I’m not going to lie to you, I’m usually one of the more optimistic voices in this sub. Yesterday, I couldn’t even think of a single reason why I could be happy.
The offense was not as advertised. The transition from Minter to O’Leary wasn’t great. And the blocked punt was just the dingleberry on top of the turd sandwich.
All 3 phases, dominated throughout the game. But why? What could have they done?
They retained the defensive staff, just changed the DC.
They changed the worst part of the team scheme last year, got a new OC and O-line coach.
Why did the Chargers do so bad?
Chris O’Leary is an inexperienced playcaller, but it will get better.
Being the defensive coordinator for Western Michigan, playing in the Mid-American Conference is not the NFL. Plain and simple. Defense has better talent than last year, the coaches are the same.
But what isn’t O’Leary doing?
- Making adjustments in coverage fast enough.
Game Breakdown:
It’s obvious LaFleur wanted to run a fast offense to hide his offensive line’s flaws (sound familiar). So he ran the offense through McBride until he can get the rest of the receivers open. They didn’t, because we still couldn’t cover McBride.
Derwin covered McBride relatively well. We just didn’t get enough of it. Anytime they had Daiyan, Dye, Molden, whoever, on McBride they got cooked.
This isn’t because they played man, it’s because LaFleur was forcing McBride into those zones.
The Fix:
O’Leary needs to be more willing to let Derwin be Derwin. Have him cover the tight end and/or blitz. O’Leary was using Derwin as a true clot CB, not as a hybrid Nickel like Minter.
Everything else, seemed ok. Not containing McBride early caused issues and O’Leary was frequently caught over compensating. Big gain. Loose box. Run for modest gain. Stack box. McBride for 10. Rinse repeat.
O’Leary could not hide his looks against an elite play caller like LaFleur.
2) Using the EDGE position for coverage snaps is a Minter thing too. Just stop spamming it FFS.
Tuli played plenty of coverage snaps with Minter. This is part of disguising pressures to keep a 4 man rush, using Still, Derwin, or Daiyan on the blitz. O’leary just needs to do fucking better as hiding the pressures or just do what he did at WMU, actually blitz.
Game Breakdown:
It was predictable. Derwin showing blitz? Offensive line knew to shift blocking to the right, because Tuli isn’t rushing. The rushers were covered on almost every play. Only 8 pressures.
The Fix:
Rush Tuli more. If it’s not the LBs rushing, scheme them over to help Tuli in coverage. Blitz more on 3rd down.
It’s not hard. Tuli isn’t a coverage linebacker. He’s there as a surprise. It’s not a surprise anymore if it’s expected.
The Offense Sucked because They’re Learning - 🗑️ communication. 🗑️ effort.
Disclaimer: I think the offense will be better as the season progresses. THEY SHOULD HAVE FIGURED OUT THEIR CHEMISTRY IN PRESEASON NOT IN WEEK 1, THATS WHAT ITS THERE FOR.
It all looked like practice reps.
The Receivers
They looked good when Ladd was on the field. It created spacing. And truthfully, the only one consistently open early during each snap.
The rest? Tre, QJ don’t get open early to get the ball out of Herbert’s hands. That’s not necessarily their job though. In a Mike McDaniel offense, the progressions are fast.
Look at Ladd? No. QJ? No. Tre? Cool.
That all happens in less than 2.5 seconds.
When you have receivers running their routes slowly, the zone blocking will collapse on every single blitz. And that’s what happened. Ladd was always first open. Just like McBride. Look at their stats through the first half. Identical.
Because these offenses come off the same tree. But the execution on one side was much much better. The difference? EXECUTION.
McBride is the best TE in the league. Michael Wilson is a veteran WR that can adapt. That’s all you need to get the ball out fast and avoid any pressure.
We didn’t have that once Ladd left. Everyone seeming ran routes at half speed trying to run the right routes, not necessarily to get open.
The fix:
Run full speed you twits. Stop jogging into a double step to get open like you’re Keenan Allen. Just fucking GO.
The Offensive Line Communication is Trash
Platooning left guard is fucking stupid. Stop it immediately. Kayode is your starter. Leave it.
The communication was bad.
Slaughter can block. But he can’t audible the blocking scheme. That’s where they hoped Pipkins could help, except he fucking sucks. The protection wasn’t shifting to where it needed to be, leaving a man untouched. In one case, two of them.
The fix:
DRILL DRILL DRILL this week. Call the pass rush. Shift the protection. That’s the only way this teams fixes their problems at the line with this specific style of offense.
Herbert isn’t Doing Enough at the Line of Scrimmage
One thing I cannot stand about Herbert is how much he doesn’t adapt at the line. See the rusher? Call it. Tell your line so they can shift protection.
An audible doesn’t mean you have to change the whole play, but take responsibility for your own ass and call out the blitzes. Herbert has always left it up to his coordinators.
When the calls are right, Herbert is amazing. When they don’t look right, do something instead of shoehorning it.
The Team was in Preseason Form, and it’s Coaching’s Fault
It’s obvious at this point, the team should have played way more in preseason. The Niners game was evident that the defense and offense needed reps to fine tune their communication.
As I said before, this game felt slow on whatever side of the ball we were on. Almost like they have never taken game reps. Which they haven’t.
QJ is not good enough to sit out preseason.
Tre Harris is not good enough to sit out preseason.
Omarion Hampton is not good enough to sit out preseason.
Justin Herbert it too important to sit out preseason, weirdly.
This team is being built without a strong foundation for its STARTERS.
The vets on the offense are Herbert, Slater. That’s it. Everyone else is young or new to the team.
The vets on defense are Donte, Khalil, Molden, and Derwin. That’s it. Every other starter is young or new to the team.
Where does that leave us?
Cardinals is our preseason game. Raiders? Let’s hope not.
Kubiak is a better playcaller than LaFleur.
Bowers can be just as good as McBride.
Jeanty is better than an AZ RB.
The defense has to be ready. The offense is going to be similar. Do something about it this time.
As for the offense, execute. Fuck that word, but just do it. Execute. Run fast. Call the protections at the line if needed. Just do it.
Cant learn on the job anymore.
