2020 Chargers Training Camp and Final 53 Discussion

[like54ninjas]

[Xenos]

Thanks. For some reason it wasn’t showing up when I wrapped the link in the tweet. So I ended up just posting the link instead.

[gzubeck]

Thanks. For some reason it wasn’t showing up when I wrapped the link in the tweet. So I ended up just posting the link instead.

Oh my! We actually have an offensive line coach who maybe can do something with this unruly lot! :whistlin:

[like54ninjas]

[like54ninjas]

[sonorajim]

Some love for #27, Kelley in there.

[like54ninjas]

Some love for #27, Kelley in there.

By mid season, JK will be getting 12-15 carries a game. Vision, size, power, and burst. I like our 3-headed monster heading into this season.

[sonorajim]

By mid season, JK will be getting 12-15 carries a game. Vision, size, power, and burst. I like our 3-headed monster heading into this season.

As do I.
I believe our OL personnel are better run blocking, will give the carrier some creases and will improve game to game under Campen's tutelage.
We're going to compete.

[Xenos]

Yesterday's report. Nice to see Adderley step it up, and glad to see Melvin practicing again. A little worrying that Kenneth Murray is still sitting out.

https://theathletic.com/2012590/2020/08/20/chargers-training-camp-practice-report-day-5-fullback-battle-heats-up/

Chargers training camp practice report, Day 5: Fullback battle heats up




By Daniel Popper Aug 20, 2020




COSTA MESA, Calif. — The Chargers were back in pads on Thursday morning after a brief one-day reprieve.
This is your Day 5 practice report.

Both Nabers and Holly impress
The Chargers’ one-on-one period early in practice featured a lively pass-rush/pass-blocking drill between the tight ends and backs and safeties and linebackers. The coaching staff set up a yellow trash can to act as the quarterback. The defensive players lined up and, on the whistle, tried to get to the trash can. The offensive players tried to prevent them from getting there.

There were some intense matchups, and I had several takeaways after watching. I will get into them all. But we will start with the fullbacks because that is shaping up into one of the more heated position battles of camp between undrafted rookies Gabe Nabers and Bobby Holly.

Both of these guys can play. They are big and physical, which is primarily what coaches are looking for from that position. Nabers is a bit more versatile — he is a polished route-runner and can line up at tight end — while Holly is a more prototypical fullback.

Nabers was the first fullback to go, matching up with rookie safety Alohi Gilman. This was the second rep of the period and really set the tone. Nabers stood Gilman up and then de-cleated him and drove him into the turf. Gilman has already proven to be a strong player, so this was an impressive rep.

Holly went right after Nabers in his matchup with linebacker Denzel Perryman, who is one of the most violent hitters on the Chargers’ roster. It was as if Perryman ran into a brick wall. Holly barely moved an inch. He is a tough man to move off his spot. That he did this to Perryman is very impressive.

Nabers matched up with Gilman again later in the period and won again. This rep wasn’t as flashy, but he was able to stop Gilman in his tracks.

Holly went next, against Desmond King, who is an established blitzer. Holly had no problems with King’s speed and prevented him from getting anywhere near the trash can.

Holly got a third rep toward the end of the period against linebacker Emeke Egbule, who the Chargers have been cross-training as a weakside defensive end, or LEO. Egbule’s pass-rushing skills won out in this one-on-one, as he was able to bend and beat Holly to the outside.

Nabers went up against Gilman for a third time in his final rep. Gilman won off the line, but Nabers recovered nicely. Based on the defensive players’ cheers, they believed Gilman won this rep. It was close, though.

I give a slight edge to Holly in the showdown of fullbacks, as he was facing better players. But this battle is still neck and neck. Nabers’ versatility will go a long way in helping him win the spot on the 53-man.

Some other takeaways from this period:

• Stephen Anderson and Donald Parham are battling for the third tight-end spot on the roster. Both are better pass catchers than blockers, and that showed in this drill. Anderson got beat badly twice, first by safety Nasir Adderley, who sped past untouched, and then by Kyzir White, who was one of the standouts of this period. Parham also got beat by Adderley, but he improved noticeably as the drill went on. He was more competitive in his next rep against linebacker Romeo Finley, and he closed out the period with his best rep of the drill, locking down Egbule. Anthony Lynn pulled Parham aside after the horn sounded to talk. The head coach taking a personal interest in a player is always telling. Whichever player proves to be the better blocker will win this battle, I imagine, because both guys are about equal in the passing game.
• Adderley is playing with a physicality and meanness that I didn’t see from him last year as he dealt with the hamstring injury that ultimately ended his season. I already mentioned the two reps he won, beating his blockers untouched. But he also went toe-to-toe with Justin Jackson in probably the most physical meeting of the drill. The collision could be heard from anywhere on the practice field, and both players fell to the ground while wrestling. Adderley looks like a more determined player, ready to match the energy necessary to be successful on an NFL field. He is also clearly a natural blitzer. I could see the Chargers unleashing him on opposing quarterbacks in sub packages. With Chris Harris sitting out, Adderley rotated in with King as the first-team slot corner. He also played free safety with the second-team defense.
• This is obvious, but Austin Ekeler is just remarkably strong for his size. White has a good five inches and 20 pounds on Ekeler, but in their matchup, Ekeler won out, standing up the bigger player.

Young running backs shine
There isn’t much space in the Chargers’ running back room. Ekeler, Jackson and rookie Joshua Kelley will be on the 53-man roster, and with Lynn likely to keep a fullback, it’s hard to see a fourth running back making the team. But the Chargers will almost certainly try to stash a running back on the practice squad, and the players in contention for that spot are making this a difficult decision.

First, let’s talk about Kelley. He had a great practice Thursday. He is a physical runner and looks, at times, to seek contact when he has the ball. That mentality will make him a great complement to Ekeler and Jackson. But that doesn’t mean Kelley lacks speed. He showcased that part of his game Thursday.

Kelley got some reps with the first team during the second set of 11-on-11s. On one run, he beat all the defenders to the outside on a play that looked to be designed up the middle and broke off a long run down the right sideline. Then in a later period, in the red zone, he had an almost identical run, finding a crease on the right edge again and sprinting for a touchdown.

Kelley’s production will depend heavily on how much playing time he gets. But if Kelley is able to get on the field, I expect big things from the fourth-round pick out of UCLA.

As far as the lower-on-the-depth-chart backs, Derrick Gore and Darius Bradwell both excelled Thursday. Gore was one of my stars of practice. He broke off two long runs during the second period of 11-on-11s, including one out of shotgun where he danced through traffic in the middle with some smooth cuts. Gore also caught a touchdown pass from rookie quarterback Justin Herbert in red-zone 11-on-11. Bradwell, meanwhile, had a touchdown run during the red-zone period.


News and notes

• Defensive end Melvin Ingram was in pads and practiced for the first time this training camp. As I reported earlier this week, Ingram was sitting out of practice because he is dissatisfied with his contract situation. He sacked Tyrod Taylor in the opening 11-on-11 period, beating left guard Dan Feeney after lining up in his patented standing position from the interior.
• Herbert had his best throw of camp so far, hitting Jeff Cotton deep near the right sideline. Adderley was close to picking off the pass, but Herbert’s ball placement was impeccable. Cotton made a nice play on the ball and got both feet down in bounds.
• I touched on the quarterbacks making off-script plays in Wednesday’s report, and that continued early in Thursday’s practice during 11-on-11s. Taylor evaded multiple rushers before rolling to his right. He fired on the run and connected with Keenan Allen on a long gain near the right sideline. This was a perfectly executed scramble drill. We didn’t see many of these when Philip Rivers was playing quarterback.
• Casey Hayward picked off Taylor in the red zone.
• Defensive tackle Cortez Broughton continues to flash. He had another sack Thursday and got some first-team reps at nose tackle, with Damion Square sitting out practice.
• Kenneth Murray didn’t practice for the third straight day.
• Punter Ty Long was dropping bombs during the special-teams period. One of his punts traveled 70 yards in the air. I think he could make the Pro Bowl this season.

[FoutsFan]

That is nothing if he does not have the 69' Comaro to match.

[21&500]

Great updates fellas thank you.
absolutely can't wait for week 1
I feel like a football degenerate

[Formula 21]

Some love for #27, Kelley in there.

That's better than Hard Knocks.

And there's that KJ again.