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More troubles Bolts than loss to Broncos

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The result isn’t the problem.

The Chargers lugged their wounded into the Rockies and got pummeled. A 35-21 drubbing by the Denver Broncos -- don’t be fooled by some questionable calls that went against the Chargers and a couple other close plays -- dropped the Chargers to 5-3, a five-game win streak having given way to a slide.

But consecutive losses are not the two most troubling developments as the Chargers’ previously promising season screeched to the midpoint.

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This team is reeling, for sure. They’ll be grateful to play one game in the next 23 days.

“It’s as good a time as any I’ve been a part of in eight years,” safety Eric Weddle said of the upcoming stretch that includes a bye week after their Nov. 2 game in Miami.

But even then, there’s no outside help coming on the offensive line that we know of, and cornerback Jason Verrett’s injured left shoulder might make him, at best, an on-and-off contributor for the rest of his rookie season.

That’s a pair of problems that should make you shudder more than the fact the Chargers haven’t won in Miami in three decades or that the Denver Broncos appear better than they’ve been even in going 13-3 each of the past two seasons.

Chargers at Cardinals 9/8/2014

Asked which of the two deficiencies troubled him more, Mike McCoy answered that it was both.

“Offensively, we had way too many negative plays in the first half . . . like one or two a series,” McCoy said. “. . . Defensively, there were too many big plays given up.”

You have to wonder how that’s getting fixed.

The line was the major culprit in eight first-half plays that lost yardage Thursday, and over the course of the season it has allowed Philip Rivers to be pressured more than any quarterback in the league.

Branden Oliver ran 13 times Thursday and may have had a chance for a positive play on a half-dozen of them. His 23-yard run on the game’s final play got him to 36 for the game. He gained one yard three times and was tackled for a loss three times.

Rivers was also sacked twice, and three of his completions resulted in lost yardage.

Rivers’ 17-yard scramble five minutes into the fourth quarter made him the team’s leading rusher for a time. At that point, Oliver and Ronnie Brown had combined for 18 yards on 12 carries.

But even when Philip Rivers got the time or otherwise found open receivers, there was little inkling the Chargers defense was going to make a stop.

Yes, they were playing the league’s No.1 passing offense and top scoring offense on Thursday. But this was the third straight game the defense played on its heels. The Oakland Raiders had a season-high 396 yards against the Chargers on Oct. 28, and Kansas City gained 365 yards this past Sunday. Those are the two highest yardage totals the Chargers have allowed since the season opener.

They’re being exploited more than being exposed.

The Chargers started the season with depth, which helped immensely as they sustained early injuries. But they weren’t the Mariana Trench. Next Man Up has its limits. We suspected this while they were still winning; it has been confirmed the past two weeks.

They’ve been without outside linebacker Melvin Ingram the past six games and outside linebacker Jerry Attaouchu all but 45 snaps since Week 1. That has forced Dwight Freeney to play significant snaps, clearly affecting his effectiveness. Inside linebacker Manti Te’o hasn’t played since the season’s third game.

The thinness up front certainly doesn’t help what is happening on the back end.

Cornerback Brandon Flowers went out just before halftime with a concussion against the Chiefs and did not play Thursday. Verrett, who missed the Kansas City game, started Thursday, played valiantly but was finished early in the second quarter and finished the game watching with his left arm in a sling.

It would never have been good, but the timing couldn’t have been worse.

The Chargers augmented their secondary for this opponent above all others. Flowers and Verrett were the biggest difference in a defense that three weeks ago was ranked No.1 in the league.

His replacement, Richard Marshall, is a decent veteran to have in a pinch -- but not to be covering good receivers for entire games. He requires help that alters how the rest of the secondary can play. That wasn’t a concern with Flowers and Verrett, or even just one of them, in games.

When you don’t have your best players on the field, bad things happen. And good things, like turnovers, don’t.

Flowers will likely be back in Miami, and Te’o and Ingram could return immediately after the bye.

But if Verrett’s shoulder injury is bad enough to keep him out for an extended period – and indications are that it is – there is more to be worried about than these two losses.

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