The Los Angeles Chargers find themselves in an interesting spot going into 2023, neither among the obvious front-runners to win the Super Bowl nor easily dismissed to be standing victorious in Las Vegas next February.
What will it take for the Chargers to finally lift the Lombardi Trophy? Here are five key questions going into the new season:
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Will the run defense come together?
In spite of Brandon Staley’s defensive pedigree, the Chargers have been downright terrible at stopping the run in his first two seasons as coach. It was probably to be expected in 2021, given the dramatic change in approach from previous coordinator Gus Bradley, but to finish dead last after allowing 5.42 yards per carry last year was downright shocking.
There were significant personnel changes going into 2022, highlighted by the trade for outside linebacker Khalil Mack and signings of interior linemen Sebastian Joseph-Day and Austin Johnson, and the hope is another season of continuity will lead to significant improvement.
“Everybody understands the collective that it’s going to take — everybody out there playing the run defense right,” safety Derwin James Jr. said. “I feel like, in spurts, we’ve stopped the run well, but I feel like when you give up those two to three explosive runs, whether it’s 20 yards, 30 or 40 yards, it really hurts your average.”
There is one notable addition in middle linebacker Eric Kendricks, who was signed to a two-year contract in free agency after playing eight seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. He gives the Chargers a proven thumper against the run, posting seven straight seasons with at least 100 tackles, and should also offer upgrades in leadership and communication in the heart of the defense.
Will they be able to run the ball in critical moments?
With quarterback Justin Herbert and a bevy of talented receivers, the Chargers are never going to be a run-first offense. Even top tailback Austin Ekeler made his name as one of the best pass-catchers out of the backfield.
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But having one of the most dynamic aerial games around didn’t open things up on the ground, with the team ranking 30th in the NFL at 3.77 yards per attempt. The Chargers were especially mediocre at running out of three-receiver sets, which should have been particularly advantageous with defenses having to account for the likes of Mike Williams and Keenan Allen.
New offensive coordinator Kellen Moore recognizes the need to run the ball in order to maximize the vertical passing game, so one measure of success will be forcing defenses out of safe coverages with two safeties playing deep.
“If you can’t run it versus shell, you’re going to get shell all day,” Moore said.
Will gains on special teams hold up?
After years of massively underperforming in the third phase of the game, the Chargers finally put together a slightly above-average unit in 2022. ESPN’s Football Power Index ranked them 13th in special teams, their best mark by leaps and bounds since the predictive system started in 2015.
Much of that progress can be attributed to Cameron Dicker, who made 19 of 20 field goal attempts and all 22 extra point tries as a rookie after Dustin Hopkins sustained a hamstring injury.
If another first-year player in wide receiver Derius Davis can jump-start the return game in similar fashion, the Chargers will be in really good shape. The speedy fourth-round draft pick from TCU had an 81-yard punt return for a touchdown in the preseason.
Will they stay healthy?
Injuries are going to happen in football, so prevention and recovery take on added importance. The Chargers clearly felt they were deficient in those two areas this past season, making changes to their medical staff by naming a new director of player performance and head athletic trainer.
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They had 19 players on injured reserve at different times in 2022, losing left tackle Rashawn Slater for the season after tearing his biceps in Week 3. Outside linebacker Joey Bosa missed 12 games because of a groin injury that required surgery. And while Herbert didn’t miss time with fractured rib cartilage, it clearly hindered his performance at times.
Will the Chargers forge a new identity?
As ESPN national reporter Lindsey Thiry recently chronicled, the Chargers have an uncanny knack for melting down in memorable fashion in the critical moments. Blowing a 27-point lead in a wild-card playoff game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Jan. 14 might have been the franchise’s signature moment of infamy.
They aren’t alone in having misery and underachievement be the defining characteristics of a team. That’s been the state of existence for UCLA football since losing to Miami in a game that was rescheduled because of a hurricane and missing out on a spot in the inaugural BCS title game in 1998. That’s been the state of existence for the Los Angeles Clippers, who will soon be moving in down the street in Inglewood.
And that was the state of existence for Clemson, to the point that “Clemsoning” became an accepted shorthand in college football circles, at least until the Tigers won the College Football Playoff on Jan. 9, 2017.
Wide receiver Mike Williams sees similarities between how Clemson approached their breakthrough 2016 season and the Chargers’ demeanor headed into this year.
“At Clemson we had a lot of guys who wanted the same thing,” Williams said. “The previous year, before we won, we lost in the national championship game, and we all wanted to go back again and win it. We all had that mindset that we were going to dominate every week.
“Our mindset is similar. We’re coming off a tough loss last year. Now we have a lot of guys back who still have that taste in their mouth. We’ll try not to let that happen again. Put our best foot forward and see what happens.”
If Williams proves to be right, he might help push another word out of common usage.
Source: www.espn.com