Los Angeles Chargers: Most intriguing storylines for Week 2 vs. Carolina Panthers
Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA TODAY NETWORK
After a terrific start to the 2024 season, one that included beating their arch-rival, the Los Angeles Chargers must now stay focused for their first road game of the year against the Carolina Panthers.Â
The Chargers will be traveling to Charlotte for one of those earlier East Coast kickoffs which can always be tricky, even for the better team. The Panthers are coming off a 37-point drubbing against the New Orleans Saints. They would like nothing more than to pull the upset here.Â
For Chargers fans, here are some of the key storylines to follow in this game.Â
Los Angeles Chargers Week 2 storylinesCan J.K. Dobbins do it again?
The Chargers are a team that is going to live and die by the run. Last week, on just 10 carries, J.K. Dobbins exploded for 135 yards against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Panthers allowed 180 yards and 4.9 yards per carry on the ground to the Saints, so this looks like a great matchup for Dobbins.Â
After coming off of a devastating injury, back-to-back 100-yard games for Dobbins would be huge for his confidence.Â
Wide receiver play
Everyone knew this Jim Harbaugh-led Chargers team was going to be based on a tough running game and stout defense. However, the wide receiver position continues to be the most talked about spot on the team.Â
Against the Raiders, Chargers wide receivers made only 10 catches. Is that kind of production sustainable? Will one of the wide receivers step up and have a big game against a bad Panthers team?
Chargers can’t look past Panthers
This is the NFL and the phrase “any given Sunday” was made for a reason. The Chargers can’t get caught overlooking this opponent and that is unlikely with the attention to detail paid by Harbaugh. Still, this game will likely be a lot closer than most believe.Â
The Panthers and their new head coach, Dave Canales, do not want to start the season 0-2. They will be much better than they were against New Orleans and the Chargers need to be ready to bring their best in return.Â
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Author(s)
Travis Wakeman has been covering the NFL since 2012 when he started with Bleacher Report. After reporting about the Broncos there until 2016, he joined the FanSided network as a site expert covering the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers while simultaneously covering the Broncos at Broncos Wire when that site launched. He then took over the Broncos site at FanSided in March 2020 and covered the team there until spring of 2024.
