NFL Experts React to Khalil Mack’s Dominating Performance
By Eric Smith, Chargers Senior Writer
There are good days … and then there are days like Khalil Mack had Sunday against the Raiders.
The Chargers outside linebacker had a historic and dominating outing in Week 4 as he posted 6.0 sacks. That’s a half-dozen for those counting at home.
Mack on Monday was rightfully showered with praise for his performance, including being named as one of NBC Sports’ columnist Peter King’s defensive players of the week.
King wrote:
You’re a DPOW when you have a six-sack game. There’s nothing like having the hot hand. Mack had it. How often does a player get three sacks in five minutes—which Mack did in the first 4:30 after halftime … and how often does a player get six sacks in 35 minutes? It was a golden day for the 32-year-old Mack. “Surreal,” he called it.
Mack set a plethora of records in the game, including notching a single-game career high while also setting a Chargers single-game franchise record.
He also became just the second player in NFL history with multiple games of at least 5.0 sacks in his career.
King chatted with Mack after the game and got an inside view of the performance.
Six sacks in a game has been exceeded only once—by Derrick Thomas, who had seven in a game 33 years ago. Mack had been sackless in the first three Chargers’ game. But he said he took advantage of a first-time starting quarterback, Aidan O’Connell of the Raiders, and the momentum of the moment. Amazing to think that Mack had three sacks in the first five plays of the third quarter, with all coming in a 43-minute span. “Everything was going right for me—not many chips, I felt great, I felt I could bend the edge with my foot and feel totally healthy,” Mack said.
Mack’s performance was also lauded by John Breech of CBS Sports, who noted it was “one of the most impressive defensive performances you’ll ever see.”
Breech gave the Bolts a ‘B’ letter grade for their outing in which a strong first half carried the Chargers to a 24-17 win.
He wrote:
When the Chargers are winning, it’s usually because the offense comes up big, but on Sunday, it was the defense. In one of the most impressive defensive performances you’ll ever see, Khalil Mack racked up six sacks on a day where the Chargers totaled seven as a team. Mack led a defense that forced three turnovers while also holding the Raiders to just 1 of 11 on third-down conversions. The big performance from the defense was huge, because Justin Herbert and the offense totaled just 85 yards and zero points in the second half. Herbert, who injured his left hand, looked off all day while throwing the ball, but he made up for that by rushing for two touchdowns. Every Chargers game seems to come down to the wire, but right now, this team seems to be embracing that with its second consecutive one-score win.
The Chargers are now 2-2 heading into a Week 5 bye. The Bolts host the Cowboys on Monday Night Football in Week 6 at SoFi Stadium.
