Editor: Joe Bryant. Game Recap Contributors: Mike Anderson, Michael Brown, Chris Burtt, J.D. Caldwell, David Dodds, Bobby Elder, Jim Enochs, Joel Faulhaber, Michael Flynn, Kevin Goldblum, Clayton Gray, Bob Harris, Fred Hebert, Jesse Hilsenrad, Drew Kendall, Jeff Lewis, Joey Matusek, Justin Oliver, Steve Prosapio, David Shick, Cody Smith, Scott Smith, Jeffrey Stout. New England 14 at San Diego 21 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW New England Patriots: The Patriots still can score a lot of points, but their defense is clearly vulnerable to the run despite the fact that Vrabel, Phifer and McGinest all played. . The Chargers dared the Patriots to stop the run, and the Patriots could not do it. This may provide a blueprint on how to beat the Patriots. . After four games, it appears that backs with moves will have success against the Patriot Defense, while big backs will have less success. . Though Tom Brady threw two interceptions, he did throw for 2 TDs and 353 yards. Brady showed that even against a good defense, he can score fantasy points. TE Christian Fauria was solid with 4 catches and a TD. Cam Cleeland was on the inactive list. Daniel Graham left the game early with what appeared to be a wrist or elbow injury. With only three receivers and one tight end on the field, the Patriots were unable to use the 2 TE sets or 4 WR sets that had been their staple through the first three game. This bears watching as Fauria's value rises dramatically if Cleeland and / or Graham isn't there. Without Troy Brown in the game, Deon Branch filled in and had a great day finishing with 13 catches and 128 yards. San Diego Chargers: LaDainian Tomlinson and the Charger offensive line won this game. Tomlinson ran with authority, and racked up big fantasy points. This is no small feat, because it was obvious early on that Coach Schottenheimer intended to run the ball all day, and the Patriots still could not stop Tomlinson. Though Drew Brees' numbers were not impressive statistically, he showed poise. Brees wasn't asked to do much, but looks to be a nice fit in this ball control offense. Definitely has the arm to keep defenses honest though. The Chargers are for real. Before this game, the Chargers' 3-0 record could be dismissed with a weak schedule. But by beating the Patriots, the Chargers proved that they are a force. WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW New England Patriots QB: Two different halves. During the first half, Brady looked sharp and the Pats displayed the efficient short passing game that represents their bread and butter. But in the second half, the Chargers' blitzes started to confuse Brady. Brady finished with good numbers (36 for 53, 353 yards, two TDs). Brady's two interceptions may give insight on how opposing defenses can beat the Patriots - because blitzing Brady forced him to make mistakes. WR: A clear trend developed with Troy Brown out: - Deion Branch finished with 13 catches on 17 targets. - David Patten finished with 7 catches on 11 targets - Donald Hayes finished with 2 catches on 6 targets and was the intended receiver on one of Brady's interceptions. Deion Branch was clearly the #1 receiver on the Patriots today and filled Troy Brown's role admirably. On the first couple plays of the game, it looked like they had some trouble communicating as Brady under threw him on a pair of short slants. As the game progressed they settled into more of a groove. David Patten maintained his role as the speed receiver. Donald Hayes played well but appears not to have developed the rapport with Brady that Brown, Branch and Patten have. RB: Antowain Smith had a decent game (16 rushes for 78 yards), but it wasn't enough to take the heat off of QB Brady. Smith had some decent runs, but doesn't look very explosive. He's serviceable but definitely nothing special. TE: Christian Fauria had a good game. He had 4 catches for 39 yards and one TD catch. Cameron Cleeland was on the inactive list. Keep an eye this as Fauria's value rises dramatically if Cleeland is not there. Daniel Graham left the game early with what appeared to be a wrist or elbow injury. Pass Defense: This unit did a fine job. Drew Brees only had 104 yards passing. Rush Defense: The Patriots had no answer for LaDainian Tomlinson. He embarrassed the Patriots' Defense. For the 2nd week in a row, an elite RB has run wild on New England. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/** San Diego Chargers QB: Though Coach Marty Schottenheimer sometimes gets criticized for being too conservative, the Chargers avoided big mistakes by limiting Drew Brees' passing attempts. It's a fairly simple offense based mostly on short throws. When Brees was allowed to pass, he showed some great flashes. Brees' beautiful 52 yard pass to WR Curtis Conway was perfectly thrown. RB: LaDainian Tomlinson had a career day. Tomlinson had 27 rushes for a staggering 217 yards. Tomlinson also had 2 TD runs. One of those TDs was a huge 58 yard run. The Chargers' offensive line gave Tomlinson room to run all day. Tomlinson ran with power and speed. Give Tomlinson and the Offensive line credit, because it was obvious early on that Coach Schottenheimer intended to run the ball all day, and the Patriots still could not stop the run. He had the most success running to the right side behind OG Toniu Fonoti. Both of his TDs and 129 of his yards were to the right side. If anything happened to Fonoti, Tomlinson's value might take a serious blow. WR: Curtis Conway only had 3 catches, but had 69 yards - which came primarily on a great 52 yard pass from Brees. Tim Dwight is not really involved in this offense and only had one catch. Although he did make an incredible block to allow LaDainian Tomlinson a TD. Tomlinson was on about the 20 heading towards the endzone and Dwight just flew by Tomlinson to get ahead of him and make the key block on the DB to allow Tomlinson to score. Doesn't show up in the box score but a great play. TE: Chargers tight ends were not a factor in this game. Pass Defense: Though Patriots QB Brady threw for a lot of yards vs. the Chargers, the Chargers' secondary was helped in the second half by the front seven's blitzing. The Chargers did intercept two Brady passes. They did cause a pair of interceptions. The first was a great play by Randy McNeil on a pass intended for Donald Hayes. The second was a low pass picked out of the air by Donnie Edwards at the 7 yard line, stopping an impressive drive, and returning the ball 46 yards. Rush Defense: The Patriots ran for less than 100 yards as a team, and A. Smith's longest run was on 11 yards. This unit mostly made it's best plays by pressuring Brady.