This season started off just like any other in the Norv Turner era. They started 2-5 only to win 4 straight, putting themselves right back in the AFC West race. Even after a bad 15 point home loss to the Raiders, they weren’t out of it, winning back-to-back games and stomping division leading Kansas City 31-0 week 14.

They looked ready to make another late season comeback to win the division. But then something happened. They didn’t finish. They didn’t show up week 16 in a 34-20 loss to the lowly Bengals, eliminating themselves and allowing Kansas City to win the division. It’s like they got so overconfident in their ability to suck in the beginning and finish strong that they forgot to actually put in the effort to finish strong.

They finished the year 9-7, in 2^nd place in the division. Their record ruined Philip Rivers’ MVP case despite Rivers’ amazing stats, 66% completion, 8.7 yards per attempt, 30 touchdowns to 13 picks and a 101.8 QB rating. Had this team made the playoffs, his name would be in there with Brady’s and Vick’s for MVP.

So many of their losses were winnable games if it wasn’t for stupid mistakes, especially on special teams, at the wrong time. Norv Turner should have been fired. They haven’t started a season well in his tenure there and he failed to take easily one of the top 5 most talented teams in the league to the playoffs this year. In fact, this team actually ranked 1^st in yardage defense and offense, and still finished 9-7.

However, Norv Turner will be brought back for financial reasons. This team is too cheap to be paying two coaches at once. Fortunately for them, the Chiefs were exposed as the biggest frauds of the year week 17 and in the playoffs, and the Raiders have been in a bit of disarray since the season ended so if they can get things together, this has to be the favorite in 2011. They just can’t continue to lose so many winnable games.

 

 

2010 Record: 9-7

Draft Position: 18

2010 Season Recap: Click Here

Offseason Needs: Click Here

Free Agents/Team Transactions: Click Here

Draft Grades: Click Here

Key Offseason Moves: Signed Bob Sanders

Chargers Blogger: Steve Adler, Eric Howard, Kyle Wadford

 

2010 Posts 

Chargers Week 8 Preview, San Diego Chargers Week 6, Chargers Recap, Chargers/Seahawks Preview, San Diego Chargers 2010 Season Preview

 

 

Defensive End/Rush Linebacker

Syracuse

6-5 266

Draft board overall prospect rank: #49

Draft board defensive end rank: #4

Overall rating: 76 (2^nd round pick)

40 time: 4.85

Games watched: Syracuse/Connecticut, Syracuse/Pittsburgh

Positives

·         Great natural athleticism

·         Good size (6-5 266)

·         Great hands

·         Long arms (35 inches)

·         Has the ability to add another 15-20 pounds

·         Moves well for his size

·         Solid production in 7 games in 2011 (30 tackles, 7.5 for loss, 4.5 sacks)

·         Physical

·         Plays with good leverage

·         Good strength to anchor

·         Good burst off the line

·         Solid against the run

·         Good motor

·         Strong work ethic

·         All the intangibles

·         3 year starter

·         Has a strong bloodline (his brother Arthur plays for the Ravens and his other brother Jon is a champion MMA fighter)

·         Was on my first round watch list for 2013 before he declared early

·         Great upside

Negatives

·         Not very productive as a pass rusher (10.5 sacks in 3 years)

·         Injury history

·         Probably declared a year early

·         Disappointing 40 time (4.85)

·         Not a quick twitch athlete

·         Only average speed off the edge

·         Concerned about his speed and quickness to play rush linebacker

·         Inexperienced in coverage

·         Undeveloped as a pass rusher

·         Not a wide repertoire of pass rushing moves

·         Weight room strength (22 reps) doesn’t match up to his on the field strength

NFL Comparison: Will Smith

Chandler Jones is one of the players I had on my first round watch list for 2013 who surprisingly declared a year early (Brock Osweiler, Lamar Miller, Rueben Randle, Stephen Hill, Tommy Streeter, Josh Robinson, etc.). Like most of those players, I have a day 2 grade on Chandler Jones, a 2^nd round grade. Stephen Hill is the one exception there because of his amazing Combine.

Jones is a 3 year starter, but managed just 10.5 sacks in those 3 years, 2 as a freshman, 4 as a sophomore, 4.5 as a junior. It’s worth noting that he only played 7 games as a junior due to injuries and could have had a solid sack total had he stayed healthy, but that injury will be a concern for teams going forward. He’s a great athlete who can develop as a pass rusher, but he’s not an elite pass rusher yet.

He’s got long arms and uses his hands well. He gets good burst off the line as well, but he’s not a quick twitch athlete who is going to burn guys off the edge. He also doesn’t have a very mature pass rushing repertoire. He’s solid against the run, but the pass rush isn’t there yet, but, again, he can develop it. He’s got great natural athletic abilities, a strong work ethic, and good bloodlines with his brother Arthur playing for the Ravens and his brother Jon being a UFC Fighter (Jon Bones Jones).

My other concern with him is whether or not he’ll fit a 3-4. He has little to no experience in coverage and he doesn’t seem comfortable in back pedal. He’s also not overly fast off the edge, which is a must for rushing out of a 3-4 scheme as a rush linebacker because they typically start out rushing out of a 2 point stance in space. His 40 time (4.85) was very concerning as well.

He could still be drafted by a 3-4 team, like the Jets at 16, who are known to love him, or the Chargers at 18, but that wouldn’t be his best fit. He reminds me a lot of Will Smith of the New Orleans Saints, a 4-3 end who came into the league at 265, but added 15 pounds to his frame, which Jones can do comfortably. Given that, I think he’s best as a 4-3 end like Smith, who has been solid, but not elite as a pass rusher after going in the first round, with 61.5 sacks in 8 years after going in the first in 2004.

Other options for Jones include Chicago at 19, who is known to be interested, Tennessee at 20, Detroit at 23, New England at 27 or 31, and some 3-4 teams like Green Bay (28), Houston (26), and Baltimore (29). I think it’s pretty unlikely that he’ll fall out of the first round as someone will fall in love with him and his upside, but I have a 2^nd round grade on him because his lack of pass rushing ability and production makes him a pretty boom or bust prospect.

 

 

Bailey’s past his prime and turns 33 this offseason, but he was still one of the better corners in the league last year and 43 million over 4 years, with only 22 million of that guaranteed, is the right amount for someone like him. He probably won’t be worth his entire contract over the life of the contract, but that’s okay because it’s not all guaranteed.

Grade: A

 

 

Trade for Cincinnati: There was almost no chance they were bringing Ocho back. He didn’t want to be there. They wanted to go full force forward with their youth movement at receiver. Plus, Carson Palmer didn’t like playing with him and right now they’re trying to convince Palmer to come out of retirement. Credit them for getting something for him.

Grade: A

Trade for New England: Ochocinco wanted to be a Patriot. He wants to win and I think he’s ready to buy into the Patriot way. This team needed to make their offensive less one-dimensional and adding a deep threat like Ochocinco is what they needed. He comes very cheap for them in terms of draft picks and financial compensation.

Grade: A

 

 

Safety

LSU

6-2 225

40 time: 4.57

Draft board overall prospect rank: #39

Draft board overall safety rank: #4

Overall rating: 81*

3/2/10: A 4.57 isn’t bad at 221 pounds, but he measured in 10 pounds skinnier than expected and didn’t appear to be any faster. He also struggled somewhat in drills and only put up 9 reps on the bench press. He’s still an early 2^nd rounder in my book, though, but barely.

1/23/10: The top strong safety in this draft class, he hits like a linebacker at 6-3 235, but also has experience starting at cornerback for a National Championship team as a freshman so you know his coverage skills are at least decent. He doesn’t have Taylor Mays’ measureables, particularly great timed speed, but he is a better strong safety prospect than Mays and should be drafted first, though I doubt he will be.

            12/26/09: Taylor Mays gets all of the hype with the safety position because of his excellent triangle numbers, height, weight, 40 time, and his big flying hits and just the overall fact that he goes to USC. However, Chad Jones is the better safety prospect and after reviewing some more game footage, my next Big Board will reflect that. Jones is actually bigger than Mays, 6-3 232. He has linebacker size and freakish athleticism and hits like a ton of bricks, but he’s also more fundamentally sound than Mays. He actually wraps up his tackles and plays a ton more controlled. His route to the ball carrier is better than Mays’ but still needs some improvement but with his size and explosion, he really is another linebacker up there on run plays and would be an excellent fit for a 3-4 defense. He plays the pass better than Mays as well and actually has 14 starts at cornerback as a freshman on the LSU National Championship team before moving to free safety for the last two years. His ability to play cornerback, plus his skills as a baseball pitcher, show his freakish athleticism. He also played running back in High School. Athleticism runs in his blood as well. His cousin Rahim Alem also plays on the LSU football team and is considered a late round prospect as a defensive end or rush linebacker. He doesn’t have Mays’ timed speed or upside, but he moves well for his size with a projected low 4.5 40. He can do everything you’d expect out of a strong safety in the NFL. He can patrol a zone, he can make a play on the ball, muscle around a receiver, or man up a tight end, and he can also rush the passer on blitzes something I’ve seen him do very effectively. His hands need a bit of improvement, but that’s not extremely important for his position and he did improve his interception total to 3 this year and is showing off some of his running back skills with 23.7 yards per interception return. His backpedal is a bit sluggish, which is probably part of the reason he’s no longer a cornerback. He’s well coached as part of a strong conservative defense at LSU that has a history of making good NFL defenders, especially safeties. He has about 2 and a half years of starting experience, 1 and a half at safety, and a year at cornerback so the experience is there. The production over those years has been pretty good as well. I think because of his size he’s best suited to be a strong safety in the NFL, but he can also play some free safety with good success and that actually is his primary position in college. His stance on whether or not to declare for the 2010 draft at this point is unknown, but should he declare, once he performs at the combine and in individual workouts and his pro day, he should shoot up into the first round range where he belongs. He has Pro Bowl caliber upside at the next level.

NFL Comparison: Adrian Wilson

 

 

By Paul Smythe 

There is nothing like a nationally televised football game, unless of course, it is a nationally televised Miami Dolphins game. 

This game will be Chad Henne’s first game of the season that will be viewed by the entire country, and I expect him to show up in a big way Sunday night.

This is the game that proves to everyone that Chad Henne is a top quarterback in the NFL, and it could not have come at a better time.

The New York Jets are the perfect team for him to beat.

Practically anyone who follows football in the slightest knows about the self-proclaimed “Super Bowl Champions-to be” New York Jets. The casual fan will probably also know about the New York Jets very good defense because of how much they were talked about so much during the offseason.

Chad Henne, on the other hand, is someone that most casual fans do not know much(if at all) about. Henne has been good so far in just under a full year at the helm of the Miami Dolphins, but he has not been good enough to become a household name. He is no Peyton Manning, and not many people know much about him. Most fans have probably heard of him, but they do not pay much attention to him or consider him to be a really good quarterback.

That will change Sunday night.

Chad Henne is going to have a great game through the air, and people will recognize what he is able to do because of the defense he is playing.

If you walk up to a casual fan and ask him/her what team has the best defense in the NFL (without bias), chances are he/she would say the New York Jets, which is why when Henne shreds their defense Sunday night people will take notice. It won’t even matter that Darrelle Revis is out with an injury because regular fans do not pay attention to names on defense. They just look at how the defense does as a whole.

The Miami Dolphins have not shown much of a passing offense in the previous two weeks, but I have reason to believe that will change. I think the Dolphins have been waiting to unveil their real passing offense until a big division matchup like this one.

This game is more important than either game that the Dolphins have won so far, which is why Miami will throw the ball more. They will need to put up points to assure a win, which would be huge for the AFC East division standings. A 3-0 start would be great for Miami, but it is especially important because it puts the Jets at 1-2.

The biggest impact would be on the mentality of the Jets, though. They came into this season thinking that the Super Bowl was all but theirs, but a loss to a team in their division would be crushing and hard to recover from.

It is a key game, and I don’t see how the Dolphins could do anything but throw the ball to get ahead. Our defense will take care of Mark Sanchez. All we have to do is score.

Henne is capable of being successful. The play-calling has been what has hindered him to this point. The play-calling has to start to favor Chad Henne more if the Miami Dolphins want to continue winning this season.

http://www.dolphinshout.com

Chad Clifton was essentially the savior of the Packers last season. In games he started, the Packers were 7-1 and gave up 13 sacks and in games he did not start, the Packers were 4-4 and gave up 37 sacks. That being said, why would you give this guy 20 million over three years. He turns 34 in June and he has a recent history of injuries. I would have given him at the very most a two year deal, for about 12 million, knowing that there probably won’t not be a lot of teams out there willing to go much more than that, especially when you consider after the Jaguars gave similar money last year to Tra Thomas, who was in a similar point in his career. And if he signed somewhere, else, the worst case was that I’d have to start the left tackle I draft in the first 2 rounds sooner than expected. The Packers still need to draft a left tackle, maybe not as urgently, but it’s still a need. Clifton is old and injury prone and there is almost no depth behind him. All that being said, I can’t hate on them too much for this move, considering how important Clifton is to the team.

Grade: C+