Official Chargers Blog

Now that everyone is on the same page, the coaching staff is injecting some flair into the offense. The Chargers are striving to attain elite status in the league, and that means pushing the envelope. This year, the playbook appears to be wide open. The new formations should allow receivers to be, too.

The personnel on offense are like no other group in recent memory. Gates and Tomlinson are the class of their respective positions. Turner is a backup running back that could start on a majority of teams in the NFL. Keenan McCardell has over 10,000 yards receiving and is still going strong. Eric Parker is a third down conversion machine. Receivers Vincent Jackson, Kassim Osgood and Malcom Floyd are all over 6’ 5”. This will present Rivers with a smorgasbord of tall targets that can go up for a jump ball if called upon.

Free agent tight end Brandon Manumaleuna has also been doing some blocking for Tomlinson and Turner on the left, and with his weight “on the north side of 300”, as Schottenheimer says, he can move some bodies around. A few plays have been put in up the middle to utilize Manumaleuna’s size and receiving ability. Don’t be surprised to see him moving the chains from time to time.

Coaches have been finding ways to use the speedy Darren Sproles in the receiving game, and he has made several great runs that would have been good for six points during the season.

There have been quite a few deep balls thrown, and there are a lot of new formations going in that will confuse and frustrate defenses. Most are geared toward loosening up defenders and keeping them honest. It appears Cam Cameron has spent the off-season working on ways to fully utilize the soaring talent on this team.

Vincent Jackson is developing as a deep threat, and he will cause the physical match up problems that Gates now does. He, too, is very hard to bring down. Jackson appears to be a bit faster though, with a 4.46 second time in the 40 yard dash, not too shabby for a guy 6’ 5” and 241 pounds.

Rivers worked with Jackson extensively on the second team last year, and their chemistry is undeniable. Rivers is already making physical comparisons between Jackson and Terrell Owens. Coaches are well aware of his gifts and have some new schemes in place to force teams to decide which threat to leave one-on-one.

The Indianapolis Colts became a force not just due to the talents of Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison, but because they lost so few key players over recent years. This has allowed them to work to refine their personnel packages and deception.

Now, it is the Charger’s turn to get creative.

For defensive coordinators around the league, the Chargers offense will be a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.

That’s a good thing.