San Diego Chargers head coach Norv Turner praises the defence after a superb show in Week 16 – NFL News
San Diego Chargers defence has been struggling with injuries of late, but this has not meant that the team will not come out all guns firing. After a magnificent performance in Week 16, head coach Norv Turner has come out and praised the defence for their
good work.
The defence got a franchise record 11 sacks during the 27-17 victory over New York Jets on Sunday, December 23, 2012.
Rookie defensive end Kendall Reyes led the team with 3.5 sacks while defensive end Corey Liuget put up career-best 2.0 sacks. Linebacker Shaun Phillips finished the game with 2.5 sacks.
Turner was jubilant on the team’s consistent performance during last few weeks. Appreciating the defensive team, Turner said:
“I think this entire staff has worked awfully hard and done a good job each week doing what we have to do to prepare our team, I think defensively, they’ve done a great job. We have figured out what our guys do best and when we get the matchup like we did
today, we took advantage of it. We had a lot of guys play at a high level.”
Turner was especially impressed with the way the young players in the defensive team have performed in absence of veteran starters.
The secondary also stepped up its game as rookies like linebacker Melvin Ingram and safety Brandon Taylor also got a .5 sack each during the record-breaking performance. Giving his views about the team’s performance, Liuget said:
"The game plan was definitely was to get pressure on him, sack him and make him nervous and make them want to run the ball."
Philips has been the most consistent performer for Chargers. The veteran has been an inspiration for the newcomers. He has put up a total of 9.5 sacks this season.
Reyes’ performance was particularly pleasing as the player only had 2.0 sacks this season before getting a couple in this game.
The defence has taken a leading role in the Chargers camp this season as it has supported the dismal offence in most part of this season.
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