Tweet
Make-or-break season for Rivers?
June, 28, 2013
By Tim Kavanagh | ESPN.com
There was a time not too long ago that Philip Rivers was described using that most frustrating of terms -- "elite" -- and that the San Diego Chargers' trade that sent Eli Manning to the Giants in exchange for Rivers wasn't seen as that bad of a move, despite the greater team success enjoyed by Big Blue. Unfortunately, over the past two seasons, Rivers has declined precipitously, and there's now some thought that perhaps 2013 may be his last in a Chargers uniform if the trend isn't reversed.
Veteran NFL agent Joel Corry penned a column for CBS Sports within which he identified 15 players at a "career crossroads." The N.C. State product led the list. "[Rivers] has 35 interceptions in the last two seasons. Only Ryan Fitzpatrick, Mark Sanchez and Josh Freeman have more interceptions during this span. In 2012, Rivers didn't top 4,000 passing yards for the first time since 2007 and was sacked a career-high 49 times."
Add to that the fact that he's going to be learning a new offense under HC Mike McCoy and OC Ken Whisenhunt, and is poised to count $15 million against the salary cap in 2014, and there's definitely pressure for him to show something this fall.
Speaking of that system, Gary Horton of ESPN Insider checked in with his thoughts on the new systems that San Diego will be running this season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scheme changes for the Chargers
Friday, June 28, 2013
By Gary Horton
ESPN Insider
It seems like at the beginning of every season we expect the San Diego Chargers to be an elite team with Super Bowl aspirations -- yet each year they disappoint with inconsistency and underachieving play.
Well, big changes finally came this offseason when ex-head coach Norv Turner was replaced by former Denver offensive coordinator Mike McCoy and former general manager A.J. Smith was replaced by Tom Telesco (the organization dubbed it a "needed culture change"). Both new guys are young and enthusiastic, though neither has previously served in his respective position.
After years of perceiving that San Diego's roster is stacked with good players, the reality is that the Chargers lack depth and have many veterans who aren't playing up to expectations. As a result, even though they don't want to admit it, the Chargers look like they are in a rebuilding phase, and progress may have to come gradually by building through the draft.
Given the new personnel, there will be significant scheme and philosophical changes this season in San Diego. After studying the film, here's what I expect to see on both sides of the ball in 2013.
Offense
McCoy has a solid offensive background with a reputation for being patient while also showing the ability to adjust to his players' skill sets. That certainly makes sense considering that the last two QBs he has worked with are Tim Tebow and Peyton Manning, players with very different games. In Denver, McCoy worked for a defensive-oriented head coach in John Fox, and the guess is that the Chargers will run an offense with balance and physicality that won't feature many risky plays.
The biggest key to fixing this offense is to get two players back on track -- QB Philip Rivers and RB Ryan Mathews -- both of whom are coming off disappointing 2012 seasons.
Rivers still possesses elite passing skills, but lack of mobility played a role in his 49 sacks a year ago; though you can partially blame that on a poor offensive line, Rivers' 22 turnovers, 15 interceptions and seven lost fumbles are on him. The vertical, slow-developing passing game of the past that featured seven-step drops and a lot of seam routes is out, replaced by a new short-to-intermediate passing game. Three- and five-step drops with a lot of crossing routes and a much more lateral passing game (and a "ball out quick" mentality) should help Rivers and his mediocre offensive line. Additionally, we will see less play-action, at least until defenses actually respect San Diego's run game, and the screen game will be a big part of this offense, almost serving as an extension of the run game. The Chargers also will use bunch formations to protect their WRs from being jammed at the line of scrimmage.
Speaking of the run game, the coaches would prefer to use a zone blocking scheme, but right now their personnel may be more suited to physical man blocking up front. McCoy uses a lot of one-back sets, even though he has a good fullback in Le'Ron McCain, and he also likes two-TE looks. If Mathews can give them production between the tackles and new addition Danny Woodhead can flourish as a receiver out of the backfield, especially on third down (a la Darren Sproles), this offense will be greatly improved.
The pace and efficiency of this offense should also improve with a simpler playbook featuring shotgun formation, pre-snap movement to dictate matchups and stretch plays. The Chargers' biggest goals on offense are to cut down on mistakes and increase Rivers' completion rate to 70 percent. New offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt will call the plays and let McCoy concentrate on the big picture and game management. And even though we expect this attack to be fairly basic, Whisenhunt has a knack for putting some trick plays in the playbook.
Defense
John Pagano was retained as the defensive coordinator and that probably means that the scheme in 2013 will mirror what we saw a year ago. The good news is that this is an improving defense with good young players to build around, especially with DEs Corey Liuget and Kendall Reyes. The bad news is that there are some position holes and a lack of depth on all three levels.
This is your basic 3-4 defense, and the Chargers expect their defensive line to eat blockers and stack at the point of attack, which allows their linebackers to flow to the ball and make most of the plays. Pagano seems to like a creative blitz package that can attack from anywhere on the field, but that philosophy requires man coverages -- and that has not been the strength of this secondary. As a result, the Chargers were forced to play more zone and "soft" coverages on the back end than they preferred; and with three new projected starters in the secondary this season, they may be forced to dial back their blitz package and instead rely on their pass rush to provide the necessary pressure. Pagano may change things up on occasion with some 4-3 under fronts and pre-snap movement to keep offenses off balance.
Problem areas
As we move past the new projected offensive and defensive philosophies of this coaching staff, a key area on film that San Diego needs to get resolved by the start of the season is its red zone offense and defense. Simply put, this team is not talented enough to struggle in the red zone.
On offense, San Diego converted only 22 of 47 red zone attempts, and Rivers really seems to struggle in this area as the field shrinks. Plus, the run game gave him no help close to the goal line, and the play calling didn't always seem imaginative.
On the other side of the ball, the Chargers ranked dead last in the NFL in terms of red zone defense, which is surprising considering that this unit is showing solid improvement. Opposing offenses scored on 28 of 40 chances, showing that San Diego's defense was not at its best when the field shrank and the back seven defenders were forced to play man-to-man.
Improving on both sides of the ball in the red zone will be a major goal for the Chargers as they enter training camp.
June, 28, 2013
By Tim Kavanagh | ESPN.com
There was a time not too long ago that Philip Rivers was described using that most frustrating of terms -- "elite" -- and that the San Diego Chargers' trade that sent Eli Manning to the Giants in exchange for Rivers wasn't seen as that bad of a move, despite the greater team success enjoyed by Big Blue. Unfortunately, over the past two seasons, Rivers has declined precipitously, and there's now some thought that perhaps 2013 may be his last in a Chargers uniform if the trend isn't reversed.
Veteran NFL agent Joel Corry penned a column for CBS Sports within which he identified 15 players at a "career crossroads." The N.C. State product led the list. "[Rivers] has 35 interceptions in the last two seasons. Only Ryan Fitzpatrick, Mark Sanchez and Josh Freeman have more interceptions during this span. In 2012, Rivers didn't top 4,000 passing yards for the first time since 2007 and was sacked a career-high 49 times."
Add to that the fact that he's going to be learning a new offense under HC Mike McCoy and OC Ken Whisenhunt, and is poised to count $15 million against the salary cap in 2014, and there's definitely pressure for him to show something this fall.
Speaking of that system, Gary Horton of ESPN Insider checked in with his thoughts on the new systems that San Diego will be running this season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scheme changes for the Chargers
Friday, June 28, 2013
By Gary Horton
ESPN Insider
It seems like at the beginning of every season we expect the San Diego Chargers to be an elite team with Super Bowl aspirations -- yet each year they disappoint with inconsistency and underachieving play.
Well, big changes finally came this offseason when ex-head coach Norv Turner was replaced by former Denver offensive coordinator Mike McCoy and former general manager A.J. Smith was replaced by Tom Telesco (the organization dubbed it a "needed culture change"). Both new guys are young and enthusiastic, though neither has previously served in his respective position.
After years of perceiving that San Diego's roster is stacked with good players, the reality is that the Chargers lack depth and have many veterans who aren't playing up to expectations. As a result, even though they don't want to admit it, the Chargers look like they are in a rebuilding phase, and progress may have to come gradually by building through the draft.
Given the new personnel, there will be significant scheme and philosophical changes this season in San Diego. After studying the film, here's what I expect to see on both sides of the ball in 2013.
Offense
McCoy has a solid offensive background with a reputation for being patient while also showing the ability to adjust to his players' skill sets. That certainly makes sense considering that the last two QBs he has worked with are Tim Tebow and Peyton Manning, players with very different games. In Denver, McCoy worked for a defensive-oriented head coach in John Fox, and the guess is that the Chargers will run an offense with balance and physicality that won't feature many risky plays.
The biggest key to fixing this offense is to get two players back on track -- QB Philip Rivers and RB Ryan Mathews -- both of whom are coming off disappointing 2012 seasons.
Rivers still possesses elite passing skills, but lack of mobility played a role in his 49 sacks a year ago; though you can partially blame that on a poor offensive line, Rivers' 22 turnovers, 15 interceptions and seven lost fumbles are on him. The vertical, slow-developing passing game of the past that featured seven-step drops and a lot of seam routes is out, replaced by a new short-to-intermediate passing game. Three- and five-step drops with a lot of crossing routes and a much more lateral passing game (and a "ball out quick" mentality) should help Rivers and his mediocre offensive line. Additionally, we will see less play-action, at least until defenses actually respect San Diego's run game, and the screen game will be a big part of this offense, almost serving as an extension of the run game. The Chargers also will use bunch formations to protect their WRs from being jammed at the line of scrimmage.
Speaking of the run game, the coaches would prefer to use a zone blocking scheme, but right now their personnel may be more suited to physical man blocking up front. McCoy uses a lot of one-back sets, even though he has a good fullback in Le'Ron McCain, and he also likes two-TE looks. If Mathews can give them production between the tackles and new addition Danny Woodhead can flourish as a receiver out of the backfield, especially on third down (a la Darren Sproles), this offense will be greatly improved.
The pace and efficiency of this offense should also improve with a simpler playbook featuring shotgun formation, pre-snap movement to dictate matchups and stretch plays. The Chargers' biggest goals on offense are to cut down on mistakes and increase Rivers' completion rate to 70 percent. New offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt will call the plays and let McCoy concentrate on the big picture and game management. And even though we expect this attack to be fairly basic, Whisenhunt has a knack for putting some trick plays in the playbook.
Defense
John Pagano was retained as the defensive coordinator and that probably means that the scheme in 2013 will mirror what we saw a year ago. The good news is that this is an improving defense with good young players to build around, especially with DEs Corey Liuget and Kendall Reyes. The bad news is that there are some position holes and a lack of depth on all three levels.
This is your basic 3-4 defense, and the Chargers expect their defensive line to eat blockers and stack at the point of attack, which allows their linebackers to flow to the ball and make most of the plays. Pagano seems to like a creative blitz package that can attack from anywhere on the field, but that philosophy requires man coverages -- and that has not been the strength of this secondary. As a result, the Chargers were forced to play more zone and "soft" coverages on the back end than they preferred; and with three new projected starters in the secondary this season, they may be forced to dial back their blitz package and instead rely on their pass rush to provide the necessary pressure. Pagano may change things up on occasion with some 4-3 under fronts and pre-snap movement to keep offenses off balance.
Problem areas
As we move past the new projected offensive and defensive philosophies of this coaching staff, a key area on film that San Diego needs to get resolved by the start of the season is its red zone offense and defense. Simply put, this team is not talented enough to struggle in the red zone.
On offense, San Diego converted only 22 of 47 red zone attempts, and Rivers really seems to struggle in this area as the field shrinks. Plus, the run game gave him no help close to the goal line, and the play calling didn't always seem imaginative.
On the other side of the ball, the Chargers ranked dead last in the NFL in terms of red zone defense, which is surprising considering that this unit is showing solid improvement. Opposing offenses scored on 28 of 40 chances, showing that San Diego's defense was not at its best when the field shrank and the back seven defenders were forced to play man-to-man.
Improving on both sides of the ball in the red zone will be a major goal for the Chargers as they enter training camp.
Comment