REVIEWING THE 2018 OFFSEASON AND EXAMINING THE 2019 SEASON

                                                     OVERVIEW OF THE CHARGERS 2019 SEASON

                                                     12-4  2nd place in the AFC West

                                                      9-3 in AFC and 4-2 in Division

                                                       Home 5-3      Away 7-1

   The relocation of the Chargers franchise to LA has been anything but a smooth transition. Whether it was the way they treated the city that supported them for 56 years or the very lukewarm reaction from their new city in LA.  It's been a rough 2 years as the front office tried to get a footing in LA. 

   

    Viewers for the Chargers wildcard game was 914,799 watched the game in LA compared to 297,382 in San Diego. It's an insult to the LA charger fans to say there are no charger fans in LA. They're a few thousand and when they gather together it probably seems like a lot more. But that the front office's problem. We're here to talk about 53 men that had nothing to do with the relocation. The 53 men on the Chargers football team.

    The players are on the field have done an incredible job of not letting the chaos affect them. Remember a lot of these guys had to move themselves and relocate their families, change schools for their kids, churches for their worship and still realizing they have a job to do on the football with the entire country criticizing every move they make. They have gone 22-11 in two seasons compared to 9-23 their last two seasons in San Diego. They're sending 7 players to the Pro Bowl this year. This year is over now. As we discussed in the previous article, the franchise now stands at a crossroads.  

    They were 60 minutes from being in the Super Bowl for only the 2nd time in franchise history this past season. Every decision this offseason is paramount to making the team better. Beware because making the wrong decision could set the team back become closer to the very narrow window opened to Philip Rivers career.

      Let's take an honest hard look at the team, where they're at, what moves they should make in the offseason, where to add and whom to subtract to help gear them up for a Super Bowl run in 2019. The last season before they begin sharing the newest stadium in the NFL in Inglewood with the Rams.

     In order to be prepared to fix something. It's advisable to first identify what is broken or needs repairing. The Chargers traveled more miles than any other team in the NFL IN 2018. Those miles take a tremendous toll on the players as well as their families. Reflecting back now, coming back from Baltimore after the Wild card round was probably a fatal mistake made by Coach Lynn. Whether it was his call or the owner Dean Spanos. It seemed to be another cross country trip however the team just couldn't overcome traveling at the end of the season across the country to play in back to back 10am early games.

    The Chargers have some holes that will prevent them from achieving goals that set forth for themselves. No one goes to the Super Bowl with a bad offensive line.

    The Chargers should have about $25 million in cap space when the league starts on March 13 at 4est. They have 43 players under contract and currently is 27th out of 32 in team spending. Philip Rivers and Melvin Gordon are entering the final year of their contract. Rivers should be extended by training camp. Rivers has made it clear he doesn't want to play into his 40's. The team will give him an opportunity to play at the new stadium in Inglewood. Basing a contract resembling that in which Drew Brees signed this past offseason could look like a 5-year extension, $50 million dollars but only committed to the team for 2 years. Melvin Gordon who is 25 and has missed substantial game time with injuries will probably be more clouded but I expect bo0th to be extended by the kickoff of the 2019 season.

                                                      OFFENSE (9th) in NFL

      The Chargers were lucky in that they have an offense that can strike a big play at any time. This helped overshadow some of their shortcomings. The end of the game box score looks like the Chargers offense was rolling but when you dissect the drives you begin to discover how much better the offense can be. Whether it was because of poor play calling or not executing properly on offense,  an NFL teams rhythm on offensive begins on the offensive line. That is where football games are won in this league. It is often the unit that can make a difference between a team playing in the Super Bowl and one that gets eliminated in the Playoffs.

   Philip Rivers is 37 years old and certain adjustments need to be taking into consideration Rivers age and game plan to his strengths.Remember, Brett Favre and Peyton Manning final year in the NFL.? A player reaching 40 has it then its gone. The mind still thinks like an elite All Pro but the arm and body just isn't following anymore. The Chargers can't keep missing out on opportunities anymore to help Rivers get a ring.

   Until recently, the offensive line has mostly been ignored in the draft under Tom Telesco. Stats can be misleading. Although, Rivers was only sacked 35 times (10th best in the league) last year he was pressured  70% of his drop backs. That's more than any other QB in the NFL. Rivers has been sacked 435 times over his 15-year career. his PFF has the 2018 Chargers offensive line ranked 3rd worst in the NFL. Pressures to sacks or QB hits are largely ignored when reviewing the box score after a game is completed. A QB feeling pressure can result in incomplete passes and can prevent the offense from getting into any kind of rhythm. Having drives stall and 3 and outs on offense has it's effects on both sides of the ball. The defense is kept on the field while the offense tries to adjust for their flaws.

   If the Chargers want to go to the Super Bowl the offensive line needs to be rebuilt. The current lineman can hold their own blocking for the run. When it comes to pass blocking it's a whole different story. It is only because of Philips talent in getting rid of the ball so quickly (2nd in NFL) that it masks some of the deficiencies by the line. That's why Coach Lynn said there is no way "the team will be complacent this offseason." Hear that Telesco! A 12-4 record one year can quickly become 7-9 the next. Just look at the 2018 Jacksonville Jaguars.

    The Chargers don't have to rebuild their roster. They do need to reload their roster.

   Dan Feeney, Sam Tevi and Michael Schofield have been awful in pass protection. No guard in the NFL has a worst rating than Dan Feeney. Schofield is right behind him. Sam Tevi has the worst pass blocking grade for RT in all the NFL. That equates to the Chargers have in front of Rivers, the worst LG in the NFL, the worst RT in the NFL and one of the worst RG in the NFL.

    Plus, the coaching staff sticking to close with "team chemistry" over "all around talent."

   That philosophy kept Joseph Barksdale in as a starter. It stubbornly kept Caleb Sturgis in as a field goal kicker. A streak of 6 games where Sturgis went 9-13 on field goals and 9-15 on extra points with an average kickoff of 22.5 yards. Refusing to put Forrest Lamp in whom Telesco almost traded up in rd 2 of last years draft to pick recovered from his ACL injury in August of 2018. Those who watched Lamp practice said he was at 100% but the staff stuck with Schofield who allowed the QB to be battled around like a pinball. Rivers might not see the team chemistry in getting smashed every time he dropped back to pass.

     During Telesco first three years as general manager, Rivers was sacked 106 times and hit 239 times. Telesco instead of addressing the teams woes at offensive line drafted Manti Teo and Jeremiah Attaochu and giving up picks in the process. He surrendered 3 draft picks to select Melvin Gordon. Giving away 3 players for 1 player. In 2015 the offensive line was the biggest need for the team. Telesco didn't select one lineman, NOT ONE! His first 3 years, he picked DJ Fluker, Chris Watt and through free agency Orlando Franklin. Watt is out of the NFL, Fluker not even on the team anymore and Orlando Franklin still taking up dead money off the Chargers budget. At the age of 37, Philip Rivers window cannot be exposed to Telesco ignoring the offensive line anymore. He did draft Feeney and Lamp last year but one is the worst at his position in the NFL and the other is sitting on the bench while Tevi and Schofield watched defensive lineman run around them like a bunch of kids in a Chuck E Cheese restaurant.

    Preferably round 1 of the draft could be a right tackle but we'll discuss that after the combine and player personal workout days.

    The Chargers need to find some answers in the redzone. Keenan Allen was remarkable but Antonio Gates who at one time excelled in the redzone had 11 opportunities but turn those into 2 catches for 2 Td's. Tyrell Williams had 6 targets and 2 receptions with 1 Td.  Travis Benjamin was an astounding 1 target and it was a reception but 0 Td's on the season from the redzone.

                                   

                                          CHARGERS OFFENSE IN THE REDZONE

RB                      Targets                Td's       Receiving         Td's

Melvin Gordon     25 rushing        8            13                      3

Austin Ekeler        16 rushing        3            4                        1

Justin Jackson       5 rushing          2            2                        0

Detriz Newsome    3 rushing         0            0                        0   

WR/'TE                   Targets             Receptions                  Td's

Keenan Allen       15                        11                              5

Mike Williams     14                        8                                5

Tyrell Williams      7                        6                                2

Travis Benjamin    1                        1                                0

Geremy Davis        0                       0                               0

Antonio Gates        9                       2                                2

Virgil  Green          5                       3                                1                   

    The Chargers scored an average of 26 points per game (8th) 372 yards per game (11th) Passing per game 255 yards (10th) and rushing 117 yards (15th). The Chargers had 51 Td's, 32 passing, 16 rushing and 3 returns on ST in 2018. They finished 70-177-39% on 3rd downs and 7-8-87% on 4th downs.

   

    When you consider keeping one and letting the other go-between Tyrell Williams and Travis Benjamin the numbers favor keeping Tyrell. Except this is real life as the Chargers have no control when Tyrell hits the open market as a free agent. That leaves Benjamin and his reduced role with the team on special teams and production as a receiver gives Telesco the chance to cut Travis Benjamin and his $5.2 million dollar base salary for 2019. That is $6.5 million against the cap and the team would save $1.2 million by releasing Benjamin. He never lived up to the 4 years deal for $24 million that got him $13 guaranteed with a $5 million signing bonus. The Chargers would need to add a receiver to Allen, Davis, Cantrell, and Artavis Scott/ Geremy Davis in camp. Adding a free agent #3 or #4 receiver who excels in the red zone would be a good replacement. Totally revamping the middle of the offensive line will make an already explosive offense even better and more efficient in 2019.

  Through Free Agency and the Draft, the Chargers need a LG, RT and a RG and a WR.

                                        DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES? 

                                        SPECIAL TEAMS

     The Chargers have had one of the worst special teams in the league for over ten years now. The past three years have been historically bad.  How the team found themselves in another special teams fiasco giving the disaster from the 2017 squad will always be a mystery. But finally, I have a lot of confidence the team will have one of the best special units in 2019. The answer is Desmond King, Michael Badgley, and newly future contract signed kicker Ty Long from the Canadian league who led the league with a 48.3 punt average and made 82 of 93 field goals. Field position is the most important advantage in this game and it looks like the Chargers finally found the answers.

    The coverage has already improved greatly over this season with the impact on the ST by Adrian Phillips and Michael Davis. The special teams unit added Michael Badgley which was equal to adding Joe Montana after Ryan Leaf. The unit went from ranked almost last for the last 10 years to 17th in return and kicking. They finished 27th in punting largely because of the lousy job by Donnie Jones. Ty Long will certainly shoot those numbers to the top 15. This is a unit that seems to have not only fixed but excelled in replacing what was broken. The unit returned 3 Td's in 2018.

                                                 CHARGERS  DEFENSE (3rd) in NFL

    The defense finished the regular season surrendering an average of 333 yards per game, 105 rushing with 11 Td's, 227 passing with 23 Td's, 20 takeaways and averaging 61 plays on defense.

   The defense I would say was more constant than the offense in 2018. They came out of the gate against KC at home with Bosa out. Bosa would miss the first 9 games in 2918. Teams double teamed Melvin Ingram as Issac Rochelle tried to fill in as the coaches slowly got Uchenna Nwosu involved in the defense. The speed of the defense was greatly improved this year as their 1st round draft pick Derwin James was a monster playing multiple positions rotating around in-game. The pass rush improved when Bosa came back and he and Melvin Ingram provided the pass rush and Derwin James with the excelling Adrian Phillips flying around making key plays in the secondary and up near the box in run defense. Damion Square and Darius Philon had a very productive year rotating at DT taking over 50% of the defensive snaps. Justin Jones when used was the run stopper. The Chargers run defense improved with the new pieces on defense to being ranked 6th best in the league giving up an average of 105 yards per game.

      The speed and the 100 turnarounds from 2017 performance of Jatavis Brown improved the run defense and the tackling. Derwin James and Adrian Phillips performed as All Pro's the whole year. They need an upgrade at DT as Brandon Mebane is becoming is turning 35 and becoming a free agent. Mebane leadership will be missed the most and 39% of the defensive snaps he turned in 2018.  How comfortable the team is with Justin Jones taking over in 2019 remains to be seen. Telesco has only drafted four DT in his tenure and only 1 time higher than the 4th round.  Denzel Perryman was a game changer in the run defense but he can not be relied upon to stay healthy. Perryman played 24 of 48 of the teams game. 2018 was thought to be a prove it year and Perryman missed the last 7 games of the season with injuries and is a free agent now. Trevor Williams was benched for an undrafted free agent Michael Davis from 2017 as the teams #2 corner for injuries and his production falling off. Jason Verrett (FA in 2019) missed the whole season and 25 of 90 of the team's games. It's doubtful Jason Verrett comes back in 2019. The Chargers lost 6 players to IR in 2018, Kyzir White, Denzel Perryman, Jason Verrett, Jaylen Watkins, Corey Liuget, Trevor Williams. The linebackers position is in need at linebacker. They ran out of LB in the Patriots game with only Hayes Pullard, Uchenna Nwosu, Kyle Emanuel able to start. Kyle Emanuel and Hayes Pullard are becoming free agents. Luiget could easily been released to generate cap space ($8 million).

    The 38 sacks got 38 sacks, 13 INT, 9 FF, and 92 QB hits will only improve with the addition of a DT and linebackers in 2019. This unit is 2 to 3 pieces away from being a Super Bowl defense.

The team needs on defense... LB, DT, DB#2

                                     WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED IN NEW ENGLAND?
     Now that some time has passed since the embarrassing loss in New England that ended the Chargers season, let's examine what happened. It wasn't a talent flaw that got exposed. It was a roster flaw that was exposed. The team ran out of linebackers, ran out of miles headed to the east coast back to back and ran out of luck giving one of the most prepared coaches in the NFL, two weeks to prepare for the tired weakened Charger team. I believe Billy 16-4 coming off a bye in the regular season. The team also has to get tougher. The report I was giving one on one by a reporter at Gillette Stadium was confirmed later in video. Some of the players talking about the cold pregame (Joey Bosa).

                                                        EARLY LOOK AT 2019

    With Denver and Oakland in rebuild mode, it looks like KC and the Chargers will battle it out again for the AFC West crown in 2019. Fix the interior on the defensive line while also adding linebackers, extend Rivers for 2 years, Franchise tag Melvin Gordon in 2020 while maintaining a good relationship in 2019, and add some additions to the offense to improve on 3rd downs and redzones and the team should easily qualify for the dance again in 2019.

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