With day 5 wrapping up at Chargers Park new Head Coach Mike McCoy has his team working hard and fast. As a play caller for the Broncos McCoy’s offense was fast pace and had a lot of no huddle plays, that has not changed. Every time Philip Rivers completes a pass or Ryan Mathews breaks a long run the whole offense runs up to the line and gets the next play off. One thing that has changed in Chargerland is that the Head Coach now looks over the defense and give his input. McCoy likes the intensity that his defense is playing at with veterans like LB Donald Butler and FS Eric Weedle leading them. McCoy said that he is learning how to be a head coach as he goes and is trying to learn as quickly as he can.
One of the Chargers big offseason pick ups was RB Danny Woodhead who is 5’8 but plays bigger than his height. All weekend the talk at Chargers Park was that Woodhead bounces off of players and has a sudden burst when he gets past the humongous O-Line. On one play Woodhead was starting to run in between RG Jeromey Clary and RT DJ Fluker but saw LB Manti Te’o waiting for him so he cut back and burst around Fluker for 6. “Those teams with good chemistry are always the best,” Woodhead said at today’s press conference. Woodhead and company have no time to waste because the Seattle Seahawks come to town August 10th.
Head Coach Mike McCoy
How did it go today?
“Not bad, it’s the give and take of training camp. The defense won their fair share of battles. I think there was some good tight coverage. They did a nice job during the one on one drill. Finishing up, the offense got the better of it with short yardage plays at the end. It’s training camp, everyone is working extremely hard. We started a little slow, but we just need to keep getting a little better every day, that is the key.
Is it the period of training camp when players are starting to feel the it?
“Without a doubt. These are the dog days of camp and you have to fight through it. You have to tell yourself, everyone is going to get tired, sore and a little banged up. You just have to fight through and keep learning. We throw a lot at the players, installation-wise, and they are starting to feel information overload. When you get tired, you start to make mistakes. They just need to focus. It’s going to be hot and humid. When we play the fourth quarter of games you need to suck it up and can’t feel sorry for yourself.”
Do you think it’s warmer out here?
“I love the environment here.”
How did Donald Butler do today?
“He did a nice job. He has made some plays for us and is buying in to what we’re trying to get him to do. He has great speed and had some great opportunities to make a few big plays today and that’s what he did.”
How do you keep the rookies mentally focused while transitioning from college to the pro level?
“You have to tell them to stay positive. They’re going to make some mistakes and they’re going to get beat. Everyone in this league gets beat from time to time. The key is to minimize the mental mistakes. We’re looking for the guys who know what to do first. We have to mask those things that do not require talent; work hard every day, know what to do and everything else will take care of itself.”
How’s the defense looking this year with so many new and rookie players?
“They did a nice job. It’s not just that position. There are a lot of young players all around this football team. That’s what we have to do, as an organization and as a staff is develop some good, young players and develop depth. Every roster is made a little different, some with more experience than others. We have a great opportunity with these young players to see what they can do. They’ll have a lot of playing time in the preseason games and have a lot of work ahead of them. The coaches are doing a great job with them. They’re showing the old guys and the young guys exactly what we’re trying to get done here. For young players this is a great opportunity to learn from some of the great players we have. We have a lot of crafty veterans who have done it for a long time, so it’s a great way for them to learn from the best.”
Have you seen anything specific from Cam Thomas?
“He’s done a great job of plugging up the inside. We have to stop the run, so he is going to be lined up over the center more often than not to clog up the inside. In the pass rush, he needs to push the pocket inside. A lot of teams teach their quarterback to step-up in the pocket if there is a hard outside pass rush. We have some good pass rushers here on the outside edge, so if we can push inside, our defensive line will create some opportunities for our secondary to make plays.”
How are the new faces in the secondary doing?
“They’re doing a good job. The first day of camp, we gave up too many big plays over the top of our heads, but we have minimized those in the past few days. We keep telling the guys to keep it in front of them. Make a team go 12 or 15 plays in order to score points. Don’t give up a series in two or three plays. There is a lot of new things we’re doing now. We have added a few wrinkles. We’re throwing a lot at them and are going to figure out what works best. The key thing on offense, defense and special teams is communication. If all 11 guys are doing the right thing and on the same page then you have a chance. When you don’t communicate, you start making mistakes.”
A lot of players left practice early this week, is that a concern?
“It’s a part of training camp. This is what happens. You get dinged up trying to get into football shape. We’ve said from day one that it’s going to be physical. There’s only one way to get in football shape and that is to practice the way we are right now. The players have to also mentally fight through it. It might be a ding, but how serious is it? It’s a long year for coaches but they’re still here at 5 o’clock every day. It’s all a part of it and we have to be smart as an organization to recognize when to pull a guy from practice or rest certain older players. We’ll make the best decision for the football team on how to rest those guys.”
As a guy with an offensive background, does it make you smile when the defense gets beat over the top?
“I’m learning on the job. Whenever you’re an offensive-minded head coach, the defensive players always say you give them too much credit and when you’re a defensive minded head coach like John Fox and other guys I’ve worked with, then the offensive players say you’re favoring them. I’m quickly learning on how to straddle the fence a little bit and work both ways. On the first day our DBs gave up five big plays and it’s great to see Philip throw the deep ball, but at the same time we cannot give up big plays. It depends on the mindset I’m in at the time whether it’s good or bad. You learn it’s never right, that’s why I like to watch special teams.”
Can you talk about Max Starks starting at tackle today?
“We’ve said all long we’re going to rotate the guys up front. We have to find the best five guys. It doesn’t matter what the combination is, we’ll rotate guys through and put the best together. Also, when we make that decision, we’ll try to keep those five together, but we’re going to constantly roll guys in because injuries happen during the season and everyone needs to be ready to play. We’re probably only going to have seven active on the roster, so we need position flexibility. We are going to give the guys as much action as possible while still staying as healthy as possible.”
Are the players still getting equal reps?
“Yes, but that’s going to gradually change. The players will have tomorrow off and then we are back Wednesday. We’re going to start adjusting as we get going. As we get closer to games we need to up the reps to make sure when we put a 10 play drive together in a game we can handle it.”
Running Back Danny Woodhead
With Day 5 of training camp, is the heat starting to set in?
During camp, there are going to be times where it’s going to be a grind and it’s something you have to block out. I would say that now our legs are starting to get a little more used to it. On day 3 and 4 we probably felt the pain a little more. You have to push yourself and be more concerned with what you’re supposed to do.
Coming over to San Diego, What has it been like adjusting to the new team?
It’s all about getting into the locker room and building chemistry with the team. We’re a team, we are going to be together for months and we need to make sure we are tight and have good chemistry. Those teams with good chemistry are always the best. They mesh well together and get all 11 guys on the same page.
How do you think the running back core is looking this year?
That’s something you have to ask Ollie (Wilson), Mike or (Ken) Whisenhunt. I’m not a judge. We’d like to think that on every play we do everything to help the team succeed, but I can’t answer for myself or for any other player. The coaches are the ones that critique the films and say how good or bad I’m doing.
On Keenan Allen… Have you heard him sing?
I have heard him sing, he’s not too bad and definitely got into it. Now (D.J.) Fluker did alright too, he’s got a little gospel in him.
