2014 Training Camp Observations Thread

[thelightningwill]

Hot.

[Beerman]

It's evident to Pagano why Telesco graded Attaochu's first step as the quickest of any linebacker in the 2014 draft class. "We want him to go in one direction, and that's at the quarterback," Pagano said. "That's why we drafted him."

:anchorjump:

[Coachmarkos]

As far as strategy goes.

I thought the team moved the ball most effectively last season when they went with 3 WR's, Gates, and Mathews/Woodhead in the Shotgun next to Rivers.

They were able to run the ball pretty well out of that. Maybe it helped because the defenders were a bit more spread out ( I realize this is the philosphy behind it)

Just my observation, that when things were really "clicking" more often than not they were in this sort of personnel, running the no huddle, no hurry. Teams just couldn't adjust..

And Rivers, did a great job of seeing what the defense was doing, and making the correct play call.

The best thing about it, is how much better the offense got as the season went on. In particular the running game. When you have the Defense spread, and they have to cover the run, it opens up alot of offensive possibilities.

[Stinky Wizzleteats+]

Dunlap, Harris move past injuries

By Michael Gehlken 08:00a.m. Jun 12, 2014

King Dunlap made it look easy.

Injury sidelined the Chargers left tackle at three different points last season. Each time, he returned and played well. The third, he helped key a four-game win streak that pushed San Diego into the postseason.

Dunlap knows how to put an injury behind him.

It appears his backup does, too.

Swing tackle Michael Harris hasn't practiced for the Chargers since last fall. An ankle injury was surgically reconstructed, as three screws and a wire were placed during an October procedure in North Carolina. This week, the two men sound alike. Both dealt with medical issues last season. Neither is looking back.

"This year is a new year," Dunlap said. "Got to be better."

"That's in the past," Harris said. "Chargers 2014 season."

It is an important season.

Dunlap is in the second half of a two-year, $3.9 million contract. The 6-foot-9 lineman quickly established himself, locking down the left tackle job over 13 games, including two in the postseason. He did suffer two concussions and a neck strain over the course of the year.

His first concussion, the second diagnosed of his career, kept him out two weeks. He returned and drew a matchup with Robert Mathis, the Colts outside linebacker with 9.5 sacks his first five games. Dunlap was part of the unit to stifle Mathis to zero sacks and two tackles.

Dunlap made six starts upon returning in December from the neck injury. In that span, he yielded no sacks.

"I came back and we went on that run," Dunlap, 27, said. "At the time, (the injury) was kind of on the back of my mind, but once I started playing, the game starting coming. If you're worried about getting hurt again or re-injuring something, that's usually when you get hurt again. Just go out there and let it loose."

"Whatever the injury was," offensive line coach Joe D'Alessandris said, "he rebounded mentally and physically. ... He's worked hard for me. He is a talented young man that is growing. I don't think he's reached his full potential yet. "

The same applies for Harris.

He proved last season during limited time that he had improved measurably from his rookie year. Harris originally signed with San Diego in 2012 as an undrafted free agent from UCLA. Tackle Jared Gaither's repeated absences forced him into the lineup more than planned. Building on the experience, Harris beat out veteran Max Starks during the 2013 training camp.

Come the season, he was called to start for three straight weeks.

The first, at right tackle, came when the Chargers traveled to Tennessee in Week 3. He flipped sides mid-game after Dunlap exited to a concussion and started the next two games there on quarterback Philip Rivers' blind side.

Against the Cowboys, Harris held his own versus edge rusher DeMarcus Ware, a performance D'Alessandris highlighted. He suffered the season-ending ankle injury the following week versus Oakland.

The important thing now for Harris now is to be ready for a similar role.

The 25-year-old has spent the past several months resting and rehabbing. Listed on the Chargers roster at 6-foot-5 and 318 pounds, he said that he played last season about 325 or 330. Currently, he hovers around the 340-pound mark.

San Diego has a mandatory minicamp June 17 to 19. Players don't report to Chargers Park again until July 23 for training camp.

That leaves about a month for Harris to get ready.

"That's really going to be my super grind mode," Harris said. "I'm going to be here every day, getting back at it. I know by the time training camp comes, I'll be as 100 percent as I can be. ... Last year was unfortunate. I kept my head up. I'm just happy to be a Charger and to compete.

"When one (player) goes out, the next person has to step up and not miss a beat. That's what I've tried to do. I know King and D.J. (Fluker) have been working very hard this offseason. We all need to improve. Like Coach (D'Alessandris) says, we need some tough-ass tackles to win championships. That's what it's going to take."

[Steve]

As far as strategy goes.

I thought the team moved the ball most effectively last season when they went with 3 WR's, Gates, and Mathews/Woodhead in the Shotgun next to Rivers.

They were able to run the ball pretty well out of that. Maybe it helped because the defenders were a bit more spread out ( I realize this is the philosphy behind it)

Just my observation, that when things were really "clicking" more often than not they were in this sort of personnel, running the no huddle, no hurry. Teams just couldn't adjust..

And Rivers, did a great job of seeing what the defense was doing, and making the correct play call.

The best thing about it, is how much better the offense got as the season went on. In particular the running game. When you have the Defense spread, and they have to cover the run, it opens up alot of offensive possibilities.

It does help to spread the D going 3 wide, nad whether you run or pass there is more space to do things. Add in it that the LB who is being replaced by at least 1 DB (maybe 2 DB in some cases), is not going to be as good an open field tackler, or as good at shedding blocks, giving the RB a little more leg up.

The only reason I don't see us doing a ton of 3 WR stuff this year is we have Gates and Green. Gates may not be as good as he was, but he still draws a lot of double coverages and a lot of DB attention, which is not something teams do to that many TE. Green has shown he can run away from defenders, and get open against some DB, now he needs to really step his route running up and be able to get open more. Then we can go spread formations, only use the 2 TE personnel and force defenses to react.

If they go with the extra LB to matchup better against the run, Green and Gates can get open pretty easily vs LB. And with Floyd and Reese, teams aren't going to want to bring both S down to cover short. Plus Allen is a guy you want some help over the top against. But if they keep DB on the field for the passing game matchup, can Gates and Green block them well enough to get Mathews going? I think they can. Gates is never going to be a great blocker, but he can handle smaller DB and some S, you just don't want him blocking OLB and DE. Green has made a lot of progress as a blocker and I think he can handle some of the LB too, or at least will doa better job as he continues to improve.

I think we get a lot of the 3 WR advantages by going with 2 TE, and that is not true of most teams. Not many teams have a 1-2 combo of Gates and Green. I do think we will still see some 3 WR sets, but maybe not as many as we saw last year early on.

[Steve]

The thing on the UT article about OT, it says Harris is 10-15 pounds heavier then last year. Is that because he is bigger and stronger, or does he need to get in shape? The article doesn't really say, and there is a pretty important difference between the two.

[thelightningwill]

The lineup I want to see some day is 5 mobile quarterbacks playing 5 different positions - QB, HB, FB, WR1, WR2. Imagine all the crazy lateral plays that would come out of that.

[Beerman]

Gates/Green is better than Gates/Royal IMO. If we are going three wide, it should be Green, but it likely won't. I'm very high on Green. He needs to be on the field as many snaps as possible. He's a massive size/speed mismatch for the offense.

[Beerman]

One lineup I want to see is a bunch formation with Green, Allen, and Reese. There are so many possibilities they can exploit with that combination of talent.

[Steve]

Gates/Green is better than Gates/Royal IMO. If we are going three wide, it should be Green, but it likely won't. I'm very high on Green. He needs to be on the field as many snaps as possible. He's a massive size/speed mismatch for the offense.

I don't know if it will be Green or not. Last year, he was still learning to do everything, and Gates was the master, and coming off a pretty strong offseason. I think you will start to see them putting Green on the field more and more, and not just multi-TE sets. I don't think it will be him exclusively, but I can see Green and Gates mixing it up quite a bit. I do think on a lot of shorter, 3rd down type situations, it may be Gates more, because his route running is a big advantage and his average speed downfield won't hurt us. Long down and distances or situations where we are trying to generate a big play, Green offers more as a blocker and with his speed.

[Steve]

One lineup I want to see is a bunch formation with Green, Allen, and Reese. There are so many possibilities they can exploit with that combination of talent.

That is one of the great things about bunch. It gives an offense a way to package their receivers together, and allows them to vary the route combinations. Some of the personnel will now start to vary by who the D has to matchup and how they matchup. If they put a bunch of fast guys to the bunch side, maybe we want Reese to be the guy outside of the bunch (on the otherside), because that guy is going to need some deep help. But if the guy you are running against is maybe not as athletic, then you can get Allen one on one, and then you have to put your extra help against that.

[Beerman]

I'm just trying to protect Reese in a bunch formation to let him get off the line. I'm not sure he will have much success unless we can move him around to get a free release.