Superbowl or #1 pick in the draft

[Boltjolt]

We hope Gordon is better than Mathews but I can't say that today. Again, Mathews issue was injuries,not talent.

[Faded blues]

It's pretty easy to sum this season up

Run the ball
Protect rivers
And stop teams on third downs

If we do all three, we will be in the play-offs and then it will just come down to health.

[Mister Hoarse]

Woodhead is a major plus. 2 years ago, we got into the playoffs by controlling the ball and keeping our D off the field. WE didn't score enough TD, but we got a lot of points in the red zone overall. Woodhead gives us that chance again, and opens up a lot of stuff downfield for the WR and TE.

Melvin is going to get the chance to play a lot, but he has a lot to learn, so will probably split time with Oliver, who has been working very hard too (or at least he was in Buffalo this spring). I disagree with the Michael Turner comparison though. Gordon and Oliver are very similar styles of play. Both are quick and get through tight spots in the D with quick slashing cuts and run north-south. MT got his yards by just running through tackles and being a completely different type of back then LT was. Defenses got into the flow of the game, then MT changed it up on them.


Having a better OL is going to make everyone else on O more effective. Rivers had a hard time getting the ball to WR and TE, and the RB had no room to get going.

Green had a hard time getting into the flow last year because the stuff he does well is all set up off of run action, and 2 TE sets. Now we can get back to that, because the only way we could get our RB room to run last year was to try and spread people out. Now we can actually block them.


The superstar thing is so overrated. What superstar WR did NE or Seattle has last year? Allen was the focus of the passing game, and teams took him away because they knew what we wanted to do. Any D can do that. Johnson is the kind of player who can make teams pay. It will also give us a chance to split time with Floyd and/or Inman, and that should make both of them better too. But Rivers is at his best spreading the ball around, getting the D to sit back on their heels, then making them pay.



Ingram needs to stay on the field. When he plays for extended periods, he plays at a much higher level. Even when he comes back, while he sparks the D, he is not playing at the same level for a while. He just needs to find a way to get and stay on the field. Attaochu is still getting NFL strong, so he needs to keep working at it. He will get all the playing time he can stand this year, but he is the most explosive guy we have rushing the passer. I just don't see how Williams is not a key player this year. I don't think Attaochu is far enough along strength or technique wise to stand in vs the run and then turn around and rush the QB hard every down. I think he will get there, but Williams will probably be the early down LDE/OLB. (http://espn.go.com/blog/san-diego-ch...espnapi_public)


Maybe but not many rookies have a big impact as pass rushers. Then add in that Liuget is getting $50 million for a reason, and Reyes is a better pass rusher then run defender. Mathews is an OK pass rusher, and if Williams and Attaochu can show anything, then the Chargers like to slide Ingram inside, which means one less true DL playing. I just don't see it happening. Besides, he is a pretty good run defender, even if he lacks bulk. He just needs to work at finishing plays.





The thing I like about what I have heard is Nolan really breaking everything down and being systematic for all the younger players. Not sure it was Butler getting lazy, because Pagano was still singing his praises through camp. Some guys can try too hard and overthink everything. Laziness is not the only reason players slip, and Butler was getting himself out of position by biting on every fake and flinch. He needs to get back to focusing on his keys and not trying to be too aggressive (same applies to Fluker too to a degree).


I am holding my breath too, but I don't think his conditioning had anything to do with it last year. He was able to trail his mistakes around the field, which is tough to do if you are out of shape.


I don't think he is slow in any way shape of form. He needs more reps. 2nd year doesn't apply as much has the fact that he has missed more then half the time. It takes reps in practice and on the field and he has missed a lot of practice time, a lot of time in TC, and those days missed count double (2 practices per day). We play both our ILB in nickle downs and nickle downs include a awful lot of 1st downs.



Liuget and Reyes need to focus on their keys and techniques. When they try to freelance and just make plays, they get sloppy and fly around. Lissemore is very sound, but lacks the ability to be special. If Carrethers can take over at NT, would like to see Lissemore get more playing time at DE, or DT in the pass rush line. Same with Mathews, who was misplaced in the Colts and Texans NT spot, but has found a home as a DE/DT for us. The only thing I see in Palepoi is his effort, but his physical abilities and technique suck. Would love to see Philon displace him, and maybe rotate with Liuget a bit on running downs in an effort to get him a bit more focused and productive.

Mager and Wilson will probably fit it out at nickle, which is the 11th starter on D. We need more run support out of the nickle DB spot, then Robinson can supply. Maybe Davis as well, but he strikes me as too much of a bump and run guy, not enough situational awareness to play nickle DB. Robinson and Williams add depth outside, and the ability to play in the slot on passing downs, just can't play the true nickle DB spot.


The S production is really held back by our lack of a sustained pass rush. You just don't see teams putting the ball up where our S can go get it. They just spend the whole game keeping everything in front, which is important, but it minimizes their impact.


Need to find another gunner to replace Tutu. Much bigger loss then some think.






Got to go, they are knocking on the door and asking me to take my meds ...

2 years ago the key to the team was ball control, control the TOP, keep the other team off the field and force them to score every time they had the ball. Last year, woodhead went down, the OL sucked and the O never was able to repeat the formula. Now the OL is rebuilt, Woodhead is back to move the chains and we have a couple of RB who hit the hole hard and fast.[/QUOTE]

In one post, Steve has written a better team preview than anything else you or I will read this year.