We all know that the S.D. Chargers had their moments of glory (i.e. Dan Fouts, Don "Air" Coryell, Kellen Winslow, the 94'-95' season) but they had a record of stinkage for the past several seasons in the mid to late 90s.
Now they've got WMDs: a rockstar RB, a soon-to-be great QB, a wicked offensive line, and an equally dangerous defensive line.
What happened? Was it A.J. Smith, Coach Marty, smart draft picks or what?
2007-06-19 06:52:43 · 22 answers · asked by chrstnwrtr 7 in Sports ➔ Football (American)
For the story, you have to go before A.J. Smith to his mentor, John Butler. He acquired a lot of the core of the team, including LT. He was a great G.M. After Butler died, Smith has done a great job continuing his work, drafting many of the current stars.
The biggest thing that helped the Chargers was a change in philosophy in how they deal with their player personnel: back when they were a bad team, they focused on free agent signings and trades for veterans. That isn't the way to win in the modern NFL, so they started doing what does work: smart drafting and holding onto the players you draft.
There are a lot of other smaller changes, but I think that one big change in philosophy is what has turned the Chargers into a powerhouse. I will say that I don't think that Marty Schottenheimer did much to turn them into winners though, I think it was mostly the other guys.
2007-06-19 07:02:21 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
The late John Butler and AJ, definitely had their hands in it. But when you look at any successful team, it all starts on the OL. If you don't have a good one, you won't win.
So you can't overlook the work of a man who has spent the last 30 years building legendary offensive lines in college and the pros, Hudson Houck.
At USC, he was the architect of the lines that resulted in two Heisman Trophy winners and landed at least 11 linemen on NFL rosters, including Anthony Munoz and Bruce Matthews.
He built the line in LA that Eric Dickerson set records running behind, spent a year in Seattle where Chris Warren had his first 1,000 yard season, then proceeded to Dallas where he built the legendary Dallas OL that help make Emmitt Smith a future HOFer. In LA and Dallas alone, 17 seasons combined, he had 11 different linemen make an astounding 43 Pro Bowl appearances. His lines have produced 20 1,000 yard rushing seasons and 6 NFL rushing titles. And just for good measure, every team he has coached for has allowed less QB sacks than the year prior to his arrival.
So, even though he is now in Miami, the work of Houck still resonates with every hole LT runs through and every pass Rivers gets off untouched.
2007-06-19 07:29:02 · answer #2 · answered by Edward 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
One would be when they got LT. They had the first pick in the 2001 Draft but traded to Falcons fot Michael Vick and they got the 5th pick and took LT. Second would be the 2004 Draft hence the Eli Manning trade. They got Phillip Rivers, Nate Kaeding K, Nick Hardwick C, Shaun Phillips OLB, Michael Turner RB, Shane Olivea OL and the 2005 Draft they got Shawne Merriman OLB and Luis Castillo DE.
2007-06-19 07:14:21 · answer #3 · answered by broncoalien 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I think it's all centered around A.J. Smith. He is one of the best GM's in the business. Through a series of great draft picks and off-season trades, he has built a team that will be great for several years to come. I do think it was a mistake to fire Marty. I know he has a rough time in the playoffs, but look at what he did with the team last year. They lost to a great team in the playoffs. Why should that have gotten him fired? He has one of the best regular season records in history. Good luck with Norv Turner. We got stuck with him in Oakland and it was F'ing horrible!!!!!!
Yeah, I'm a Raiders fan and gave your team some compliments...
2007-06-19 07:04:48 · answer #4 · answered by BRYAN H 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Marty Schottenheimer, LT, AJ, P Rivers
2007-06-19 07:11:19 · answer #5 · answered by jazsmo18 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Good draft picks that built a strong defense and offensive line. Just think how good they would be if they kept Brees and traded Rivers for a top receiver.
How did that LT for Vick trade work out? Atlanta must be kicking themselves.
2007-06-19 07:01:13 · answer #6 · answered by Sean C 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Because LT finally realized that he needed to start playing up to par with what is expect of an athlete with his talent or else there would be some serious pay cuts happening when it came time for him to either re-negotiate a contract or sign a new one as a free agent.
2007-06-19 06:57:34 · answer #7 · answered by ? 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Contenders.
2016-05-19 21:58:32 · answer #8 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are three things that have helped the Chargers in the past year:
1. LaDanian Tomlinson went from ok to sky high
2. Shawn Merriman, their star Linebacker who took steriods but should have won defensive player of the year
3. Drew Brees has gotten better and will keep improving
2007-06-19 07:01:59 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋
sad to say it but its AJ smith, even though he ran marty out of town he is a genious, the chargers are a more mature team this year than last year, and they are the team to beat
2007-06-19 11:11:32 · answer #10 · answered by Brendan 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋