2022 Official Chargers Season Discussion

[Lefty2SLO]

Glad to hear Pip appears to be improving...but...isn't this kind of a knock on both Lynn's and Staley's O-line coaches? Does it take some off-season coaching consultant to finally get the dude up to speed? What's been going on with our coaching staffs the past 3+ years?

Well - dude has to WANT to 'get up to speed'. I guarantee that these types of offseason programs are available for all positions - the player just has work (and pay) for it. I'd be willing to bet that they're not cheap.

[equivocation]

Pipkins was always a project and then had some shit luck in his development.

Last pre season he looked really bad.

His snaps in the season his technique wasn't there yet but he played with more confidence and control. It looked like the game was slowing down for him.

He also had a child last offseason right before preseason. That could affect his preseason performance and current motivation.

[equivocation]

Also remember Pipkins' rookie year was better than Spencer Brown's rookie year. He regressed during the covid year and last training camp which is why people were so down on him. He showed progress with new coaching last yeat after TC when they put him at the end of the bench to rebuild him.

[Xenos]

I didn't see the motivation with Pipkins the last couple of years. Yeah - I agree that our coaching hasn't been ideal, and he was probably forced into action earlier than he should have been his first year, so I'll give him that, but why wasn't he working out with Mayweather (or someone like him) in any of his other offseasons? I think the prospect / possibility of life outside of football was clearly pointed out to him in his exit interviews, and he (finally?) took it to heart. Maybe he's matured some as well.

At any rate I'm thinking good thoughts on his behalf - we need him to come through.

Why didn’t he work out with Mayweather or a professional before? Most rookies don’t seek out professional help, not because they don’t care, but probably because they don’t know any better. That was where he was in 2019. Then obviously the shortened offseason in 2020 happened. You could say he should have done that in 2021 but he may have developed bad tendencies by that point and didn’t have the proper structure in place. Including maturity issues like you mentioned. But he probably saw no one else on the OL do it before outside of Slater. I think having a teammate like Slater probably helped and encouraged him to take the plunge versus what the other vets did before. It also probably helped that he saw firsthand how Mayweather helped Slater succeed.

[Topcat]

Why didn’t he work out with Mayweather or a professional before? Most rookies don’t seek out professional help, not because they don’t care, but probably because they don’t know any better. That was where he was in 2019. Then obviously the shortened offseason in 2020 happened. You could say he should have done that in 2021 but he may have developed bad tendencies by that point and didn’t have the proper structure in place. Including maturity issues like you mentioned. But he probably saw no one else on the OL do it before outside of Slater. I think having a teammate like Slater probably helped and encouraged him to take the plunge versus what the other vets did before. It also probably helped that he saw firsthand how Mayweather helped Slater succeed.

Well, I suppose this probably explains it...okay, this is REALLY Pip's last chance to prove himself...if not, we draft RT in round 1 or 2 fer sure...

[Formula 21]

Well - dude has to WANT to 'get up to speed'. I guarantee that these types of offseason programs are available for all positions - the player just has work (and pay) for it. I'd be willing to bet that they're not cheap.

Minimum contracts are $700K or so. You want to be a pro, you shell out $50K for coaching. And it’s only half of that after taxes.

[wu-dai clan]

Offensive line non-negotiables:

" Smart. Tough. Physical. "
Steve Hutchinson

" Be accountable to your teammates. "
Willie Roaf

" Passion separates great from average. "
Willie Anderson

Teachings from the OL Masterminds Summit.

And now Pipkins, who has always had plenty of talent, will apply these mental principles to the playing field.

[Lefty2SLO]

Minimum contracts are $700K or so. You want to be a pro, you shell out $50K for coaching. And it’s only half of that after taxes.

Yep. I try to remember that the younger guys are still kids right out of college, and may not have the proper attitude about the required work ethic necessary to be successful. My own kids sure didn't - took the military to 'adjust' their attitudes.

[Ghost of Quacksaw]

Minimum contracts are $700K or so. You want to be a pro, you shell out $50K for coaching. And it’s only half of that after taxes.

I can forgive Pip for coming into the league naive enough to think that his NFL team would be willing to, and capable of, providing him with all the coaching he'd need to be the player they want.

It's great to see him getting the extra help. Can't really say, though, that I'm a fan of drafting a guy who's going to produce very little for the team while under his rookie contract.

[dmac_bolt]

I didn't see the motivation with Pipkins the last couple of years. Yeah - I agree that our coaching hasn't been ideal, and he was probably forced into action earlier than he should have been his first year, so I'll give him that, but why wasn't he working out with Mayweather (or someone like him) in any of his other offseasons? I think the prospect / possibility of life outside of football was clearly pointed out to him in his exit interviews, and he (finally?) took it to heart. Maybe he's matured some as well.

At any rate I'm thinking good thoughts on his behalf - we need him to come through.

i think some of that is fair. I think he didnt know what he didnt know, he was used to beating the snot out of competition at D3 based on superior physique alone. He probably never had to really work before NFL and didn’t even know how. The difference in talent from D3 to NFL was so much - nobody gave him the route to success. I think this last off season it clicked that he either take control himself and get his shit together, or he won’t be an NFL play for much longer.

I hope he’s got that fire now to not be denied. I don’t know why I’m feeling positive about him, I guess its just that time of year for me.

[dmac_bolt]

Yep. I try to remember that the younger guys are still kids right out of college, and may not have the proper attitude about the required work ethic necessary to be successful. My own kids sure didn't - took the military to 'adjust' their attitudes.

exactly - first off, we really have to be a bit more modest and admit what dumbfucks we were at age 21. Then give an extra fudge of credit as most NFL players weren’t even there as students #1 like we were, they were football players intelligent enough to not flunk out of college. Then give a second fudge factor and imagine our dumbfuck selfs had hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars suddenly dropped on us.

All signs are he finally figured this out this off-season that he had to take responsibility and invest in himself since the team hadn’t done it and he’s about to run out his welcome not just to the Chargers, but the NFL.

I did similar investment though hardly as dramatic - I built a home office at my house so I can work remotely - pandemically inspired investment. I invested $60k and now get to roll from my family room or kitchen to my office seamlessly. No commute, extra half hour sleep, … etc … its win win win.

ok, ok. technically $40k of the $60k is in the theater room directly above this new office - but its all intertwined . So not only did I invest in my professional future, i leveraged it into a kick ass 120” theater screen for the upcoming Charger Season. Win win win win!

[Topcat]

ok, ok. technically $40k of the $60k is in the theater room directly above this new office - but its all intertwined

LOL...oh my, I can just imagine your wife: "What? $40k for a home theater?" Dmac: "But honey, I'll be using it a LOT for conference calls! AND, I will occasionally be leading my OWN conferences for professional development!"