Football notes

Chargers have more than talent going for them

By Albert R. Breer

November 29, 2009

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It has been four years now that the Chargers have heard it.

How loaded their roster is. How they could probably win the otherwise meek AFC West playing 10-on-11 all game. How young they are, and how, through the shrewd general managing of A.J. Smith, they’re set up for years to come.

And as time has gone on, that “Most Talented Team in Football’’ moniker has taken on a negative connotation.

At first, it denoted a bright future. Now, it illuminates so much lost opportunity.

“Don’t believe the hype,’’ said linebacker Shaun Phillips. “Every season, everyone says the Chargers have the most talent. We have the record, we win our division, but we’ve walked away without what we really want.

“We had to set our own expectations. Our bar has to be higher, and higher in every gauge.

“We can’t think about the Super Bowl in Week 10. Hey, a 10-0 team can lose its next six.’’

But it doesn’t look like that is on the horizon in San Diego.

Under Norv Turner, the team is 16-5 in November and December. The Chargers finished the last two seasons on winning streaks of six and four games, and haven’t lost a game in December since 2005.

And while so much AFC attention has been on the Colts and Patriots and Steelers and Bengals, the Chargers have built up the kind of equity they haven’t had recently. Two years ago, they were 5-5 through 10 games. Last year, they were 4-6.

By winning five straight, and beating the Giants, Eagles, and Broncos in succession, the Chargers took sole possession of first place in the West at 7-3. Yes, they stumbled early again. This time, they got it together quicker.

“Each year, there’s been a different reason why we struggle early,’’ said Turner. “And each year, we got to a point where we got healthy, hit our stride, and started playing the way we are capable of playing.’’

One reason for tripping out of the gate this year: a cataclysmic opening night in Oakland.

Linchpin nose tackle Jamal Williams was lost for the year with a triceps injury. Center Nick Hardwick sustained an ankle injury he still hasn’t returned from. LaDainian Tomlinson (ankle) and rookie starting guard Louis Vasquez (knee) suffered injuries that sidelined them for the rest of September. Shawne Merriman, Travis Johnson, and Antwan Applewhite also went down.

Turner says he’s “never been in a game like that,’’ and as such, the team had to adjust. Going into a three-game stretch with Baltimore, Miami, and Pittsburgh would provide a physical test for a healthy team.

Things got so bad that the Chargers had only four healthy defensive linemen in Pittsburgh, and one of them, Jacques Cesaire, was injured in warmups. But somehow, they had the resolve to close a 28-0 deficit to 35-28 before falling, 38-28. Likewise, they went to the wire with Baltimore in the game after the Oakland debacle, then beat Miami soundly.

“That’s where you find out what you’re made of,’’ emerging star receiver Vincent Jackson said. “You see what young guys are going to step up. Who wants to be a player? You learn something about yourself when you’re challenged like that.’’

So while the public saw another slow Charger start - 2-3 after a loss to Denver following the bye - Turner saw something else.

“We got healthier,’’ he said. “And we didn’t play as poorly as it might’ve seemed against Denver; they had two touchdowns on returns.’’

There were some shifts along the way. Getting Vasquez entrenched alongside backup center Scott Mruczkowski helped, and Hardwick’s return will only further solidify the line.

On defense, the club has activated six linemen on game days - they’d dressed five in the past - rotated freely, and schemed more aggressively to fill Williams’s void.

The in-season releases of established starters Chris Chambers and Clinton Hart opened the door for youngsters Legedu Naanee and Malcom Floyd on offense, and rookie Kevin Ellison on defense. And while old standbys Phillips and Merriman battled nagging injuries early, and neither had a sack through five games, they’ve combined for 10 in their last five games.

“Everyone says, ‘You’re bouncing back,’ but we were never down,’’ Phillips said. “Our record didn’t indicate it, but we only needed to keep getting better. And we have.’’

They’re still doing little things to prepare now for January.

One is managing Tomlinson, who has missed the last two playoff ousters. Turner wants to see him in the 16- to 18-carry range, and has gone almost exclusively to Darren Sproles in passing situations. Another is handing the reins of the offense to Philip Rivers, who had managed a run-first team in the past.

“I firmly believe that you have to ask more of your quarterback than that to win at the highest level in this league,’’ said Turner.

So is this a championship team?

“Absolutely,’’ said Jackson. “You got to have that mentality, and we have a belief in this locker room.’’

Turner isn’t willing to make that leap yet. But he likes what he sees, and he sees a team that isn’t worried about being “most talented’’ anymore.

“That was something this team had to get through,’’ Turner said. “And besides, we’ve had so many changes, that ‘most talented team,’ this isn’t the same group. That’s not an issue anymore.

“We tell them, ‘You got to earn what you get in this league.’ And our guys do.’’

YOUR NAME HERE

Rights still available for grand venues in Arlington and N.J.

In the first nine years of the millennium, the ribbon was cut on 10 new NFL stadiums (not including the revamped Soldier Field), and nine of them carried corporate names. The one exception, Cincinnati’s downtown digs, avoided that by choice; Bengals owner Mike Brown baptized it Paul Brown Stadium after his father, the franchise founder.

This year, the league’s first billion-dollar venue opened in Arlington, Texas. Next year, an even more expensive stadium will open in East Rutherford, N.J., with the $1.6 billion price tag easily outdistancing the $1.15 billion the Cowboys palace cost.

Neither has a naming-rights deal of yet. And the reason is pretty simple. The economy is making it difficult for companies to commit the kind of windfall that the teams would normally be able to command.

“I think you’d be naive to think the economic environment hasn’t changed,’’ Cowboys COO Stephen Jones said. “But it’s not just the economy. It has to be the right partner, that goes hand-in-hand with our brand and has the same beliefs we have. We’re looking for a good match.’’

One factor at work in both cases is that prospective partners are facing an uphill public-relations battle in striking such a deal. Doesn’t look so good if a company lays off employees one day, then commits hundreds of millions to a naming-rights agreement.

And these won’t be garden-variety pacts. The Cowboys’ fan base is truly national, the club’s television ratings are consistently among the league’s best, and the stadium has already secured a bevy of high-profile non-NFL events, plus Super Bowl XLV. The new stadium at the Meadowlands will host 16 NFL games per year and is in the nation’s No. 1 media market.

And considering the enormous cost of these stadiums, none of the parties involved are looking to discount their rate.

“We’re very comfortable with the name ‘Cowboys Stadium’; it’s great branding for the franchise,’’ Jones said. “When a partner makes real sense, we’ll consider that, but we won’t rush into something.’’

NO ADVERSE REACTION

After getting benched, Young has proven to be a stand-up guy

One of the big questions surrounding Vince Young after he was benched by Tennessee in September 2008 was how he would be able to deal with adversity.

After all, this was a kid who was Parade National Player of the Year in high school, went 30-2 with a national title as Texas’s starter, was NFL Rookie of the Year, then guided the Titans to the playoffs in his second season. Where did he ever struggle?

His offensive coordinator at Texas, Greg Davis, can give you an example. Davis benched Young during the Longhorns’ 2003 Holiday Bowl loss to Washington State.

“He came back that January and asked me, ‘Coach, what do I need to do to not let that happen again?’ ’’ Davis said. “I said, ‘Get in the film room, study and prepare.’ He didn’t like being benched. I don’t know many players who would, but he didn’t pout. He went to work.’’

That is why Davis thinks the benching in Tennessee might have been the best thing ever to happen to Young.

In his four starts this season, Young has completed 56 of 84 passes (67 percent) for 623 yards, three touchdowns, a pick, and a 95.5 rating. One thing that’s helped, Davis thinks, is the Titans tailoring to Young’s strengths - the speed-option he’s been running with Chris Johnson is one example - the way Texas did when it installed the zone-read option upon his arrival in Austin.

Young’s 4-0 mark this year, on the heels of an 0-6 Titan start, pushes his record to 23-11 as an NFL starter, making him 53-13 since high school. Davis believes that’s no coincidence.

“I was raised in a time where from Friday at noon until the game started Saturday, no one smiled,’’ Davis said. “Vince isn’t like that. We’re getting ready to play for the national title at the Rose Bowl, he’s on the field, dancing, fooling around. And he asked me why I was so serious. I said, ‘Hey, you get ready a little different than me.’

“He had the ability to go from that mentality to being one of the great competitors I’ve ever been around.’’

Etc.

With Caldwell, Polian moves, Colts make sure they don’t break stride

The Colts’ 10-0 start has to be attributed, at least in part, to their foresight in instituting a succession plan to replace Tony Dungy. The transition to Jim Caldwell has been seamless since he was announced as head-coach-in-waiting in January 2008. When the Colts named Chris Polian, 38, general manager last week, a similar dynamic was created in the Indianapolis front office. Chris’s father Bill Polian - who will merit Hall of Fame consideration - will retain final say, and hand things over to the son upon retirement. Chris Polian has been a hot commodity, interviewing for the Chiefs GM job that went to Scott Pioli last year. He figured to be among the top GM candidates available in the next hiring cycle. Last month, Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff called Polian “a strong system guy who’s experienced a lot. Early on, he was involved in college [scouting], and as he got older, he was more involved on the pro side. He knows the inner workings of his dad’s building process more than anyone. He’s gotten involved in the cap and the decisions. He’s really done it all.’’

Young guns are firing blanks

Can we all agree now that the success the quarterback class of 2008 had in its first year was the exception and not the rule? This year’s three first-round quarterbacks are 7-17, and the highest-rated passer among them is Tampa Bay’s Josh Freeman, who, unlike Mark Sanchez and Matthew Stafford, sat through September and October before getting the starting job. His rating is a ghastly 63.8, weighed down by the fact that he’s completing only 51.0 percent of his passes. Freeman has shown promise, but he threw three picks in a blowout loss to the Saints last Sunday. Yet his reaction was encouraging to coach Raheem Morris. “He got up and accepted responsibility for what he did,’’ Morris said. “He looks to go correct it. That’s what you ask out of a young quarterback.’’ And that means, Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco notwithstanding, things are back to normal. One thing Freeman needs to improve on is playing the position from under center. Fox Sports did a study that showed, prior to last week, Freeman had a 105 rating from the shotgun (which he played a great deal at Kansas State) but an 18.9 rating under center.

Eagles fly low along offensive line

In the offseason, the Eagles seemed to pull an impressive trick - replacing two anchors on their offensive line with players eight years younger. Yet the Eagles may be longing for Tra Thomas and Jon Runyan now. Left tackle Jason Peters, imported via trade from Buffalo, has struggled with a high ankle sprain all season, and big-ticket free agent Stacy Andrews (who has struggled after offseason ACL surgery) was inactive in Chicago, after making just his second start of the season the week before in San Diego. Those two cost a total of $40 million guaranteed and, for Peters, three draft picks. Meanwhile, former Pro Bowler Shaun Andrews - moved to right tackle when his brother Stacy arrived to play right guard - is set undergo a second back surgery this week, after going on IR before the season. Donovan McNabb has been sacked almost as many times in 10 games (22) as he was all last year (23). But after McNabb took three more sacks Sunday, coach Andy Reid took some heat off the line, saying, “Can the line do better? Absolutely. But everyone has a little piece of those sacks and they are distributed across the board with the offensive players, and at times the coaches.’’

And for his next act . . .

The Versus program “Sports Jobs with Junior Seau’’ debuts Wednesday night at 10, and the 20-year NFL linebacker is excited to see what comes of it, as he is considering a second career in the entertainment industry. “It’s definitely something I’ve wanted to look into,’’ he said. “You go through that first year, you see how it works out, and we’re pretty proud of it, so we’ll see what happens.’’ As for his top post-football priority, Seau said, “I want to surf, that’s all I want to do. My life is simple.’’ He remained coy on his plans to make a splash on TV, be it as a football commentator or some kind of entertainer. “We’ll look at the ratings,’’ he said, “and go from there.’’

Quietly running an out pattern

Isaac Bruce’s release by San Francisco Friday came with little fanfare, and his career may flicker away without many noticing - the way so many NFL careers do. But it’s worth noting that Bruce is the leader among active players in catches (1,024) and receiving yards (15,208), and is fifth and second all-time in those categories. He trails only Terrell Owens and Randy Moss among active players in touchdown catches with 91. He seems no lock for the Hall of Fame, despite being a key to one of his generation’s most prolific offenses, and the owner of the above numbers. Why? Entrance requirements are in flux for receivers, with changes in the passing game. Case in point: Andre Reed retired third all-time in catches and seventh in touchdown catches, and he isn’t in.

Quick counts

He still has to prove he can last, but this stat should illuminate what has been right about Brett Favre’s comeback: A 21-3 TD-INT ratio. That, believe it or not, is on pace to shatter the season record set by Tom Brady in 2007 (50-8) . . . With their Monday night win, the Titans became the first team to win four straight after an 0-6 start. And they may have saved coach Jeff Fisher’s job. Word was the loyal coach was going to have to make some hard decisions with his staff if things didn’t turn around . . . How is Brady’s comeback going? He can tie the NFL record for most consecutive 300-yard games with his sixth straight tomorrow night.

Albert R. Breer can be reached at abreer@globe.com.