Cowboys vs Chargers: 6 things to know about Week 6 opponent
The Dallas Cowboys will need to regroup quickly after a disastrous performance that left their season in question. The good news is there’s another game right around the corner, and the Week 6 matchup has the team traveling back to California to take on the Los Angeles Chargers.
At 2-2, the Chargers are riding a two-game winning streak. Much like the Cowboys, a breaking point came early in the season for the Chargers after the team was 0-2 out of the gate and needed a wild win in Week 3 to get pointed in the right direction. The Cowboys will be looking for the same type of turnaround before they take their much-needed bye week. Here are six things to know about the Week 6 opponent for the Cowboys.
Rest helped injury woes
The Chargers have been hit hard by the injury bug early this season, but some of those players are on track to play against the Cowboys. After getting a week off to heal, there are four players who are likely to suit up in Week 6.
Pass rusher Joey Bosa, safety Derwin James and running back Austin Ekeler all missed at least the last game for Chargers, but all three are expected to play on Monday night. Ekeler has missed the last three games and his return should elevate an offense that has done well without his services.
Austin Ekeler said he expects to play this week. Said “99%” chance he plays Monday night vs. Cowboys.
— Daniel Popper (@danielrpopper) October 10, 2023
All three are Pro Bowl players who should give the Chargers a significant boost.
Quarterback Justin Herbert is also hurt with a fractured finger on his non-throwing hand and will play.
Austin Ekeler is a problem
Unfortunately for the Cowboys, Los Angeles gets their dynamic playmaker back for the Week 6 matchup. Ekeler has missed the last three games with an ankle sprain suffered on opening day, but he’ll be ready for the Cowboys.
Ekeler has been one of the best dual threats at RB in the league for the last handful of seasons and he’s shown no signs of slowing down. The seventh-year veteran has led the NFL in touchdowns in back-to-back seasons with 20 and 18 scores, respectively. Ekeler has 63 career scores, with 34 coming on the ground and 29 through the air.
Although he has yet to rush for 1,000 yards in his career, Ekeler has three seasons with at least 550 yards rushing and over 645 yards receiving in the same year. Ekeler is coming off his two best rushing seasons of 911 and 915 yards, as well as having a career-high 107 catches last season.
Return of Kellen Moore
The Cowboys will be seeing a familiar face on the Los Angeles sideline, former offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. Thr team and Moore decided to part ways this past offseason, which led to him joining the Chargers as their OC.
It was a bit of a stagnant offense for the Chargers with the talented Herbert under center, so they brought in Moore to help make the unit more explosive. Thus far, Moore is making a difference.
The Chargers’ offense ranks inside the top seven in yards per game, passing yards and scoring, averaging 27.5 points a contest. Their rushing yards aren’t in the top 10 because they’ve been without Ekeler for all but one game, yet they still run it for almost 120 yards a game.
DAL at LAC on MNF in Week 6!
The Cowboys are averaging 5.2 fewer offensive PPG vs last year
The Chargers are averaging 5.0 more offensive PPG vs last year
Dallas isn't running the ball more as McCarthy suggested
Kellen Moore has Herbert airing it out unlike last year
— Doug Clawson (@doug_clawson) October 9, 2023
What’s more intriguing, the Chargers are fifth in red-zone efficiency at 68.75%, while the Cowboys are struggling in that area at just 36.84% under Mike McCarthy, good for 28th in the league.
Moore’s offense is thriving just as the Cowboys offense is having issues getting in rhythm with their new play caller. It’s been a topic of conversation that will grow louder this week as Moore goes up against his former team.
Justin Herbert is playing well
The Cowboys are five games into the season and have yet to play against an elite quarterback, that changes this week with the Chargers’ signal caller. Last week Dallas’ defense was eaten up by a QB with an elite offensive scheme, but Herbert’s talent is the best Dan Quinn’s defense has seen thus far.
Herbert’s season has begun with a bang, he’s averaging over 276 yards passing per game, has thrown for seven touchdowns against just one interception, and has a career-high in completion percentage of 71% through four games. With three more scores on the ground, it’s easy to see how defending Herbert is a difficult task. Herbert’s got the arm strength, accuracy, and mobility to stress a defense that struggled last week and will be short-handed.
The only good news is that Herbert does have that fractured finger that might make things uncomfortable for him, but that injury is on his non-throwing hand so as long as he can take a snap, it shouldn’t impact him much. Dallas’ defense is in line for a rough game against one of the more complete quarterbacks in the league.
Chargers are coming off a bye week
The Chargers will be coming off a bye week with a home game as the Cowboys will be traveling for the second consecutive week. With the game on Monday night, Los Angeles gets an extra day of rest as an added benefit.
However, the Chargers have an interesting trend coming off their bye over the last 10 years. Each year they alternate results, as the Chargers lose one year and then win the next, never winning or losing two straight. The franchise has not won back-to-back games after the bye since the 2007 and 2008 campaigns.
During their 2022 season, the Chargers beat the Atlanta Falcons coming off their bye week. That means the Cowboys should be in line to beat the Chargers if the trend continues.
Chargers struggle to finish games
Despite all the talent on the Chargers, they have major problems finishing games and earning wins. Earlier this season against the Minnesota Vikings, the Chargers tried to give the win away before a game-ending interception in the end zone, and Los Angeles narrowly escaped with a victory against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Neither of those games needed to be close, but head coach Brandon Staley is one of the most questioned coaches in the league for good reason. Staley struggles with situational football and late-game management.
The Chargers also blew a 27-point lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars in last year’s playoff loss, so there’s a long history of Staley’s team choking away games. Even if the Cowboys don’t play their best, they just need to keep it close, and they’ll have a good shot at winning due to some incompetence from the Chargers.
