Chargers News: Keenan Allen Sees Parallels To LA Legend's Failings In Lions Loss
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After a devastating loss on Sunday to the Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Chargers star wide receiver Keenan Allen compared his performance to an LA legend.
“In this particular game, like Kobe,” Allen said. “You go out and score something crazy and take an ‘L.’ One of those.”
After comparing himself to the late great Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant, it's without a doubt that Allen put on a show against a Detroit defense that came into the game ranked as the fifth-best defense in the NFL. Allen went on to catch 11 balls for 175 yards while scoring two touchdowns.
Despite having a day where he felt like Kobe, the fact of the matter is the Chargers ended the day on the losing side. Typically whenever Kobe Bryant put on a performance like this for the Lakers, they typically came out on the winnings side as Bryant won a total of five NBA Finals with one league MVP, two finals MVP's and 18 All-Star selections.
But to not discredit Allen, football is much more of a team sport as players often don't play both sides of the ball and the game will see at least 22 different starting players.
Allen has been on a tear in the 2023 season as he currently ranks first in receptions (73) and is tied for third in receiving touchdowns (6).
It's hard to imagine that when a team has players like Allen and his quarterback Justin Herbert both playing at an elite level their record would be 4-5 in third place, behind the Las Vegas Raiders (5-5) who recently fired head coach Josh McDaniels two weeks ago.
“It’s frustration,” Allen said. “I felt like I did everything I could. So I’m happy with that. I left all 110% in the box. That’s really all I can do.”
This year, the Chargers offense has scored 239 points in just nine games played, while the defense has given up 215 points and allowed opponents to average 375.8 yards per game.
End-of-game meltdowns have constantly plagued the Chargers this year as they have blown three of their four losses in the fourth quarter while winning a close one against the Minnesota Vikings in week three.
On Sunday, the Chargers allowed Lions quarterback Jared Goff to go 23/33 while throwing for 333 yards and two touchdowns. Detroit running backs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery both combined for 193 yards rushing with three touchdowns.
Despite things not going LA's way, they are very much still in it to win the division this season as they are three games behind the Kansas City Chiefs who sit at the top of the division at 7-2. The Chiefs still have a tough road ahead of them as they will play the Chargers one more time on the road at the end of the season while still having to get through the Philadelphia Eagles, Buffalo Bills, and Cincinnati Bengals.
Meanwhile, the Chargers will have a favorable schedule in December. They will play the Broncos twice and the New England Patriots, with the Raiders game on the horizon which should be crucial for the playoffs.
While things haven't gone LA's way this year, they are still in it and Allen seems like he will not give up on his teammates just yet.
“We go to work everyday together, and we come out of this thing together. No matter what’s going on, we still got each other’s back. They just had a rough day today.”
The Chargers will be on the road this week as they are slated to play against the Green Bay Packers at 10:00 AM PT on Sunday, Nov. 19.
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