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[dmac_bolt]

Ben Herbert’s impact


One of the key hires Harbaugh made when constructing his staff was bringing Ben Herbert from Michigan. Herbert is the Chargers’ executive director of player performance. When Herbert was introduced to the media in April, he laid out his vision. “My first goal,” he said then, “is to make you harder to break.”

GO DEEPER

Ben Herbert lays out player-performance vision as Chargers open Phase 1

What kind of impact will Herbert have on injury prevention? His approach will be put to the test during training camp, a time when injuries — and particularly soft-tissue injuries — can run rampant.

Interestingly, the Chargers are going with a staggered schedule for training camp. The idea is to create as much recovery time as possible. For example, the first practice of training camp is scheduled for 9 a.m. July 24. That practice is scheduled to end at 11 a.m. The next day, the practice is scheduled to begin at noon, 25 hours after the previous day’s practice is scheduled to end.

That July 25 practice is scheduled to end at 1:45 p.m. The next day’s practice is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. The day after that, 5 p.m. The schedule then resets after every off day. The Chargers are scheduled for an off day July 28. July 29, practice is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. So forth and so on.

This is just one example. I am interested to see whether Herbert’s approach really decreases injuries in the NFL, especially given what are expected to be high-intensity practices under Harbaugh.

it baffles me that owners agreed in the CBA to limit training to 2 hrs per day. thats weak, but it separates out the best coaches from the lame coaches as there is no extra time for lame coaches to catch up.

My daughter trains at dance for 3 to 5 hrs a day, ... and what was that "day off" stuff the NYT was reporting about? day off? (ok - she doesnt dance 7 days a week)

[FoutsFan]

... or even Marion Butts.

A clone of this guy would be fantastic.

[chargeroo]

it baffles me that owners agreed in the CBA to limit training to 2 hrs per day. thats weak, but it separates out the best coaches from the lame coaches as there is no extra time for lame coaches to catch up.

My daughter trains at dance for 3 to 5 hrs a day, ... and what was that "day off" stuff the NYT was reporting about? day off? (ok - she doesnt dance 7 days a week)

Back in the fifties we were told to clift weights every other day. They thought the days rest of the muscles was a benefit. This policy seems to use the same thought.

[sonorajim]

This seems so simple (and obvious) . . . . . . . . what are we missing?

More work involved for the non-players and their families?

[Katdnzr]

This seems so simple (and obvious) . . . . . . . . what are we missing?

My only concern is that football practices are extremely tough on you physically and mentally. It helps to get through all this when you have a steady routine. Meaning one less thing to have to concern yourself with, not having to scan the schedule each day.

[sonorajim]

it baffles me that owners agreed in the CBA to limit training to 2 hrs per day. thats weak, but it separates out the best coaches from the lame coaches as there is no extra time for lame coaches to catch up.

My daughter trains at dance for 3 to 5 hrs a day, ... and what was that "day off" stuff the NYT was reporting about? day off? (ok - she doesnt dance 7 days a week)

Two hours of 11 on 11's means the organization has to be tight. they can't be wasting time walking around or getting lined up. make it like game time, no commercial breaks. A game only takes 60 minutes.

[Topcat]

My spiel is that if Telesco had gotten Ekeler some legit RB help the offense would have been more balanced, the Chargers might've made the playoffs in 2020-21. I don't buy the argument that the OL was not good enough, clearly it was, Ekeler was successful running behind it. But Ekeler is not built to carry an RB load by himself. They had moved on from Melvin Gordon and they needed to replace him. I'm still shaking my head over the decision to surrender 2nd and 3rd round picks to move up for Murray in 2020, when RB was such a HUGE need and there was good RB talent in the 2nd round. Jonathan Taylor or AJ Dillon. Instead Telesco, having surrendered 2nd and 3rd round picks for an LB, had to wait until the 4th round to address RB, and we got Joshua Kelley.

Yep...key mistake by Traitor Tom...and remember, ALL those 4th round and other round picks he threw away in previous years...ugh...

[Lefty2SLO]

My only concern is that football practices are extremely tough on you physically and mentally. It helps to get through all this when you have a steady routine. Meaning one less thing to have to concern yourself with, not having to scan the schedule each day.

You're kidding, right? Most of these players are multi-millionaires - they can hire assistants to handle their scheduling issues for them. They should be able to manage . . . . . . .

[Highboltage]

Well Ekeler averaged 4.5 ypc from 2020-22, ages 25-27, behind those lines. LT average 4.5 ypc from 2004-06, also ages 25-27, so you might want to rethink that.

LT faced 8 men in the box most of the time, teams weren't selling out to stop Ekeler.

[Boltjolt]

My thoughts in retrospect: Norv may have been a better coach than Lynn, McVisor and the BS Master … thats not the bar we aim for. None of the above is the correct answer and nitpicking about who is closest to last place will not garner extra credits. Norv’s initial teams were stacked with talent in their prime. Alas prime means not much longer, and AJ turned Ziggy and sucked himself up into his mind and the roster replenishing stopped. as the roster faded Norv failed.

TT built average rosters. Always good enough to generally compete and finish around the 0.500 mark. Never worst, never elite. he was mostly an inside the box common denominator guy, hence he would never beat the house (league) but never lose too much. Some years it drifted up to 10, some years it drifted down to 5, always returning to his mean average of 7 to 8 wins. He likely would have returned to 8 wins this year if still here. None of the post-Norv coaches really had a chance, and none of them really had the coaching talent even if they had better rosters.

None of them is the correct answer.

Velo can think whatever he wants about Norv,...but fuck Norv Turner. Horrible hire. I don't care what his record is with us, he was handed a Lamborghini.

Marty is a team builder and teacher and Norv inherited that team. Norv never built a good team in his HC career. The Redskins were always meh and the Raiders were always pure shit under him and I believe they hired him shortly after going to a SB.

Jim Harbaugh is a team builder and teacher and we will see the difference from the last 3 suck head coaches.

[Formula 21]

With all the money that has been invested in athletic performance research, there has to be a solid knowledge base behind Herbert's ideas.

And now that the idea is out there, I suspect other teams will copycat it.

[Velo]

Velo can think whatever he wants about Norv,...but fuck Norv Turner. Horrible hire. I don't care what his record is with us, he was handed a Lamborghini.

Jim Harbaugh is a team builder and teacher and we will see the difference from the last 3 suck head coaches.

All I said was that Norv was not as bad as the three coaches who followed him, and that the way things turned out, in hindsight, the Chargers would've been better off keeping Norv. If you think McCoy, Lynn or Staley was a better coach than Norv, I'd love to hear why you think so.