10 Apr, 2024, 9:47 PM ET
A dominant running game will be vitally important in head coach Jim Harbaugh’s first season at the helm of the Bolts
LOS ANGELES — Over the past four seasons, the success of Los Angeles Chargers has depended almost exclusively on the quarterback’s right arm Justin Herbert.
On many occasions, that strategy has been effective.
In Week 3 of the 2023 season, for example, he threw the ball 47 times for 405 yards and three touchdowns, while the Chargers They escaped with a four-point victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Before the Chicago Bears In Week 8, he threw the ball 40 times for three touchdowns and 298 yards in a 30-13 victory.
The Chargers’ new offensive identity should reduce the Justin Herbert-dependence of recent years. Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images
Then, there were meetings where the strategy of leaning on Herbert wasn’t all that effective, even when achieving those stats. Before the Detroit Lions In Week 10, he threw 40 times for 323 yards and four touchdowns, but the Chargers they fell 38-31. The 39.1 pass attempts per game for Herbert are the highest average in the history of the NFL.
In the end, this style of offense — one that has relied on passing, and either ignored or tried to rely on a running game, but failed — has had the Chargers stuck in mediocrity.
El head coach Jim Harbaugh and his group of assistants plan to change that trend quickly, with an attack whose stars are on the offensive line. They plan to lean on their running backs to keep defenses confused, and make life easier for Herbert. It’s the only kind of offense that the offensive coordinator of the Chargers, Greg Roman, has operated. That offense beat the quarterback of the Baltimore Ravens, Lamar Jacksona unanimous award like Most valuable Player in the 2019 campaign, and led to Harbaugh and the San Francisco 49ers to three NFC Championship Games when he served as head coach, from 2011 to 2014.
“Not everyone needs to function as Peyton Manning He did it to win games,” said the running game coordinator and tight ends coach, Andy Bischoff. The 9,380 pass attempts Manning They are the fourth largest amount in the history of the NFL.
Instead, Bischoffwho directed alongside Roman in Baltimorepointed out that the Chargers They will look for a “balanced offense that brings out the greatest strengths of everyone in the unit.”
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To achieve the balanced offense you imagine Bischoffthe most important players are on the offensive line.
“This offense — and this complex — is a space centered on the offensive line,” he said. Bischoff. “When it comes to the strength of our program, it’s built around our offensive line. Everyone else falls in line. Some people don’t value offensive linemen. We do.
“This is a place where offensive linemen are going to want to come play… We’re going to develop these guys and make them feel great about what they do and what they have to offer, and not push them aside and make them into something secondary. They are at the forefront of our thoughts.”
That mentality has attracted players with the qualities that Bischoff looks for offensive linemen — strong, physical and willing to hit — who Chargers. This is the reason why the runner Gus Edwardsand the tight ends Hayden Hurst y Will Dissly they signed with L.A. and they mentioned the word “physicist” countless times during their introductory press conferences.
“The kids we’ve been bringing in recently, that’s what they all have in common,” he noted. Edwards of the physical mentality of the most recent signings of the Chargers.
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Edwards set a personal record with 13 touchdowns scored for the Ravens last season, often by running over defenders when they Ravens They entered the red zone. played low Roman for four seasons in Baltimoreand the opportunity to be a “downhill” running back behind a dominant offensive line is what attracted him to L.A.
“I love this scheme, the way it [Roman] changes everything,” he declared. Edwards“And it’s just the whole mentality — the physicality — that I really like.”
The way in which the coaches of the coaches of the Chargers They’ve talked about their offense since Harbaugh became a head coach, he often leaves the impression that his $260 million quarterback has been somewhat forgotten. But, that’s mostly because the coaches know they have one of the best in the league, at the position.
Roman, Harbaugh y Bischoff They are eager to imagine how it will evolve Herbert when defenses must plan for a dominant running attack, something they have never counted on.
Even so, the air offensive of the Chargers is probably the team’s biggest mystery. L.A. lost tight end Gerald EverettHall Austin Thank youand receivers Keenan Allen y Mike Williams. Those four players combined for 57 percent of the team’s completions. Herbertpassing yards, and touchdown passes.
The club hired the aerial game coordinator Marcus Bradywho directed with the Philadelphia Eagles last season as a senior offensive assistant, his guide in the passing game. But the Chargers They have only four wide receivers on the roster: Quentin Johnston, Joshua Palmer, Darius Davis y Communication Sim. None of those receivers have a 1,000-yard receiving season in their careers.
Brady He admitted to not being sure how the U.S. air offensive will operate. Chargers, still. He hopes the team has a better idea as it fills out its receiver group after the draft and the rest of the offseason.
“Now, it’s just learning the terminology and learning how to communicate with others about plays,” he said. Brady. “We’re getting more and more into our identity and who we’re going to be as we continue to grow.”
2024-04-11 01:47:00
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