. The last thing, bring the physicality.

Starting point is 00:26:53 This is playoff atmosphere. I don't care that the Patriots have three wins. I don't. Going to New England is a hard place to play every single time. And you're not talking about New England in September 9th, right? You're talking about New England at the end of the year and the chargers if you get to where you want to get to you're going to have to travel to buffalo you're going to have to travel to baltimore you're going to have to travel to kansas city so to get this game going west coast to east coast getting

Starting point is 00:27:19 a little taste of that i think is going to be huge and i think for the other side of things the charges have struggled a little bit with physical running backs. Odrick Estimate last week bullied them a little bit. Nine carries for 48 yards going up against Ramondre Stevenson in 42 degree weather, as it says it's going to be right now in Foxborough on Sunday. You have the conditions, playoff type of weather, playoff type of atmosphere as far as what you're going to have to endure as far as traveling and all of those things. Bring bring that physicality bring what Jim Harbaugh wants you to be bring your lunch pay all the work if you do that you're going to have a great shot yeah very very good points and I think it's kind of a mirror image of what New England needs to do here in terms of being mindful of their place in

Starting point is 00:27:59 the standings being mindful of their playoff elimination but also knowing what's at stake for the Los Angeles Chargers and knowing that if the Chargers do start to press a little bit because they are feeling the pressure, take advantage of those situations. My first key to victory, Daniel, in this game for the New England Patriots is start off quick. Put this team on its heels.

Starting point is 00:28:18 You need to take a look downfield. See if there are mismatches to exploit. Take advantage of those. Drake May, Kayshaun Booty could be a very good combination for this team this weekend if they can catch that secondary of Los Angeles, which again has played extremely well this year, and they may not give you many opportunities. If you see one, you have to take advantage of it right away. That also includes establishing the run and also putting this team on its heels as well. You talked about Los Angeles' struggles in stopping the run.

Starting point is 00:28:51 19th in the league, allowing 124.1 yards per game. They're 27th in the league when it comes to yards per carry. So they're allowing 4.7 there. So if the Patriots can find some success early in the run game, it's going to make it all that much easier for them to use the outside zone to open things up and really allow Drake May to showcase his talent, both with his legs and going off script, but most importantly, with sticking to that play action, which tends to be his bread and butter and something that I think Patriots have to establish if they're going to hope to keep this one close. The other key to victory kind of lends itself in, but it also involves with stopping the run on the opposite side, and that's control a line of scrimmage on either side

Starting point is 00:29:28 of the ball. This is a challenge that the Patriots have failed to execute consistently for any game, any complete game this season. But if they can find a balance in being able to force quick three and outs for your opponent, grind out this opportunity to keep the ball in Drake May and the offense's hands, then all of a sudden you develop that puncher's chance. You have the favorite team on the ropes, and that's where they have to go, and they have to go for the jugular at that point. So if they can control the line of scrimmage, that's going to give them an awful lot of opportunity to make plays and to prevent big plays on the opposite side of the ball. And the last is really, I think, something that's been extremely difficult for the New

Starting point is 00:30:08 England Patriots. And one of the things that gives me the most pause in saying that maybe they do have better than a puncher's chance here, and that's either forcing and capitalizing on their opponent's turnovers or laying off their own. This team is not only a team that has difficulty hanging on to the football, but they turn the ball over at the most inopportune times. Talk about starting quick. They did.

Starting point is 00:30:32 First two possessions for the New England Patriots in the first half against Buffalo, stellar. The first three possessions against Buffalo in the second half turn the ball over each time. If they do that against Los Angeles, it's going to be a long day, and I don't think the Pats have the personnel to be able to recover from it. Chargers will be walking out at Foxborough with a W for sure if that happens. Yeah, I totally agree with you.

Starting point is 00:30:54 The Chargers are dominated in the trenches in this game. The Chargers have been in this scenario that the Patriots are in, right, where you're looking for the recipe for an upset. And I think when you're looking at how you beat this Chargers teams, I think you nailed it on the head and all of those points. If the Patriots can get all those things done,

Starting point is 00:31:11 you're going to give yourself a chance. I mean, Drake Mays throwing an interception in seven straight games. I don't feel good about the Chargers chances if they can't force a turnover in this game. Like I almost think it's a must. Like if you're not going to be able to turn this Patriots team over,

Starting point is 00:31:24 you're going to let them hang around. And you let them hang around Drake May's showing you some things Drake May can pull something out and at the most unexpected times I mean that throw he made to Keyshawn Booty last week was insane like you cannot make a better throw this dude has all the talent in the world he can run around a little bit if you let them boil you in the trenches if you let them catch you off guard because the Chargers gave up three touchdowns straight to start last week, you can find yourself in a hole because you talked about the three and outs. The Chargers went into last week leading the NFL in three and out percentage. They're all or nothing offensively. If you can get to them early, you're going to give yourselves a chance. And if the Patriots can do all those things,

Starting point is 00:32:00 they will have a chance in this game. And for the Chargers, like you talked about with the Patriots, it's up to you to not let them do that you get out to a fast start you make drake may try to do a little bit too much you see how that patriots offense can revolve around not being able to run the football and you might find yourself with a blowout win you don't do those things we could be talking about a fourth quarter where we're all on the edge of our seats on sunday or saturday and it's going to take me a second for that one, the Saturday flex. And don't forget folks, a 1 PM kickoff Saturday, Foxborough, Massachusetts, Gillette stadium, Patriots chargers.

Starting point is 00:32:32 Dan, this has been an absolute blast. We love getting a chance to cross the streams and folks make sure to stay locked into locked on chargers each and every day. Daniel Wade, alongside my other good friend, Dave Droegemeier. They do a great job with their Chargers podcast. As someone who covered the Chargers for a number of years, you know I'm locked into locked on Chargers each and every day. Trust me, one of the best listens on the network.

Starting point is 00:32:56 Pats fans, you will not regret it. Even after these two teams have played each other, you're still going to want to listen because it's entertaining, informative. You can't ask for more. And Chargers fans, if you want to keep your friends close and your enemies closer, you're still going to want to listen because it's entertaining, informative. You can't ask for more. And Chargers fans, if you want to keep your friends close and your enemies closer, you can check me out each and every day on Locked On Patriots. On behalf of Daniel Wade, I'm Mike DeBate, reminding all of you to stay safe, stay well, be the change you wish to see in the world.

Starting point is 00:33:18 Have a great rest of the holiday week, and we'll see you back on our respective preview shows here on Friday on the Locked On Podcast Network your team every day

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