The San Diego Chargers are heading into a very important season in franchise history as they transition away from Norv Turner and start a new era with head coach Mike McCoy and a big part of that transition will be the play of quarterback Philip Rivers and the offense around him.
The Chargers have dealt with disappointment after missing the playoffs over the past couple years and talented teams have underperformed under Turner, which led the franchise to move on from him and AJ Smith as general manager. The team went just 7-9 last season and dealt with a number of injuries, but with McCoy now in the fold the Chargers feel that they can once again challenge in the AFC West and that means the Denver Broncos, who won the division last year with a 13-3 record.
One of the biggest issues for the team last season was the offensive line and the running game, which suffered from injuries to Ryan Mathews and others, leaving the team to rank 27th in the league in rushing yards per game. The team will be looking to improve in that area to give Rivers more consistency on offense and after drafting Keenan Allen, there is a good chance that the passing game will improve as well.
Rivers was sacked way too much last year and did not have enough time to throw, which is why McCoy and the team have focused on improving the offensive line this season. The team drafted DJ Fluker with their number one pick in the draft and also signed Max Starks to a contract, two moves that should drastically improve the line this year. The unit overall allowed nearly 50 sacks on Rivers and after that stat, only Nick Hardwick will be returning from last year, as the team ditched the disappointing Jared Gaither.
The team has Fluker to play at right tackle and Starks at left tackle, while King Dunlap will also be in the mix on the blindside after showing some skills. Dunlap is younger and could press Starks, but since the team signed him to a contract, there is a chance that he has the edge in training camp. The guards from last season in Louis Vasquez and Tyronne Green are now gone and Chad Rinehart and Jeromey Clary look like the likely options after working in OTAs, but both Rich Ohrnberger and Johnnie Troutman could push for playing time.
There's almost no way the line will be as bad as it was last season and if Rivers can use Allen and Danario Alexander to get the passing game going again, there is a good chance the Chargers will be in the mix for a wild card spot. The NFL always has teams make the playoffs after missing out one year to the next and the chargers are likely to fill that role.
