So you’ve been away from the NFL for a while enjoying your productive Sundays. These next few weeks are typically the most quiet around the league as the NFL takes some time off. If you stay up on your Chargers football you know all of this already, but if you have been completely out of it and now you’re looking for a primer on what’s been going on here it is:
HOLD OUTS
Vincent Jackson and Marcus McNeil look to be sitting out most, if not all of the season because they’re unhappy about not getting long term deals and being restricted free agents. This will prove to be the ugliest off-season for the Chargers in quite some time. Everyone is going to lose on this deal, but they will lose the most because they’ve let their $3.5 million deals on the table. Yes they’ll both sign long term deals eventually, either with the Chargers or somewhere else, but with a lock-out looming on the horizon they might want to hold off on getting that extra Bentley.
Shawne Merriman has also chosen to sit out the off-season and has not signed his tender, but he will. He’s got a lot to prove this year and is expected to be in camp. Malcolm Floyd signed his one year tender after initially sitting out of pre-season activities.
NO SAFETY FOR ELLISON
Former Trojan safety Kevin Ellison‘s career is over with the Chargers. He got popped with 100 vicadins, but more importantly the Chargers drafted Darrell Stuckey and there was no room for Ellison. Ellison subsequently signed with Seattle and failed his physical. If he can prove he was injured while a Charger they might be on the hook for his salary. Either way, not a good summer for KE, too bad because it was nice to see a Charger safety lay some lumber out.
DRAFT PICKS SIGNED
Rookie running back Ryan Mathews remains unsigned. This is not a shock as his contract will get done when the higher picks are done with theirs. Draft picks that are signed include quarterback Jonathon Crompton, safety Darrell Stuckey and tight end Dedrick Epps. Crompton will make the team as the 3rd string guy. Stuckey will likely end up the starter at some point, but the future of Epps is unclear because of the post-draft signing of Randy McMichael.
DRAFT PICKS UNSIGNED
Remaining draft picks to sign, besides Ryan Mathews, include 3rd round pick, inside linebacker Donald Butler and nose tackle Cam Thomas.
With all that is going on with Marcus McNeil and Vincent Jackson, I don’t think agents are looking forward to playing hardball with Chargers General Manager A.J. Smith, but Cam Thomas thought he might go as early as the second round and didn’t go until the fifth, which was a brilliant bit of “general managing” by Smith. If he’s looking for second round money he might be in for a wake-up call.
DRAFT RECAP – CHARGERS THINK MATHEWS IS THE REAL DEAL
If you really haven’t been paying attention then, backing up a little further, the Chargers fooled everyone again in the draft as they went with a running back in the first round despite speculation they would take a nose tackle to replace Jamal Williams. Ryan Mathews will be the player on which A.J. Smith‘s legacy will be judged, if you want to single one player out. No pressure.
The Chargers proved that patience is a virtue by getting a nose tackle they liked, Cam Thomas, in the 5th round. Some have said the Chargers overpaid for Mathews, giving up a lot of picks to move up in the draft, but if he comes anywhere near what they think he will, the term “overpaid” will be so completely irrelevant that those who suggested it will want to quietly slip away into obscurity. The Chargers like Mathews, a lot. They like him “Tomlinson” a lot. And – could there be a possible way you could “overpay” for LT? There’s only one LT and it’s not fair to put that label on Mathews, but they really like him that much.
DAVIS STILL TRYING TO PROVE HE’S NO BUSTER
Buster Davis continues to remain a Charger, despite having almost zero playing time in the regular season. Davis was impressive in mini camp, until Eric Weddle gave him a concussion that is. Injuries and inability to crack the special teams squad have really hampered his progress.
FREE AGENTS
As is typical for the Chargers, they have not made a lot of noise in the free agency market. They did pick up some veteran help however. The Chargers picked up veteran tight end Randy McMichael, adding depth behind Antonio Gates and Kris Wilson. This acquisition was mainly to address the loss of Brandon Manumaleuna who jumped ship for Chicago.
The Chargers also picked up veteran receiver Josh Reed who will challenge Buster Davis for playing time at the slot receiver position. Reed also seems like added insurance against Jackson holding out, but he’s not really a down the field guy.
Nathan Vasher and Donald Strickland were brought in to shore up secondary. With the lost of procreation expert Antonio Cromartie, Antoine Cason will move to starting corner opposite Jammer. Strickland and Vasher will compete for time in the nickel defense.
Even with Ellison being jettisoned, the Chargers secondary is getting pretty crowded. Steve Gregory has been too consistent to write off. Paul Oliver has developed and, like Gregory, can play at both cornerback and safety. Additionally, C.J. Spillman, the un-drafted free agent from a year ago has shown up on special teams and provided good physical play.
Left tackle Tra Thomas was added to the roster as insurance against Marcus McNeil taking a flyer on this season.
Kicker Nick Novack was also signed by the Chargers, but don’t look for him to occupy a roster spot at the beginning of the season unless there’s a complication with Kaeding.
EX-CHARGERS
The Chargers locker room is going to be quite different this year as they lost some staples of the roster. Contact shy cornerback Antonio Cromartie was traded to the Jets. The compensation could be as high as a second round pick, depending on his contract status and the success of the Jets.
Running back Ladanian Tomlinson will also join the Jets this year as he hopes to regain some of his former glory in a run happy offense.
Nose tackle Jamal Williams has moved on to Denver where he’ll look to bolster the middle of their 3-4 defense. Charlie Whitehurst has gone to Seattle with the Chargers receiving a coveted third round pick as compensation. Back up running back Michael Bennett was also not re-signed. San Diego favorite, and special teams stand out, Kassim Osgood has left the Chargers and will get his shot as a full time receiver in Jacksonville with the Jags.
As mentioned, mammoth tight end Brandon Manumaleuna parted ways with the Chargers in favor of Chicago and Kevin Ellison is currently in limbo.
POSITION BATTLES
Heading into the season there are several roster spots that have question marks next to them.
Wide Receivers – Legedu Naanee looks to take over the starting role from Vincent Jackson. Actually Floyd will move up and Nanee will take his spot. He proved last year to be more than capable at every receiver position. Davis will compete with Josh Reed and a talented group of rookies including Gary Banks for time.
Running Back - Rookie Ryan Mathews will take the bulk of the carries, sharing time with franchised back Darren Sproles. With Michael Bennett not returning, there would appear to be an opening for a rookie on the roster, but fullback Mike Tolbert could very well fill that role. Jacob Hester appears to be pretty solid in his role as a hybrid fullback. The Chargers will keep at least one rookie on the practice squad.
Tight End – The signing of Randy McMichael virtually assures that a rookie tight end will not make the regular season roster.
Linebacker – Most of the intrigue here will be with the inside linebacker slot. Brandon Siler has made a real case for himself to be the starting ILB ahead of Kevin Burnett who was injured much of last year. Once seen as a special teamer stand-out and goal line muscle, Siler showed he can make plays on any down last year. Burnett has a lot to prove and still carries a chip on his shoulder from his days in Dallas. Add the Chargers second pick in the draft, Donald Butler, and this will be one of the most competitive battles in camp.
In regards to the outside linebacker position there are a couple of wild cards. Shawne Merriman, should return to form after being farther removed from the injury that sidelined him two years ago. He’s also playing for a contract. Antwan Applewhite has been on the bubble, but may have supplanted the injury prone Jyles Tucker. Both players have tireless motors, but Applewhite has proven himself on the field more. Just the facts. Also Jim Holt could be transitioned into the OLB position from the inside.
Safety - Darrell Stuckey will look to work his way into the strong safety slot opposite Eric Weddle. He’ll have competition from C.J. Spillman who has worked well on special teams and Paul Oliver who has yet to gain a foothold on the game-day roster. Steve Gregory is the same story every year. Every year he makes a case to make the team and each year he gets better. The Chargers have suffered average play from the safety position for years and this years competition should make the position the deepest since they parted ways with Rodney Harrison.
Offensive Line – The biggest question mark will be with left tackle. The starting job should be between veteran Tra Thomas and Brandyn Dombrowski, who filled in admirably for the injured Jeromy Clary last year at right tackle coming over from guard. Neither player is Marcus McNeil and time will only tell how long the Chargers want to play around with such a critical position.The rest of the offensive line seems pretty solid with starters. Second year player Louis Vasquez should be better, coming off a solid rookie campaign. Jeromy Clary was playing good football at right tackle before he went down with the season ending injury. Nick Hardwick will be back in control at center and Kris Dielman will return at left guard.
Defensive Line – Nose tackle will be the biggest question for the Chargers defensive line. Rookie Cam Thomas is the player most likely to become starter for the position. “Starter” will likely be a relative term as a rotation will likely be used. The bottom line is that Jamal Williams is not replaceable by one person, but with all of the injuries from last year there are a lot of guys with experience. Antonio Garay, Oge Nwagbuo, Travis Johnson, Alfonso Boone and Vaughn Martin will all compete for time at the nose tackle and end positions. Jacques Cesaire will likely start at defensive end with Louis Castillo, but there are bodies to move around.
Cornerback – Position battles will be most fierce for the nickel back position with Cason moving up to starting corner. This role is up for grabs and it will be a serious competition.
This ends the longest “short” version of the Chargers off season there may be. Time to buckle down as we head towards camp.
