Last week was last week.
Since the Chargers played the Titans on Saturday, they reviewed game film in meetings. They held a Monday practice during which they drilled various points of emphasis from that review. They twice practiced in pads against the Cardinals, once at Qualcomm Stadium and the other at their Murphy Canyon facility.
The team has been busy.
How much better it is for it, it?s time to see.
All coaches can ask for in August is gradual improvement. The Chargers have strides to make entering Friday?s 6 p.m. exhibition matchup with the Cardinals at Qualcomm. They are coming off a 27-10 loss in Nashville that saw their reserve units struggle to some degree, particularly when the defense was tasked with stopping the run.
Here are five things to watch:
Run defense: Might as well jump into it. No NFL team allowed more rushing yards in its exhibition opener than the 288 ceded by San Diego. A large chunk of those yards, 71, came on a DeMarco Murray carry with his first-team offense versus the Chargers? second-team group. Alas, that is no excuse. Be it a rookie losing focus or a veteran like safety Darrell Stuckey being caught out of position when playing his first game since a December meniscus tear (some rust was reasonably expected), last week?s mistakes did not fall on one man. So, it?ll take a collective effort to clean them up. ?Obviously, missed tackles, that?s a technique thing,? said linebacker Joshua Perry, a rookie fourth-round pick. ?Schematically, it?s just making sure that we?re hitting our doggone fits the right way. You look on film, and you?re lined up slightly wrong, and something happens that puts you in a bad position and you can?t make a play. We?re really about the small things and nuances of making sure you are where you need to be.?
Travis Benjamin: He sure looked good practicing against the Cardinals. Next, he?ll try a game against them. Presuming Benjamin gets the green light as expected, this will be the wide receiver?s first game action since signing a four-year contract in March. He did not travel to Tennessee in order to continue treatment for a hamstring ailment that cost him much of camp. How the 26-year-old looks offensively obviously will be worth watching. So will be any action he gets as punt returner if the Chargers choose to put that on his plate, too. Even if not, it bears reminder the upgrade Benjamin represents. His 324 punt return yards in 2015 were sixth most in the NFL. By comparison, the Chargers as a team had 84, fewest in the league since 1981. Hidden yardage make a difference when a team loses nine games by one score.
Max Tuerk: If rust is mentionable for a veteran like Stuckey coming off knee surgery, then it should be mentioned here again for Tuerk, the Chargers? rookie third-round pick who prior to Saturday hadn?t played a game since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in October. Undrafted rookie center-guard Spencer Pulley has outshone Tuerk in recent months, but Tuerk is looking for that steady progression. Last Saturday, he was penalized for holding and an illegal snap. Officials ?don?t want you moving the ball, and it?s a point of emphasis,? coach Mike McCoy said Monday. ?We all know it. We?ve got to fix it. (Offensive line coach) Jeff Davidson and all the centers are working on it.?
Donald Butler: He is no longer a Charger, sure. But if for no other reason than curiosity, Butler is worth watching. The inside linebacker who spent the past six years in San Diego returns for his first game at Qualcomm as a non-Charger. Things didn?t pan out toward the end of his tenure ? he was released two seasons and $15.15 million into a contract extension that could?ve gone seven years for a total of $51.8 million ? but Butler hopes to continue his NFL career. He is fighting for a spot on the Cardinals? 53-man roster.
Running game: The Chargers made improvement an offseason focus for the second straight year. There are encouraging signs this time that improvement will come. Other than get healthy, San Diego saw minimal personnel changes to its starting O-line ? four-fifths of the 2015 unit is scheduled to start Week 1 ? but better chemistry is visible. Davidson and assistant O-line coach Dave DeGuglielmo command the room, and center Matt Slauson appears to be the veteran leader the Chargers have lacked. There also was minimal positional shuffling in training camp, improving the group?s cohesion. All that figures to make life easier for the likes of running back Melvin Gordon, who can build off last week?s confidence boost, a 44-yard touchdown reception that was his first score in a game as a Charger. Left guard Orlando Franklin (knee) did not play last week. He missed some practice time Wednesday, so some question surrounds his Friday availability. Kenny Wiggins would start in his place.
Since the Chargers played the Titans on Saturday, they reviewed game film in meetings. They held a Monday practice during which they drilled various points of emphasis from that review. They twice practiced in pads against the Cardinals, once at Qualcomm Stadium and the other at their Murphy Canyon facility.
The team has been busy.
How much better it is for it, it?s time to see.
All coaches can ask for in August is gradual improvement. The Chargers have strides to make entering Friday?s 6 p.m. exhibition matchup with the Cardinals at Qualcomm. They are coming off a 27-10 loss in Nashville that saw their reserve units struggle to some degree, particularly when the defense was tasked with stopping the run.
Here are five things to watch:
Run defense: Might as well jump into it. No NFL team allowed more rushing yards in its exhibition opener than the 288 ceded by San Diego. A large chunk of those yards, 71, came on a DeMarco Murray carry with his first-team offense versus the Chargers? second-team group. Alas, that is no excuse. Be it a rookie losing focus or a veteran like safety Darrell Stuckey being caught out of position when playing his first game since a December meniscus tear (some rust was reasonably expected), last week?s mistakes did not fall on one man. So, it?ll take a collective effort to clean them up. ?Obviously, missed tackles, that?s a technique thing,? said linebacker Joshua Perry, a rookie fourth-round pick. ?Schematically, it?s just making sure that we?re hitting our doggone fits the right way. You look on film, and you?re lined up slightly wrong, and something happens that puts you in a bad position and you can?t make a play. We?re really about the small things and nuances of making sure you are where you need to be.?
Travis Benjamin: He sure looked good practicing against the Cardinals. Next, he?ll try a game against them. Presuming Benjamin gets the green light as expected, this will be the wide receiver?s first game action since signing a four-year contract in March. He did not travel to Tennessee in order to continue treatment for a hamstring ailment that cost him much of camp. How the 26-year-old looks offensively obviously will be worth watching. So will be any action he gets as punt returner if the Chargers choose to put that on his plate, too. Even if not, it bears reminder the upgrade Benjamin represents. His 324 punt return yards in 2015 were sixth most in the NFL. By comparison, the Chargers as a team had 84, fewest in the league since 1981. Hidden yardage make a difference when a team loses nine games by one score.
Max Tuerk: If rust is mentionable for a veteran like Stuckey coming off knee surgery, then it should be mentioned here again for Tuerk, the Chargers? rookie third-round pick who prior to Saturday hadn?t played a game since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in October. Undrafted rookie center-guard Spencer Pulley has outshone Tuerk in recent months, but Tuerk is looking for that steady progression. Last Saturday, he was penalized for holding and an illegal snap. Officials ?don?t want you moving the ball, and it?s a point of emphasis,? coach Mike McCoy said Monday. ?We all know it. We?ve got to fix it. (Offensive line coach) Jeff Davidson and all the centers are working on it.?
Donald Butler: He is no longer a Charger, sure. But if for no other reason than curiosity, Butler is worth watching. The inside linebacker who spent the past six years in San Diego returns for his first game at Qualcomm as a non-Charger. Things didn?t pan out toward the end of his tenure ? he was released two seasons and $15.15 million into a contract extension that could?ve gone seven years for a total of $51.8 million ? but Butler hopes to continue his NFL career. He is fighting for a spot on the Cardinals? 53-man roster.
Running game: The Chargers made improvement an offseason focus for the second straight year. There are encouraging signs this time that improvement will come. Other than get healthy, San Diego saw minimal personnel changes to its starting O-line ? four-fifths of the 2015 unit is scheduled to start Week 1 ? but better chemistry is visible. Davidson and assistant O-line coach Dave DeGuglielmo command the room, and center Matt Slauson appears to be the veteran leader the Chargers have lacked. There also was minimal positional shuffling in training camp, improving the group?s cohesion. All that figures to make life easier for the likes of running back Melvin Gordon, who can build off last week?s confidence boost, a 44-yard touchdown reception that was his first score in a game as a Charger. Left guard Orlando Franklin (knee) did not play last week. He missed some practice time Wednesday, so some question surrounds his Friday availability. Kenny Wiggins would start in his place.
