Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
The Lions just signed Kassim Osgood. Mainly for ST I would imagine, no?
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*** Official 2012 San Diego Chargers **** (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter bicycle_seat_sniffer
- Start date
He left the Chargers because he wanted to play offense, not just special teams, and the Jaguars told him they'd give him a shot. He didn't end up getting much playing time on offense even in Jacksonville, though, so there's no way he'll crack the rotation in Detroit.I imagine he's accepted his role as just a special teams standout at this point.
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Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
Yeah, I agree. Wanted to make sure he didn't have designs on cutting into Young's or Burleson's playing time.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
To his credit he did triple his receiving yards when he left SD for greener pastures in JAX. If he can repeat that trick again you might want to bump Megatron down 40 yards, Young/Burleson/Pettigrove down 20 yards each, Scheffler/Smith down 10 yards each for the season.
I was very pleased with tonight's performance. It's a terrible sign to go undefeated during the preseason.
Beerguzzler
Footballguy
No injuries! After having pretty significant injuries during each preseason game, I'll take the awful loss with no injuries.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
Amen to that.What Rivers/Gates/Floyd were all doing out there at all is a complete mystery to me. If they were installing a new offense, maybe. But these guys have been running the same offense for years.On a side note I had posted earlier that I was hoping SD would be looking at Dixon if he ended up getting cut from a loaded SF backfield. Looks like he's going to stick after all. Too bad. He was one of the guys I wanted SD to draft late instead of trading multiple picks to move up for Mathews. Dixon, Dwyer, Blount... a lot of depth that year at RB.I didn't see the game. Are Goodman/Spurlock looking good? I still think SD should add Gaffney, at least until Brown can come back.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
They didn't look good last night. Not terrible, just not good.The only bright spot from last night's game was they got some production running the ball. Everything else looked pretty bad.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
Ware and Hightower both released today. I think both are considered excellent pass blocking backs. Doesn't seem like SD would have to lose much in terms of RB prospects to pick up either one of them to help make up for deficiencies in the OL and keep Rivers upright this year.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
What was crazy to me about last night's game is that they had tons of 2 TE, 2 back sets - and then they put everybody in the pattern. They were giving the line little to no help much of the time last night even while Rivers was in.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
I think that's the right decision.They were obviously going to keep Luiget, Martin, and Reyes. The question was whether to keep a fourth DE or to keep all three DTs (keeping in mind that Garay can play end as well as tackle).
I think Garay, Thomas, and Franklin are all better players than Cesaire.
Wow. Jacob Hester cut.
Even though he's essentially just a special teams player, I didn't see that one coming.
Even though he's essentially just a special teams player, I didn't see that one coming.
bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
he was terrible
Gr00vus
Footballguy
I'm surprised too - he was an A.J. favorite.Interesting they're keeping 5 rbs as of now: Matthews, McClain, Brown, Battle and Brinkley. Looked like they were setting up Battle for some vulturing last night.I hope they can get that Mike Willie guy on the practice squad, I liked some of what I saw from him.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
Beerguzzler
Footballguy
SadfaceI can see this guy being active in a few weeks when Floyd gets hurt.
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
How is your D shaping up? I took them with the last pick in one of my leagues.
I just hope they don't try TOO hard this week.
I just hope they don't try TOO hard this week.
If everyone stays healthy, the front seven should be outstanding this year.There are some real concerns at corner.How is your D shaping up? I took them with the last pick in one of my leagues.I just hope they don't try TOO hard this week.
Beerguzzler
Footballguy
I was pretty impressed with Wright his preseason. I can see him moving into the starting lineup if we struggle at CB early.If everyone stays healthy, the front seven should be outstanding this year.There are some real concerns at corner.How is your D shaping up? I took them with the last pick in one of my leagues.I just hope they don't try TOO hard this week.
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
As you know, a CB's best friend is an effective pass rush. Nothing makes bad corners look adequate more than a QB with no time to throw.If everyone stays healthy, the front seven should be outstanding this year.There are some real concerns at corner.How is your D shaping up? I took them with the last pick in one of my leagues.I just hope they don't try TOO hard this week.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
Having Mathews available(even if only a decoy) will be huge vs TEN. Even when the game was close last week the entire TEN defense was biting hard play action despite having a HOF QB and All-Pro receivers littering the field.
In general, the entire TEN team was over aggressive vs NE. I don't know if it was Locker or the game plan but he was definitely throwing to covered receivers if they were in single coverage. If SD can play patient and mistake free I think the can game manage their way to a victory over TEN. It was nice seeing SD win the TO/ST battles vs OAK, let's hope they can do a better job with penalties vs TEN.
Jammer played a great game vs OAK last week and I hope the cast on the broken hand doesn't limit his effectiveness too much. As any Charger fan will attest, Jammer has always played the ball in the air like he was wearing casts on both hands anyway.
In general, the entire TEN team was over aggressive vs NE. I don't know if it was Locker or the game plan but he was definitely throwing to covered receivers if they were in single coverage. If SD can play patient and mistake free I think the can game manage their way to a victory over TEN. It was nice seeing SD win the TO/ST battles vs OAK, let's hope they can do a better job with penalties vs TEN.
Jammer played a great game vs OAK last week and I hope the cast on the broken hand doesn't limit his effectiveness too much. As any Charger fan will attest, Jammer has always played the ball in the air like he was wearing casts on both hands anyway.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
I can't believe there isn't more chatter/excitement in here. If you had told me that Mathews/Gaither wouldn't play in the first two weeks but SD would not only be 2-0 but have the second best point differential in the NFL I would have said you were smoking something. Not only is the team playing well but has reason to believe they could be playing much better in the near future if Mathews/Gaither/Brown return and Meach/Royal get more playing time in the offense and better chemistry with Rivers. Ingram seems like a physical freak out there and once he has a little experience to go with all that natural talent(WTF with pulling up on that punt block?) I expect him to be in the pro-bowl very soon as well.
+ Don't look now but Donald Butler may be the team mvp. If he keeps playing like this I don't know how he doesn't make the pro-bowl.
+ If it wasn't for a bad call in the endzone, Floyd would be in the mix for the team mvp. Still don't understand what people were thinking that thought his ppg were going to nose dive.
+ The safety combo of Weddle/Bigby is such a nice compliment. Huge props to AJ for bringing in Bigby.
+ The new depth at TE really came in handy this week. I was very disappointed that AJ brought in a middling talent like Dante Rosario instead of aiming higher a few months ago... and that crow doesn't taste nearly as bad as you might think. Watching Ladarius Green run through secondary you couldn't help but think he fits in as a perfect Norv/AJ receiver - not just big but so athletic for his size. I'd love to see the ball in his hands more often.
- After being pleasantly surprised by the OL in week #1, reality sets in on the unit week #2. People that only look at the scoreboard probably think the unit performed admirably on an offense that scores 38. Couldn't be further from the truth. In particular the tackles were AWFUL. Harris is an undrafted rookie, so what's your excuse Clary? I can't believe he's posing as a starting tackle in the NFL. I can't help wonder if there are other undrafted rookies floating around out there that couldn't possibly play much worse with a glimmer of hope that they may one day get better.
- Hello, I'd like to report a missing person. One Jarrett Johnson. Last seen cashing million dollar paychecks.
+ Don't look now but Donald Butler may be the team mvp. If he keeps playing like this I don't know how he doesn't make the pro-bowl.
+ If it wasn't for a bad call in the endzone, Floyd would be in the mix for the team mvp. Still don't understand what people were thinking that thought his ppg were going to nose dive.
+ The safety combo of Weddle/Bigby is such a nice compliment. Huge props to AJ for bringing in Bigby.
+ The new depth at TE really came in handy this week. I was very disappointed that AJ brought in a middling talent like Dante Rosario instead of aiming higher a few months ago... and that crow doesn't taste nearly as bad as you might think. Watching Ladarius Green run through secondary you couldn't help but think he fits in as a perfect Norv/AJ receiver - not just big but so athletic for his size. I'd love to see the ball in his hands more often.
- After being pleasantly surprised by the OL in week #1, reality sets in on the unit week #2. People that only look at the scoreboard probably think the unit performed admirably on an offense that scores 38. Couldn't be further from the truth. In particular the tackles were AWFUL. Harris is an undrafted rookie, so what's your excuse Clary? I can't believe he's posing as a starting tackle in the NFL. I can't help wonder if there are other undrafted rookies floating around out there that couldn't possibly play much worse with a glimmer of hope that they may one day get better.
- Hello, I'd like to report a missing person. One Jarrett Johnson. Last seen cashing million dollar paychecks.
bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
Huge game vs ATL next week.
Gotta have mathews in there, that running game is :X .
Weird that gates would keep playing when he gets the injury, then sit. Rosario filled in nicely.
Melvin is a Beast.
Gotta have mathews in there, that running game is :X .
Weird that gates would keep playing when he gets the injury, then sit. Rosario filled in nicely.
Melvin is a Beast.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
One of the more disappointing things over the last couple of years has been the organization's willingness to settle for Clary as a starting tackle. He's just not good enough. Maybe Gaither comes back and they give Harris a shot to compete for Clary's job.Rivers and Turner have done a great job so far adjusting to the reality of their offensive line situation, and Rivers is still getting hit/pressured too much. It will cost them when they start playing better teams if they don't address it.
I'd have to go back and watch more carefully, but my initial impression is that Harris has played better than Clary in the first two games.Harris played right tackle at UCLA, and that's probably his more natural position.He should absolutely be in the running to start over Clary if Gaither ever comes back.
The front seven with Donald Butler, Melvin Ingram, and Kendall Reyes could be very good for many years to come. Especially if Vaughn Martin keeps improving as well.
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Gr00vus
Footballguy
BoltBacker
Footballguy
As much as it pains me to defend Clary in any way I've gotten the general impression over the first two games that Harris has been given more help, which is understandable, over the first two games.IMO just on the hope of upside and potential improvement alone Harris should be given the job. We know what Clary is at this point. A mediocre to poor back up tackle in the NFL. I generally hate the "well anyone would be an improvement from <x>!" argument but frankly I'm at that point with Clary. Gaither last year, and Harris this year have proved you can find guys on the street capable of performing no worse than Clary. They may as well just have open try-outs every Wednesday to win the RT job as some sort of wacky radio station promotion. Mark Wahlberg deserves a shot.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
The personal foul on Martin was undisciplined but I loved the pursuit of Jake Locker(a very mobile QB) downfield. I wasn't nearly as sold on the DL entering the season as you seemed to be Maurile, but I'm starting to buy in.Good to see Reyes carry over his strong pre-season to the regular season.
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BoltBacker
Footballguy
I was surprised how the game played out. In the end, as usual, the team that has a significant win in the turnover battle wins the game. I don't know why fumbles lost and interceptions aren't (-5) in all fantasy football leagues. Turnovers kill you in football as much as any stat in the game imo.Going into the game I thought the game would be won either by the ATL OL or the SD CB's but that wasn't really the case. Jones/White are so good they didn't get completely shut down but the CB's were solid imo. The Jones TD was the result of a perfect pass to a tall, agile receiver jumping in the corner of the endzone and Jammer simply isn't tall enough to break that pass up but I don't know many CB's that could have made a play on that ball... maybe Cromartie but it would have taken another athletic freak on par with Jones and there aren't many of those on the planet.On defense I was pretty disappointed in all the facets other than the CB's. The LB/S's that had been the strength of the team the first two weeks completely fell apart imo. Any time ATL needed/wanted a first down all they had to do was throw the ball to Gonzo just past the first down marker. It seemed the defense diagnosed the offensive play often but ATL consistently made five more yards after contact was made so the tackling was pretty poor. The glaring exception was on the first drive when Rodgers caught a ball in the flat at the line of scrimmage and Jarret Johnson had him dead to rights at the line of scrimmage. No yardage was made after contact however because Rodgers ran right around Johnson and Johnson wasn't even able to lay a hand on him. A precursor to a long afternoon for the defense. Butler, who I have heaped praise on so far this season, tackled pretty well but looked very slow to read/react in coverage. Bigby, another favorite so far, had a huge penalty on a sack that would have pinned ATL back against their own goal line. Spikes was in on a lot of plays... unfortunately most of them were well past the line of scrimmage. I can't think of a single player that really played well on either side of the ball to be honest. On offense, Rivers was under pressure most of the day. On the highlights/lowlights pay close attention to the pocket on Rivers INT's. That first INT where Rivers was running backwards and had to wildly throw just to escape a huge sack was the 2nd instance in three snaps where that was the case. The first was a completion to Mathews out of the backfield. Speaking of Mathews, WOW. I thought the problems in the SD running game were deeper than simply the shortcomings of the SD backup RB's but Mathews looked amazing behind the exact same line. Like the ATL RB's, he seemed to pick up an extra 5+yards after contact. Mathews had a HUGE fumble early in the game inside the five yard line, so even his performance ended up middling. Gates didn't look healthy but was open for a TD and Rivers didn't see him on one instance. Meachem gets open but he and Rivers still have no timing and each week it seems Rivers worst throws always go to Meachem. I was critical of that signing(not Jarret Johnson critical, but still critical) but Meachem has impressed me by getting open on more than just "go" routes.Overall, SD just got beat by a better team. They needed big plays by their best players(Rivers, Mathews, Gates, Weddle, Phillips) and didn't get any. Zero. If they were going to lose it's probably better to lose to a non-conference opponent but if PIT/NO could have played as well as expected then this loss would have been much less painful. If you didn't see this game it was a carbon copy of 2011: Rivers forced to make plays with no protection so he turns the ball over, shanked punts from your own end zone, poor tackling, fumbles near the goal line, penalties at the worst times, mistakes in general. ATL is playing at such a high level right now you have to wonder if they are peaking too early. At the end of last year I said that I wanted Mike Nolan as a candidate to replace Norv and I stand by that. My ideal coaching combo next season would be Nolan as HC and Cam Cameron as OC if BAL falters down the road and he becomes available. I've wanted Nolan since he mysteriously left den after fixing their defense because he couldn't get along with Josh McDaniels. If you look at that ATL offense and all the highly drafted and highly payed players it's no wonder that unit is successful. Look at the ATL defense and it's just a very, very well coached unit without a ton of stars.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
Big game this week. I know the ATL loss was disappointing, but in the grand scheme of things it may have been the least important game on the schedule. ATL has just killed the AFC west(oak gets their drubbing in ATL in a couple of weeks).
Tackling really needs to improve from last week, but I think they have a great chance in KC. I was impressed with Mathews in his first game back. I hope they use the entire backfield. Establishing the run game would do wonders for the passing attack. Battle/McClain deserve more rushing attempts between the tackles. Save Mathews for the runs in space where he excels. They may never make it to a 50/50 split, but balancing the offense would take a lot of pressure off of the pass blockers and Rivers. I don't understand all the chatter by non-Charger fans about the receivers - they seem fine to me right now. Rivers just needs more time to find them and have the luxury of setting his feet before he throws.
Tackling really needs to improve from last week, but I think they have a great chance in KC. I was impressed with Mathews in his first game back. I hope they use the entire backfield. Establishing the run game would do wonders for the passing attack. Battle/McClain deserve more rushing attempts between the tackles. Save Mathews for the runs in space where he excels. They may never make it to a 50/50 split, but balancing the offense would take a lot of pressure off of the pass blockers and Rivers. I don't understand all the chatter by non-Charger fans about the receivers - they seem fine to me right now. Rivers just needs more time to find them and have the luxury of setting his feet before he throws.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
Great week. Turner never gets credit for a win of course but he worked the offense just right imo. The consensus I've read from around the league is "well, of course they won in KC" which is revisionist history. SD was actually the underdog at kickoff and I didn't read many experts saying that point spread was silly and jumping on the Chargers. Also, I've read "experts" say that KC gave the game away when SD actually forced most of those TO's. Weddle with a one hand interception on the sideline. Charles gets stripped of the ball. Jammer makes a great hit dislodging the ball in run support. Of course TO's played a big role in the outcome of the game, just like it does in every other game.The LB's and S's really had a bounce back game(Butler still looking like the team MVP for my money) and Jammer is having his best season - broken hand or not. The OL is still a disaster(Gaither looked a little rusty) but I'm impressed how the team is playing overall. Battle/Brown is doing a better job replacing Tolbert than I would have guessed. Rivers with a 115+ QB rating on the road behind the worst OL in the league made a huge play by avoiding a safety when KC was building momentum in the 3rd quarter. The entire defense played well vs KC with exception of Cason. Gilchrist should start splitting time if Cason is playing that poorly.
This week in N.O. is one of the least important games on the schedule. SD probably has the best chance of winning a game out of all the teams in the AFC West but the entire division are underdogs(oak gets the week off to think about the game in ATL next week). It will be interesting to see if they can do a better job against Graham after getting eaten alive by Gonzales. New Orleans has given up the most rushing yards in the league(4.9y/c) so hopefully SD pounds the ball on the ground as keeping Brees off the field is the only way to slow him down. His attempts/game have been high at 40/game but this year he's getting closer to 50/game. It's unreal.
bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
Of course they kept the wrong guy.Norv should have been fired 2 years ago.problem is I think they are going to win the division anyway. So more Norv!!!!!sigh
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Gr00vus
Footballguy
Norv should never have been hired in the 1st place. I can't believe he's still here.I think the Broncos will end up winning the division, and thus I think this will be Norv's last season.Hard to argue Rivers is better than Brees at this point.
bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
cant argue it, only JWB and maybe Tommygunz think so. oh and ####### AJ smithThe Broncos might, SD had that game in their hands and blew it.The Mathews thing is just silly, Im all for working guys in, keeping someone fresh etc. but Battle & Brown just dont have it.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
Funny you should say that, Brown looked better than I expected last night on his catch and runs. They need Matthews in there a majority of the time. He's definitely the most dynamic/explosive guy they've got in their WR/RB stable. It was nice to see Meacham get worked into the offense finally.
Tau837
Footballguy
I'm a huge Rivers fan, obviously. But I don't recall ever arguing that Rivers is better than Brees. I have posted plenty about the situations that existed when they drafted (traded for) Rivers and when they let Brees walk. In both cases, they did the right thing given the circumstances.Furthermore, you are apparently assuming Brees would have become the same QB if he stayed in San Diego and never played for Sean Payton. He would have been great, regardless, but IMO not likely at the same level. And Brees doesn't have to play behind San Diego's awful offensive line, either.Finally, why post this today? It's not like Rivers played poorly yesterday. He played well. It wasn't his fault they lost.
Tau837
Footballguy
Watching the games, Mathews leaps off the screen with his explosiveness. They should ride him the exact same way they rode Tomlinson. This fiasco of mixing in Battle and Brown arguably cost them the game yesterday. There is no excuse for it.
bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
true Im sure Norv would of messed up Brees somehow. its just sour grapes on our part really. my naming you and tommy was tongue n cheek humor. The bolts window is closed and Im ready to move on from the whole norv/AJ era. Heck how much longer will Rivers play? He seems to have regressed the past two seasons.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
I wouldn't even have cared so much who got the carries, they just didn't run enough in the 2nd half, period.It was also ridicusgusting watching Collinsworth point out how Gaither could barely walk out there, much less protect and that they needed to get him out or at least give him help and then watch his man waltz by him for the sack/fumble on the very next play. Norv should have been fired then and there.
BoltBacker
Footballguy
Exactly.People focusing on Battle getting 4 carries as the reason for the loss are insane or FF geeks like us. Mathews should have run the ball a few more times, and Battle, and Brown. I'm not one of the people advocating running Mathews more than 20 times in a game with a non-conference opponent that doesn't have a lot of weight in the division standings. Even this week against den I wouldn't go over 25 carries with Mathews. He's just not that type of back and you'll lose his services all together if you try to use him like you would Tomlinson. A playoff game, yeah treat the game like it might be the last of the season but there are so many injuries in the NFL it's a marathon not a sprint. I typically defend Turner but the offense is his and he deserves all the blame for not running the ball enough... it has nothing to do with the way the carries were split up however.
As far as the Gaither thing, that's 100% on AJ. Maybe Gaither is more productive at 50% than the undrafted guy is healthy. Who knows? There is nobody for Turner to put in the game. We, well especially myself, have been whining about that since the FA period ended and they didn't upgrade the weakest position on the team last year(s). It's no secret. THEY HAVE NO OLmen TO PUT IN THE GAME. If they did they wouldn't be starting guys off the street to begin with year after year. Going into the season I've said I hope Rivers doesn't get a major injury behind the bright orange cones blocking for him this year, and I'd still put that at 50/50 based on what I've seen so far.
Norv isn't doing OL substitutions. That's on Mike Sullivan and Hal Hunter.
Gr00vus
Footballguy
So the HC is absolved of noticing when his LT, the guy responsible for keeping Rivers upright, can't walk, let alone pass protect and making some kind of adjustment even though his underlings can't figure it out?Does he call plays? Could he not have called something that at least had someone help Gaither out with the blocking?Either Norv was clueless or ineffectual (possibly both) - regardless, he needs to be out.
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