No Antonio Gates? No Malcolm Floyd? No Legedu Naanee?
Apparently no problem for Philip Rivers.
The San Diego Chargers are following a familiar script this season: Tank early and then scramble to recover. Their special teams play is atrocious, they just waived Shawne Merriman and they lack a true No. 1 running back. But they have Rivers, and through nine weeks he’s playing like an MVP candidate.
Rivers had another stat-heavy performance Sunday against Houston, throwing for 295 yards and four touchdowns and leading the Chargers (4-5) to a 29-23 comeback win over the Texans. Most impressive? He did it without Gates, Floyd and Naanee — his three best receivers — in the lineup. Instead, Rivers threw two touchdown passes to Seyi Ajirotutu (who?) and two more to backup tight end Randy McMichael.
Rivers leads all quarterbacks in touchdowns (19). He’s on pace to shatter Dan Marino‘s record for passing yards in a season. And he appears ready to carry the Chargers on another second-half playoff push. He’s probably not the MVP front-runner now, but like his team, Rivers is gaining momentum.
