2021 Official Chargers Season Discusssion

[equivocation]

I didn't like moving the franchise but scorning SD sports "journalism" was a nice side bonus.

[powderblueboy]

And of course T.J. Simers

Jim McMahon once spat in his face in the Charger locker room.
It might have begun then.

And a lot of his venom was directed at the Spanos goofs - which i can really give a fig about.

[Ghost of Quacksaw]

I don't always agree with Trotter's take on things, but in this piece he touches on something that surprised and concerned me at the same time. I was a little taken aback when Hamilton and Steichen both departed. I had hoped that Staley would retain at least one, preferably both. You have the a QB coming off the most successful rookie season in history. Much of Herbert's success throwing to players elevated from the practice squad or in a minor league. He had a middling at best running game and a wreck of an OL. The OC and QB had to have been a big factor in Herbert's success. You'd think these are two guys you want to retain in a coaching changeover. But both are gone. It does make me shake my head a little. Lombardi's one stint as an OC was not very successful. He lingered for years on the staff in the Big Easy where he was QB coach with Drew Brees as his QB. Nobody hired him as a coordinator again until now. I trust Staley, at least I want to. But this is the one area where I question the judgment.

I agree with your concern, and likewise hoped and expected that Herbert would have at least *SOME* continuity in his relationships with his coaches. IMO, Pep Hamilton was the biggest unsung hero of Herb's development as a rookie.

But we're pretty much in the position of having to trust Staley's judgment, until he demonstrates he's not deserving of that confidence. His resume seems refreshingly bereft of unsuccessful stints, no matter where he's served. Therefore, I suspect it's highly unlikely Staley has... uhm... "impregnated the dog" in this instance.

If I'm not mistaken, Herb has learned an entirely new offensive system in each of the last FOUR seasons. It's kind of what he does.

I'm as curious as ANYbody as to how this all shakes out.

[Ghost of Quacksaw]

With THREE placekickers on the roster headed into camp, I think the message to those guys is pretty clear: "You have no margin for error. Step up, or step OUT."

[BoltUp InLA]

I don't always agree with Trotter's take on things, but in this piece he touches on something that surprised and concerned me at the same time. I was a little taken aback when Hamilton and Steichen both departed. I had hoped that Staley would retain at least one, preferably both. You have the a QB coming off the most successful rookie season in history. Much of Herbert's success throwing to players elevated from the practice squad or in a minor league. He had a middling at best running game and a wreck of an OL. The OC and QB had to have been a big factor in Herbert's success. You'd think these are two guys you want to retain in a coaching changeover. But both are gone. It does make me shake my head a little. Lombardi's one stint as an OC was not very successful. He lingered for years on the staff in the Big Easy where he was QB coach with Drew Brees as his QB. Nobody hired him as a coordinator again until now. I trust Staley, at least I want to. But this is the one area where I question the judgment.

I had come across that also and it brought back concerns I had early on as to why I wanted to keep at least some continuity there for Herbert’s development. It certainly makes me nervous with so much turnover.. As flawed as Steichen was as a coordinator, he and Herbert worked well together for the most part. I would have liked to have seen what Steichen could have done with a better OL. And I was certain that Pep would have been retained, but unfortunately he was not.

At the same time, Staley has sold me on his thought process. I am hopeful that Herbert’s development will not be slowed because of these many changes to the staff. I am super excited to see this new offense and rebuilt OL! In Staley I trust!

[Fleet]

I agree with your concern, and likewise hoped and expected that Herbert would have at least *SOME* continuity in his relationships with his coaches. IMO, Pep Hamilton was the biggest unsung hero of Herb's development as a rookie.

But we're pretty much in the position of having to trust Staley's judgment, until he demonstrates he's not deserving of that confidence. His resume seems refreshingly bereft of unsuccessful stints, no matter where he's served. Therefore, I suspect it's highly unlikely Staley has... uhm... "impregnated the dog" in this instance.

If I'm not mistaken, Herb has learned an entirely new offensive system in each of the last FOUR seasons. It's kind of what he does.

I'm as curious as ANYbody as to how this all shakes out.

Welcome to the Blues. Great to have you.

[wu-dai clan]

I had come across that also and it brought back concerns I had early on as to why I wanted to keep at least some continuity there for Herbert’s development. It certainly makes me nervous with so much turnover.. As flawed as Steichen was as a coordinator, he and Herbert worked well together for the most part. I would have liked to have seen what Steichen could have done with a better OL. And I was certain that Pep would have been retained, but unfortunately he was not.

At the same time, Staley has sold me on his thought process. I am hopeful that Herbert’s development will not be slowed because of these many changes to the staff. I am super excited to see this new offense and rebuilt OL! In Staley I trust!

Intelligent design.
Lombardi's evolved offense will be ideal for Herbert.
Vision.
Processing.
Decision making.
Distribution.
Matriculation.

:shifty:

[Velo]

I had come across that also and it brought back concerns I had early on as to why I wanted to keep at least some continuity there for Herbert’s development. It certainly makes me nervous with so much turnover.. As flawed as Steichen was as a coordinator, he and Herbert worked well together for the most part. I would have liked to have seen what Steichen could have done with a better OL. And I was certain that Pep would have been retained, but unfortunately he was not.

At the same time, Staley has sold me on his thought process. I am hopeful that Herbert’s development will not be slowed because of these many changes to the staff. I am super excited to see this new offense and rebuilt OL! In Staley I trust!

I'm in total agreement on all points. I'm sold on Staley so far, but I will be convinced when/if the Chargers start winning/dominating on the field. As for Herbert's ability to adjust to a new system, I may be underestimating him. I believe he has rare intelligence and commitment to study and learn. I think that is why he was so successful last year, shocking even his coaches with his grasp of the offense as a rookie with a minimal off-season, no preseason games and relegated to the backup role at practice. If any young QB can adapt to a new system in his 2nd year, it is Herbert.

[Ghost of Quacksaw]

At the same time, Staley has sold me on his thought process. I am hopeful that Herbert’s development will not be slowed because of these many changes to the staff. I am super excited to see this new offense and rebuilt OL! In Staley I trust!

Last season, Herbert displayed a remarkable ability to avoid repeating a mistake. And he was among the MOST PRESSURED quarterbacks in the league.

With the infusion of what appears to be actual NFL talent along the O-line, Herbert will

(1) have more time to find an open target,

(2) be significantly better protected from getting mauled, and

(3) be able to run a more balanced attack, since the O-line improvements should benefit the running game also, and in a big way.

That leads to moving the chains, converting more 3rd downs, and increasing the club's portion of the clock in the time of possession battle.

This also means that the defense spends more minutes on the sidelines, conserving strength for late in the game when it's time to CLOSE OUT THE WIN.

Bottom line, I don't believe it's unrealistic to expect that the Chargers' offense is going to step things up several notches in 2021.

I've heard some podcasters wring their hands about how opponents will now have had an entire offseason to examine Herbert's tape and figure out how to better limit him, but...

I call BS. They don't have tape of Herb operating behind an actual, legitimate NFL O-line. Barring a string of injuries of a particularly tragic depth, the Chargers' offense is positioned to upshift to an entirely higher gear this season.

[Boltjolt]

It would not surprise me if both Reed and KJ Hill ended up on the practice squad. Neither impressed me last year. And apparently they didn’t impress TT either since he brought in more competition for them. And we’re not going with 7 receivers on the final 53.

You can't judge a players future by their rookie season as late round picks. I expect them to be better.

They didn't impress much last year but they are just getting started so hopefully they take a step up.
The guys that haven't taken a step up like Facyson and Pipkins worry me more.
Hopefully Adderley takes that step since last year was basically his rookie season.
Reed has more value to us than Hill does since be can do more but we'll see.

[dmac_bolt]

The latest theme here is fucking nuts. The team went 5-11 and 7-9 the last 2 years and Steichen was here both years, last as OC, and some of you want continuity of that? Well, fuck me. Steichen was over-promoted under-prepared and in over his head from day 1 to day last. His play calling in crucial game situations and red zone was below mediocre and every week a gaggle of you here would be pointing out exactly how frequently and diligently he was sucking golf balls out of his own ass with a hose as he came down the stretch.

Herbie’s great rookie season proves Hamilton didn’t fuck him up, and I’d be far less worried about retaining a QB coach. But did he actually MAKE Herbie, or did Herbie make Herbie, and has Hamilton ever coached the NO Lombardi design? If both are no and no, fuck him too. Hamilton’s role was to fill the gaping gasping wheezing deficiency in Steichen, Staley doesn’t have that same deficiency on his staff and i have complete confidence in his ability to pick his own coaches.

[Velo]

https://www.turfshowtimes.com/2021/5/23/22449567/comparisons-brandon-staley-rams-chargers

This is all about Staley and his defensive innovations. I found it very informative. As noted in this video, Staley did have a pair of great players up front (Donald) and in the secondary (Ramsey) to make his scheme work. Will he be able to repeat that success with the Chargers' personnel?