The Chargers: Draft Day Winners! But Will They Be Victorious On The Field?

No Comments May 12, 2017 Chargers By John Stellman

Maybe the Chargers should have audibilized.

They needed to go in a different direction.

StubHub Center should have been the call, not the ESPN Zone in Downtown Disney.

They could have accommodated all 30,000 season ticket holders.

Majority Left Out!

Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough room for the other 28,000

It was their second Los Angeles Draft Day Party, and first since 1960.

I hope the Chargers haven’t underestimated the interest they’ve created.

For those elitist who showed up in Anaheim, Charger blue was the attire of the day.

From hats, to hoodies to shirts.

They were excited, enthusiastic and boisterous.

And they came from everywhere.

Los Angeles, Cypress, Westchester, West Covina, Norwalk, Pasadena, Lynwood and Glendora.

Not True – Fans Everywhere!

“All that stuff you’ve heard about no Charger fans up here, it’s just social media talk. And the media in general.

“For whatever reason they love to get a kick out of trying to say there’s no Charger fans.

“But that’s not true at all. For years many of us drove two hours to watch them play in San Diego. There were a ton of us.

“But it seems like everyone wants to go that wav and say there’s no Charger fans,” concluded Ernesto Beltran, 37, who resides in South Los Angeles.

No Enemy Takeover!

“I think a lot of people are going to be surprised as the year goes on, just how much support they actually have here. Especially at StubHub Center.

“It’s not going to be like Qualcomm when the other teams’ fans took over the stadium,” promised 63-year old John Lopez of Anaheim.

“We’ve been here the whole time. We’re here and we’re strong. People will see that.” offered Long Beach’s David Michael, 33

“I have to say I’m pleasantly surprised.

“I thought it might be a bit of a challenge, selling season tickets and building a new fan base.

“But it’s obvious there are fans here, and I’m sure plenty of fans will make the drive like I will,” said Kelly Shaw, 28, of Temecula.

Solid Fan Base

“It’s not true, whatever you’ve heard about Charger fans up here, There’s definitely a fan base up here. It’s not the biggest. But then the Charger fan base in general is one of the smallest in the NFL.

“But with the move up here, a lot of those so-called closet Chargers fans are coming out.

“And if they put a good product on the field and win games, I think it will continue to grow over time,” suggested 36-year old Ray Williams.

The process to achieve that goal began next to the “Happiest Place On Earth”.

Experts Agree

And the pundits – from Sports Illustrated’s Chris Burke to Pro Football Focus’ Steve Palazzolo to Fox Sports’s Dieter Kurtenbach to MMOB’s Peter King to to ESPN’s Todd McShay to NFL.com’s Chad Reuter – all rated the Chargers draft class among the BEST!

“He (General Manager Tom Telesco) know’s what good players look like.

“He’s very adept at identifying them and finding them,” Tony Dungy told the NFL Network upon the 44-year old’s hiring in 2013.

Burke gave the Chargers’ draft an “A” rating and called their top selection, Clemson wide receiver Mike Williams, “an exciting pick”.

“It’s still kind of a dream come true. “It’s everything I’ve dreamed of; with my mom last night and the rest of my family, it felt like a dream come true.

“Just for everybody to come there who helped me get to this moment, my family (and) my friends. Just to celebrate with those guys was fun,” Williams said.

Just Like L.A. Freeways

Williams, the No. 7 pick overall, is a big, physical, possession receiver who is clutch in traffic. Last season he gathered in 17 of 29 passes that were thrown to him in “congested situations”.

“(I felt like I could go anywhere) from five to 15…. I felt like there were some teams there who needed receivers. I felt like three receivers could come off the board during that time period.

“I felt like everything happens for a reason. I came back to Clemson and got my degree, (and) came out with a National Championship.

“The injury just put my game to the next level because it just showed me that I (can’t) take anything for granted.

“The game can be taken from me at any time. I just (used) that injury for a lot of motivation,” the 6’3, 225-pound receiver conceded.

If oft-injured wideout Keenan Allen, who has played in just nine games over the past two seasons, can stay healthy, the tandem could be explosive and exciting.

Beaten Unmercifully

The beneficiary of all this is Philip Rivers.

But for the 35-year old quarterback to get the ball out to Williams and Keenan, he needs to remain upright.

The Decatur, Alabama native was pounded into the turf 36 times last season.

Telesco took a giant step in that direction with the pre-draft free agent signing of tackle Russell Okung and the selections of guards Forrest Lamp and Dan Feeney.

“Both players are pretty polished,” the GM analysed. “Good technicians.”

Lamp is a four year starter at Western Kentucky who last year over powered Alabama pass rushers Tim Williams and Ryan Anderson.

In his three dominate seasons at Indiana, Feeney allowed his quarterback to be sacked just twice and hit only four times in 1,239 pass attempts.

“When you have a chance to shore up an offensive line with two good young players like that, I think you have to do it,” said head coach Anthony Lynn.

The Chargers made Iowa offensive tackle Sam Tevi their sixth pick.

Los Angeles’ rushing game ranked 26th in the league last season, mustering up just 1,510 yards.

Secondary Help

Miami safety Rayshawn Jenkins (No.4) should feel comfortable in Gus Bradley’s defense.

Corner Desmond King (No.5) contained 186 of 197 ball carriers that challenged him. He is a former Jim Thorpe Award winner and a play maker on defense.

The Chargers chose Notre Dame defensive lineman Issac Rochell with their seventh pick.

Still, it was protecting Rivers that was one of Telesco’s top priorities.

Los Angeles responded by drafting more offensive linemen than any other team in the league.

Rivers, a six time Pro Bowl selection, completed 60.4 percent of his passes last year. He got the pigskin to 33 receivers in the end zone, but on 21 occasions threw into the hands of opponents.

The North Carolina State graduate is entering his 12th season as a starter.

On The Move

Rivers’ 45,833 yards ranks 12th on the All-Time passing list. If he puts together another 4,000-plus season, he’ll move into seventh place, just 167 yards shy of 50,000.

But for him, it’s more about winning than individual accomplishments.

“This draft tells – it wasn’t about telling me – but I think it tells our team, which is something we already believe.

“I think the pieces we’ve added can help us get that.

“And I think it tells the fans, ‘Hey we think we’ve got a chance to compete for a championship right now.’ I know the guys in the locker room believe that,” a succinct Rivers stated.

Obviously those 30,000 fans who purchased season tickets are also believers!

The Southern California News Group Contributed To This Article

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John Stellman

I was born with sports in my blood. I began coaching little league baseball at 15. I was the sports editor of my high school newspaper. I did football play by play for the college radio station. I broadcast high school basketball for a local commercial station. But baseball was always my passion. During the 1970's I covered the Angels for the Orange County Register. And now I am back where I belong...