SB Nation - Luis Castillo

Ogemdi Nwagbuo Needs Your Help

John (obviousman) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:06:47 -0000

That's right faithful BFTBers, Ogemdi Nwagbuo is asking for your help. He wants more Twitter followers. Not that he's planning on getting in trouble with his Twitter account, he just wants more people to chat with when he's bored (which I'm sure he will be often while rehabbing). He's also tired of hearing the rest of the defense brag about how many Tiwtter followers they have.

So go to OG's Twitter here and follow him. Tweet to all of your San Diego friends to follow him. Grab every man, woman and child you see walking down the street with a Chargers jersey, shirt or hat on and tell them "Follow OG's Twitter!" Besides the fact that you're a Chargers fans, there are legitimate reasons for helping out OG....

He's a San Diego native, which means there's a good chance of you bumping into him in the future. Don't you want to say "I follow you on Twitter"? It's much less creepy than "I'm your biggest fan!"
He might just be the future Nose Tackle of the Chargers. If he is, chances are he'll anchor the line for a long time. Wouldn't it be smart to get on his good side?
He's a good Twitterer. Steve Gregory and Jamal Williams have 1 combined tweets since training camp. You don't need to be following them. OG has 11 tweets in the last 5 hours, stating his opinions and chatting up fans.
He'll owe you. Request a specific sack celebration (stanky leg!), find out what he was thinking on a specific play or get him to retweet some info to the masses. Go ahead. He'll owe you.
He had surgery yesterday (I think), and flew to North Carolina to have it done. Not only should you be nice to somebody who just had surgery, but North Carolina in the middle of December is no place for a San Diegan.
Think about BFTB! If we get OG a couple thousand followers, maybe he'll create an account and start commenting. Maybe he'll start writing FanPosts. At the very least, it should get us a few interviews and a friendly face the next time a BFTB writer is in the Chargers locker room.
You'll look smart. If OG is the successor to Jamal WIlliams at the NT, he'll be a star in San Diego. Right now? He's not a star. He's a project. If you've known about him, and have even been following his tweets since his rookie season you'll look like you know everything about the Chargers. You'll also look like you can predict the future.

Getting Ogemdi to Antonio Cromartie's level (20,000+ followers) in a few days may be asking too much, but I see no reason why we can't help him get past Steve Gregory (1,500 followers) and Jamal WIlliams (2,400 followers), up into the range of Luis Castillo (5,800+ followers). We have that kind of audience here. So do what you need to do, and let's build OG a Twitter fanbase.

State of the AFC West Week 13

Sam (sdsuaztec4) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 07:16:37 -0000

More photos » by Amy Sancetta - AP

Dude, smell my fingers! (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)

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Good news, everyone! The Chargers can become the first member of the AFC West to clinch a spot in the playoffs if they beat the Cowboys, like 8 other teams lose, Tim Tebow dies for our sins, and Brett Favre retires for the rest of the regular season and makes a comeback in the playoffs...for the Broncos.

Anyway, after being left for dead (by me and the MSM at least) after their 4 game losing streak, the Broncos have come back with two dominating victories over the G-Men and the Chiefs to stay within 1 game of the Chargers. The Chargers have a tough 3 game stretch (@DAL, vs. CIN, @TEN) but hold the tiebreaker over Denver so the Chargers still hold the best position to win their 4th straight AFC West title.

The Raiders now have two big wins on their schedule after the Gradkowski led them on multiple 4th quarter TD drives to win over the Stillers in Pittsburgh, something the Chargers couldn't do. While they still aren't very good, the are now clearly much better than the sucky sucky Chiefs. (HA! Take that Chiefs fans! I called your team sucky!) Let's see if the Raiders can beat the Broncos and prove they can win a division game (other than over the Chiefs, HA!) and maybe we'll think about considering whether the Raiders can be relevant again anytime soon.

Click the jump link thingy. Please.

AFC West Standings

	W	L	PF	PA
San Diego	9	3	342	242
Denver	8	4	240	202
Oakland	4	8	142	282
Kansas City	3	9	196	326

(updated 12.8.2009 at 1:21 AM PST)

Kansas City Chiefs: The whispers are Matt Cassel better get his act together soon are he might go the way of the Dodo. I'm not sure what they expected from a career backup who came from the devious Patriots. Although Josh McDaniels sure wanted him and he obviously knows about him. On the other hand, maybe he was just feigning interest to get the Chiefs in on him to guarantee they would suck. Josh is pretty douchy like that, coming from the counsel of Bill Belichick. All of that, and now the Chiefs might be facing the first blackout in like a really really long time. Not to mention they've only won one homegame out of the last 12. Anyway, enough bashing on the Chiefs. If you don't have anything nice to say, you shouldn't say anything at all, right? That Jamaal Charles guy is really good.

Oakland Raiders: Even if their best defensive player is out and their QB is coming back from his 23rd concussion, anytime you beat the Steelers on their home field it is impressive. Anytime your QB leads you on two 4th quarter TD drives that's impressive. Gradkowski has now led two winning drives in the final two minutes in three weeks. Vote in the poll for the AFC West Question of the WEEK! Was Jamarcus Russell such a black hole of Suck that he made the entire team awful? Or are the Raiders just catching some breaks and playing teams at the right time? 400 yards of offense by the Raiders on Hienz field. Think about that. This is way too much Raider love though; probably because I hate the Steelers more than the Raiders because the Raiders suck and they have two former Aztecs starters on their team. (C. Shillens and K. Morrison).

Denver Broncos: So, after getting shellacked in Denver by the Bolts, the Broncos b*tch slapped New York and then pimp slapped KC. I still can't understand this team. Streaky is an understatement. The Broncos appear headed for a wildcard spot in the #5 seed, which means they would play the #4 seed in an away game in the wildcard round of the playoffs. It looks like right now that would be the Patriots. Can this Broncos team beat the Patriots in Foxbourgh in January? If I had to bet, I'd say no, but then again I thought they'd lose to both the Giants and the Chiefs. The good news for the Broncos is that they really got the running game together against the Chiefs which will do good things for them in the playoffs; although that might say more about the Chiefs defense than anything else. The Broncos have a tough 3 game stretch coming up (@ IND, vs. OAK, @PHI) we'll know a lot more after we see how they do in those games.

San Diego Chargers: Here's what we know: The Chargers have the best passing offense in the NFL according to ~~G0d~~ Football Outsiders, a sometimes useful running game, an inconsistent defense, and really injury prone starters. A lot of the Chargers future success will depend on the health of the team. Sound familiar? Like every post season from the last 4 years familiar? I'm REALLY starting to wonder about the training staff. The health of Eric Weddle, Shawne Merriman, and Luis Castillo are going to be very important down the like; not only because of the players themselves, but when Shawne is in, Shaun doesn't get doubled and is able to get more pressure...our match-ups against offensive players are much better. Eric Weddle might be the most important player on our defense. We get killed on defense without him. (See Browns, Cleveland). If the Chargers beat the Bengals, they have a very good chance of locking up the #2 seed and a first round bye...which is very important given our health issues. We definitely could use that time to heal up.

Poll

Is Bruce Gradkowski the long term answer in Oakland?

Cats Gettin Paid

Rodger Sherman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:04:02 -0000

More photos » by Patrick Semansky - AP

Five Saints, one Tyrell Sutton.

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So, the way this works is that this week, I'm just continuing my really random posting schedule, but next week is Auburn week. It'll be good.

As for today, t's time for a roundup of professional football playing ex-NU students, and how they're faring so far this fall. All 15 or less of them. And only 13 weeks into the regular season!

And no, I couldn't come up with a better title. Plus, a google search reveals the phrase "Cats gettin paid" was said by Akrobatik in this song featuring Little Brother, and if you don't know about Little Brother, well, hear about them. I'm not sure how combining two great lyricists with one of the best producers in the game doesn't create mainstream waves, but The Listening and The Minstrel Show are top ten albums of the decade in my opinion, just sayin'.

So yeah, Cats gettin paid.

Let's start out with the people in the NFL: 14 ex-Cats are being payed by NFL teams to play football. Of these, two are on their respective teams' active rosters but have not yet played, and two are on practice squads, leaving ten players who have played downs in the NFL this year.

I'ma make you hit the jump for it, though:

Luis Castillo is probably the most prominent NU grad in the NFL, having signed a $43 million dollar contract in the offseason. As you probably know, Luis is San Diego's starting right defensive end, but he's had a pretty off year - in the first 10 games of the year, he had 20 tackles and only two sacks, which seems kinda low, don't it? - and then a calf injury in week 11 has had him out since and he's doubtful right about now. Also, he still has the same name as a baseball player.
Barry Cofield as he has been for the past few years, is the Giants left defensive tackle, and one of NU's vastly important Super Bowl champs. The Giant's defense has fallen off a cliff this year and the team has lost five of seven, but it's not Barry's fault. (And if it is Barry's fault... well, wow, he's pretty bad. But it probably isn't.) In fact, reading briefly about what the Giants blog on this here SBN has said about him, he's been doing pretty decent.
Nick Roach has had a pretty decent sized role for the Bears this year, since Brian Urlacher had a season-ending injury way back in week one. Roach has been starting all over, including a few games at middle linebacker, which is a pretty hard position to randomly move into, and has since swapped out to strong-side linebacker, where he's been great from what I read. He's 3rd on the team with 61 tackles and in a 30-6 win against Cleveland, forced to fumbles. So that's aight.
Trai Essex, NU's other active Super Bowl Champ, has started every gosh-darned game of the season at right guard for the Steelers. Yeah. Oh yeah.
Kevin Bentley, everybody's favorite linebacker for the Houston Texans (depending on your feelings on DeMeco Ryans), is a linebacker for the Houston Texans. He don't start, but he ain't doing too bad. In other "me potentially making things up" news, I thought I remembered seeing him recover a fumble and being like "hey, he went to NU!" but a quick check of the actual stats shows that this never happened. Sippinonpurple.com: where my journalism professors' fears of blogs killing real journalism come true!
Ike Ndukwe got traded from the Miami Dolphins to Kansas City right before the season started. Although initially super excited to go from a potentially decent team in a crappy city like Miami to a terrible one in a gorgeous metropolis like Kansas City, Ike saw he might not get any playing time. Then KC's starting right tackle got injured, and Ike started the first three games of the year, earning the love and friendship of many Kansas City natives. He's back on the bench now, though. You might think this is all totally boring, but it somehow started a 44-comment thread over at the Chief's SBN site.
Zach Streif totally started a game at left tackle for the Saints. I remember this, because they were playing the Jets, and I was watching because I'm a Jets fan, and I got really happy when I saw his name and "Northwestern" on the starting lineups, and then got really sad when I saw him celebrating in the end zone against my team. I may or may not hold a grudge. Anyway, he's played in every game this year, but is still generally a backup behind ex-Towson Tiger Jermon Bushrod, whose apparent only goal in life is proving that the Tigers' 47-14 loss to Northwestern earlier this year was a fluke, considering which school produced the more prodigious New Orleans Saint left tackle.
Tyrell Sutton is a player I pay special attention to, because he's the only person to fall into the middle of the Venn diagram for "Players in the National Football League" and "People Rodger Sherman has had a class with." He was signed by the Packers out of training camp, but they cut him, which turned out to be a smart decision, because injuries and a terrible-to-begin-with running back corps has forced the Pack to give heavy reps to the exhumed corpse of Ahman Green, and if he gets hurt, I hear their GM has Samkon Gado on speed dial. (The Ahman Green part wasn't a joke. He's playing for them. It's 2009.) Anyways, Tyrell caught on with the Carolina Panthers, where he was a fourth-string running back for a long time, but when fullbacks Brad Hoover and Tony Fiametta both got simultaneously injured, that guy who was supposedly undersized to be a Big Ten running back had to see playing time as an NFL fullback, getting three rushes for 15 yards and a catch for 11. And this past weekend against Tampa Bay, with DeAngelo Williams out, we was second-string, earning 6 carries for 38 yards, including a 20 yarder. He's generally been a kick returner - a pretty good one at that - and an occasional third-string back. I saw him get some late-game tick against the Jets a few weekends ago. Him blocking people isn't pretty, because he's like, 5'8, but I think he can stick in the league. He's clearly got the skills to elude people like he did in college, be it returning kicks or running, someone's just gotta give him a chance. For those of you intrigued, here's what he looks like in an NFL uniform - weird that they let him use the LaDanian visor, he never got one of those in college.
Jason Wright has barely played as a third-string running back for the Cardinals behind Beanie Wells and Tim Hightower- two rushes for eight yards, six catches for 38 - but two of those receptions were for touchdowns. This leads me to believe they're probably bringing him in as another blocker or random backfield body on goal line sets and every once in a while he swings out and happens to get open in the end zone. We at NU call this "The Brendan Mitchell".
Marquice Cole has caught on with my Jets. I noticed this when he had a pick in the preseason, and the announcer was like "he went to Northwestern" and I was like "word?" and then the announcer didn't say anything because he couldn't hear me. Anyway, after being cut by three teams in the offseason in the two seasons since he left NU, Cole finally caught on with the Jets after a preseason perfomance that included that pick I mentioned, as you can see here. But as you can see here, he got cut like three days later. But as you can see here, he got signed again like a week later, and has recorded six tackles on special teams. (at least I think they're on special teams. Haven't seen him on the field in actual play yet, then again, I don't get to watch every Jets game out here in Illinois.)

Now, the practice squadders, because being a technicality on an NFL roster is better than being nothing at all:

Brett Basanez, Northwestern's practice squad hero and the one person you can point to if someone ever says there are no NU QB's in the NFL, is spending his third year primarily on the practice squad of an NFL team. His first two were with the Panthers, but you can't spend three years on the same team's practice squad apparently, so he had to move on, and he did, to Chi-town. It doesn't look like he'll break the iron grip Jay Cutler has on throwing passes to Chicago's opponents anytime soon, and second-string Caleb Hanie has only thrown two passes on the season, so Basanez is deep bench.
John Gill has been rocking the Indianapolis Colts' practice squad all season long, making me wonder whether practice squads get rings.

The NFL may have a virtual monopoly on the football world, but that doesn't mean that there aren't other football leagues out there. Northwestern basically runs the UFL, after all.

Prince Kwateng was basically a star for the California Redwoods (jesus these team names are awful). The Prince picked up 20 tackles on a team coached by ex-Northwestern coach Dennis Green. The Daily covered it and stuff.
Tim McGarigle, the guy who somehow holds the NCAA record for tackles, purportedly had a great season for the Florida Tuskers (again with the names!) who went on to the UFL Championship. (then again, there were only four teams, so he had a one in two shot.) There were articles written about him and stuff.
A lot of people heard CJ Bachér was in the UFL and talked about it because the concept of your recent starting quarterback being in the UFL is inherently disappointing. What they didn't know is that Bachér didn't hang on in the UFL - after what was apparently a pick-filled preseason, Bachér got cut by the New York Sentinels, who opted to go with NFL has-beens Quinn Gray and Ingle Martin at the quarterback slot. However, this Sentinels blog (a concept even more depressing than the UFL itself) reports that Bacher got resigned towards the end of the season. Although lord knows whether or not they put the accent aigu on his jersey.
After being cut by the Browns, Noah Herron decided to play for the Sentinels about halfway through the season, and although he suffered a pretty gross injury apparently, he's doing fine. No word on whether or not he stuck out the season. The biggest thing I found searching for news on Noah on google is that he really got screwed over by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in terms of salaries last season.

And now, for my final act, I'll discuss what was in my opinion my weirdest post of the summer: this one, originally written back on my blogspot account about how three ex-NU players - David Oredugba, Demetrius Eaton, and Deante Battle were playing professional football in Finland, of all places. No updates on Oredugba - for all I know, he's still balling in Finland - but I did receive a very cryptic message from Eaton a few weeks after that post.

No hit me up, I have all the answers you need. This is Demetrius. I've been back for the last month and Deante is actually still out there and wont return until the 14th. Some bs happened out there which sent me packing. Hit me for the exclusive!

I hit Demetrius up for the exclusive, but didn't get any further information. According to this post, Battle was back in Evanston tearing up IM football, but I wasn't there to witness it.

So that's that. If you made it through this whole thing, you're a champ. I stay grinding, so, keep coming back for more.

San Diego Chargers Defeat Cleveland Browns 30-23

John (obviousman) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:19:13 -0000

More photos » by Mark Duncan - AP

12 days ago: San Diego Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson (21) runs for nine yards against Cleveland Browns cornerback Eric Wright (24) in the first quarter of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)

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So it wasn't the game we all envisioned. Who cares? It was silly to expect the Chargers' defense to completely shut down any professional offense without 3 of it's best players. The Browns did the right thing, attacking the kids and going after the lack of depth in the secondary, and they made the game very close in the end.

This was not a trap game and this was not a game where focus was lost. Plain and simple, this was a game that showed off the weaknesses on this San Diego squad. Seven wins in a row is great, but bad health is starting to catch up to them right at the beginning of a tough stretch of games. Without Luis Castillo, the defense struggles to stop the run. Without Shawne Merriman, the defense struggles to get a pass-rush. Without Eric Weddle, there are less blitzes coming from the secondary and Steve Gregory is forced to play Safety (where he is not nearly as effective).

This game came down to health and trust. Did Ron Rivera trust Antoine Cason to cover his man on-on-one? No, and rightfully so. Did he trust Steve Gregory to make the plays in the secondary Weddle would? No, and he's right. Did he trust Kevin Ellison to cover the opposing TE on his own? No, and in instances where it happened the Browns took full advantage.

The score of this game is misleading. It wasn't nearly this close, but that had everything to do with an overpowering offense that couldn't be matched by the Browns no matter how many injuries San Diego's defense had. As I say going into most games, "The worst-case scenario is a shootout, and I like out offense better."

As always, your recommendations for Bolts (and Dolts) are appreciated in the comments. Also, feel free to discuss the Vikings/Cardinals game in the comments here. Here's a quick list of some of my Bolts, before re-watching the game or checking the box score.

Final - 12.6.2009	1	2	3	4	Total
San Diego Chargers	10	3	14	3	30
Cleveland Browns	7	0	0	16	23

Complete Coverage >

State of the AFC West Week 12

Sam (sdsuaztec4) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:32:40 -0000

More photos » by Denis Poroy - AP

LT protecting his baby.(AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

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State of the AFC West is back this week after taking the holiday week off because I was out of state without my laptop. Actually, I had something prepared for last week but it's good that I didn't publish it because it would make me look less than prescient about the Chiefs and Broncos. On the other hand, Raiders suck-age is easy to predict no matter the circumstances.

I have to say that I didn't give the Broncos much of a chance against the Giants; although I will say I think that game probably said more about the Giants than the Broncos. The New York media is all saying how the Giants looked flatter than they've seen all season and that the team has lost its passion.

On the other hand, I was going to say how the Chiefs had improved; that was until the annoying Chief trolls came. It's a good thing that they did come because the Chiefs didn't really improve, they still suck; maybe just slightly less so with the release of Johnson. Jamaal Charles looks like the only good player on that team though.

Anyhoo, the Chargers are the first team in the division to finish division play, completing the tour with a 5-1 record. The Raiders and Chiefs still have a chance to play spoiler and affect the playoff picture; the Chiefs still have both games against the Broncos and the Raiders also play the Broncos once more.

One thing that I thought was interesting is that if you look at points allowed San Diego and Denver are almost identical when earlier in the season there was a wide gap. I wonder if its San Diego's defense improving or Denver's regressing. With the emergence of Vince Young, the Chargers have three tough games left: @Dallas, vs. Cinci, and @Tenn. The Broncos have two tough games left @Indy and @Philly. The tiebreaker scenario may end up to be important so I think it will also be difficult for Denver to sweep the 3 remaining division games.

Jump the break, yo.

AFC West Standings

	W	L	PF	PA
San Diego	8	3	312	219
Denver	7	4	196	189
Oakland	3	8	115	258
Kansas City	3	8	183	282

(updated 12.1.2009 at 1:12 AM PST)

I'm not going to post the injury widgets anymore because they suck and are inaccurate.

Oakland Raiders: A week after a big upset win the Raiders returned to their getting blown out ways. They gave up 24 points to the Cowboys who have had an enormous struggle with scoring points in recent weeks. Bruce Gradkowski similarly regressed and simply didn't play very well. It seems like neither Russell or Gradkowski is the answer at QB and they will have to look at the draft and try not to fail. Again. *cough* Russell, Heyward-Bey, McFadden *cough* DE Greg Ellis re-injured his surgically repaired knee in the loss and is questionable to play against the Steelers. The only other important injury is Justin Fargas who also is questionable. It looks like Ben will be back on Sunday so the Raiders will have their hands full with the Steelers and will try to play wildcard spoiler as well.

Kansas City Chiefs: The Chiefs thought that one win turned around the franchise. Think again. Its going to take a lot more than that to turn that mess around. That being said, Charger fans are definitely Chief fans for the rest of the season. Well, I guess they are getting better in that case. The only two games they have been blown out in were the two against the Chargers. If they limit the mistakes and stick to the run maybe they can help the Chargers out in the playoff picture. The Chiefs didn't sustain any additional injures, just the same ones as last week (Vrabel, Rogers, Savage, Herron). Bowe is still out from his PED suspension. With the Chiefs season over, the only story worth thinking about besides being spoiler is Charlie Weis' firing from Notre Dame. There is a strong possibility that Weis may take over as offensive coordinator at Kansas City given his connection with Scott Pioli and Haley request to focus more on overall game management. We'll have to see how it plays out.

Denver Broncos: After their embarrassing 4 game losing streak, the Broncos absolutely laid wood on the G-Men who looked like little girls on Thanksgiving. What does this mean for the Broncos? Probably a first round playoff loss. We'll have to see how they respond against a weak opponent in the Chiefs on Sunday. Either way, I still think teams have figured out how to scheme against them and the defense is going to play old. Eddie Royal left the game with a thigh injury and I haven't heard anything else about that. Losing Royal for any amount of time would be a huge loss. They are only 4.5 point favorites right now so the rest of the world hasn't regained their confidence yet. Not much else going on in Bronco land right now as things seem to have settled down after the win although Brandon Marshall has been real ornery lately.

San Diego Chargers: Another week, another win, another injury. The only thing stopping the Bolts right now from making a deep playoff run is injuries. Good thing we have a bye week to rest the walking wounded and let Hardwick and Runyan settle in. From what my inside sources tell me, Eric Weddle is out for probably two weeks, Luis Castillo and Shawne Merriman will likely rest against the Browns. Everyone else looks ok. Larry English will probably get alot of playing time and we might be able to see what he can do in that role. I just got the exclusive scoop that OLB Marques Harris is re-signing today. That should help with depth at that position. The DL by committee shuffle win continue as is without Luis; we are definitely weaker against the run without him but we will manage. Hopefully he can return for the Dallas game because they have some dynamic backs. At safety, Oliver and Gregory should do the job just fine with Cason in the nickle and Ellison in on running downs.

Hopefully everyone will be rested up and healed in time to make a playoff run. I don't think this Cromartie thing is going to distract anyone with Phil and Norv at the helm and he'll play at least until he gets suspended or convicted. We'll have to see how it plays out but I assume Cason would take over if it comes to that. Let's hope his teammates who are saying he didn't do anything are telling the truth.

Injury Report: Week 12

John (obviousman) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 21:34:52 -0000

First, some news about the possible blackout. The Chargers have been granted another 24 hours, and now have until 1pm on Saturday, to sell the remaining 1,350 tickets. Considering the Chargers have sold more than 2,000 tickets in the last 24 hours, I think there's now a very good chance of this game not being blacked out in San Diego.

Now, onto the injury report.

Chargers

Doubtful

Luis Castillo, DE (calf)

Questionable

Nick Hardwick, C (ankle). Scott Mruczkowski will start at Center.

Shawne Merriman, OLB (foot)

Probable

Vincent Jackson, WR (ribs)

Travis Johnson, DE (groin)

Shaun Phillips, OLB (ankle)

Mike Scifres, P (groin)

Chiefs

Out

Andy Alleman, C/G (knee)

Justin Rogers, LB (thigh)

Dantrell Savage, RB (ankle)

Questionable

Mike Vrabel, OLB (knee)

David Herron, LB (knee)

Probable

Kolby Smith, RB (ankle)

Chargers Stat of the Day: Defensive Ratings

John (obviousman) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:05:35 -0000

by Chris Park - AP

The San Diego Chargers defense swarms Brian Westbrook during the Chargers 31-23 victory in a NFL football game Sunday Nov. 15, 2009 in San Diego. (AP Photo/Chris Park)

View full size photo »

Attention all nerds. Do you head straight to Football Outsiders when you're looking for better-than-average stats? Well, I found another website that you're going to want to bookmark. (Editor's Note: This is not a paid advertisement. I've never even talked with the guys from this website. So if this sounds like a sales-pitch, it's not.)

ProFootballFocus.com is a website that football stat-geeks have been dying for without knowing it. Just about any question you have about the team can be answered within their stats. Want to know who has played the most defensive plays for the Bolts? Eric Weddle, with 544. How about which player has the most QB Pressures? It's a tie between Luis Castillo and Shaun Phillips (both have 10). Wondering who the best MLB on the Chargers is? You'll be surprised.

Let's delve into some of PFF's defensive stats and player ratings...

I was taught a long time ago to never argue with someone who was smarter than me. I almost never abide by this rule, but today I'll make an exception. These guys have done such a great job at collecting stats, that I'm going to assume they do just as good of a job comparing them.

In terms of defense, it appears they look at all of the stats (sacks, QB hits, QB pressures, tackles, penalties, missed tackles, stops) and compare them relative to the number of plays the player had played. So a played like Brandon Siler, who has 10 stops on 104 plays, would be looked at as a more efficient player when he's on the field than Stephen Cooper (22 stops in 454 plays).

Each player is rated based upon their work rushing the passer, stopping the run and in pass coverage. Also factored in are things like Penalties being called against that player (surprisingly, leading the Chargers D in penalties is a tie between Shawne Merriman, Shaun Phillips and Larry English) and Missed Tackles.

The missed tackles stat also needs to be looked at proportionally against actual tackles. For instance, Stephen Cooper leads the team with 10 missed tackles to go with his 48 tackles on the season. However, that's probably not as bad as Antonio Cromartie's 6 missed tackles with only 15 tackles to his name.

So, follow me down the rabbit hole as we look at PFF's ratings of Chargers defensive players by position group. The number next to each player is their PFF Rating, which is roughly explained here. In a nutshell, zero is average across the league and any number above that is above average. Any number below is obviously below average. Also, for the sake of this not being too confusing, I'm leaving out any player who has been on the field for less than 75 snaps.

Defensive Line

Travis Johnson -1.5
Ian Scott -3.0
Alfonso Boone -3.1
Ogemdi Nwagbuo -3.1
Jacques Cesaire -9.5
Luis Castillo -10.3

How about that trade for Johnson? The Castillo number is a bit jarring, but appears to be accurate. Although he's near the top on the team in terms of defensive stops and QB pressures, apparently relative to the number of plays he's played it's just not as impressive as it has seemed. Also, according to their individual rankings he's fairly average at rushing the passer and well below average at stopping the run. For those looking for a comparison, Castillo's 2008 was ranked at 0.8 (or just a little above average) and Jamal Williams' 2008 was ranked at 27.4. 27.4! In 2007, Castillo was well above average at 7.7 when he was on the field.

Linebackers

Brandon Siler 5.8
Shaun Phillips 2.7
Kevin Burnett 2.6
Stephen Cooper -2.4
Tim Dobbins -2.7
Shawne Merriman -3.3
Larry English -12.2

I told you this stuff was interesting. As mentioned above, Cooper is killed by his missed tackles and by being below-average (-1.5) in pass coverage. Siler is actually the only LB that ranks as above average against the run and in pass coverage this year. Phillips would probably be #1 if it weren't for the 4 penalties he's picked up this season. This group is greatly improved from 2008, when no LB ranked as average or above average (Wilhelm was -16.9 if you were wondering).

Cornerbacks

Antoine Cason 1.4
Steve Gregory -1.0
Quentin Jammer -3.8
Antonio Cromartie -5.6

Jammer is actually playing better than he did in 2008, when his season ranking was -5.9. The stats seem a little off for cornerbacks in terms of what's "average", but at least they appear to be consistent. Cromartie's 2008 rating? -27.4. He was the anti-Jamal Williams.

Safties

Eric Weddle 3.7
Paul Oliver 0.5
Clinton Hart -1.8
Kevin Ellison -2.7

Before you start screaming about Hart being rated ahead of Ellison, listen up. Here's what I gather as the explanation by looking at the stats they're presenting. Both players are equal against the run (0.5), and the rookie actually better in pass coverage (-2.3 to -3.7), but the main two factors that catapult Hart above Ellison is penalties (zero for Hart, 2 for Ellison) and pass rushing (1.4 for Hart, 0.1 for Ellison). I can't entirely disagree with that, and considering these guys are charting the plays and I'm not....I'm going to believe them.

Still, it was the right move to get rid of Hart. Ellison is an improving player and Clinton was a declining one. Also, it has opened up plenty of playing time for Paul Oliver (who is obviously playing well).

So what do you guys think? Interesting stuff, right? Obviously, like all stats, these are not perfect. From what I can tell, these ratings do not factor in the level of competition being faced (which explains why Gregory would be higher than Jammer and Cromartie) nor do they factor in double-teams (which explains why Luis Castillo is down this year and why Shaun Phillips had such a poor rating in 2008). Still, in terms of judging who is making the most impact with their time on the field....it's intriguing.

Stats and rankings taken from ProFootballFocus.com do not include information from the Week 10 match-up against the Philadelphia Eagles.

San Diego Chargers Half-Season Awards

John (obviousman) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:29:28 -0000

When the Chargers schedule initially came out, I remember looking at it and thinking to myself, "I'll take 5-3 at the halfway point." Well, the Bolts are there and the only difference in the situation is that they're looking up at the Broncos. Still, if the season were to end today the Chargers would be in the playoffs.

It has been a rocky first-half though. The team has lost one of it's defensive captains, replaced the starting SS and benched the future starting CB (probably). Also, Brandon Siler started a couple of games and wasn't as bad as everyone feared. All in all, a good 8 games. However, some myself remains......like who won the prestigious BFTB Half-Season Awards?

Chargers' Coach of the Half-Season

Norv Turner

I remember watching a video clip of Norv giving an interview earlier in the season. I believe it was after the Pittsburgh loss. He was being questioned about his job, and his response was something along the lines of "I don't really care what people think." I remember thinking that it was just a cliche line, but I'm starting to think it's true. Norv never seems to be rattled by the constant criticism of the fans and media. Isn't that who you'd want coaching your team?

Turner has done a great job of keeping control of the locker room during a rough patch of games, and they're growing together now (as evident by his hug with LT). He deserves praise for that. He also deserves praise for making the calls for a top 10 offense without a semblance of a rushing threat.

Is Norv ever going to coach a 14-2 mistake-free team that eventually wins the Super Bowl? Who knows? Not many coaches can. However, with each passing year I'm confident that this team will always be competitive with him at the helm. His steadiness is a big reason why.

Chargers' Offensive Player of the Half-Season

Vincent Jackson

#83 / Wide Receiver / San Diego Chargers

Height: 6-5

Weight: 230

Born: Jan 14, 1983

College: Northern Colorado

He has been ridiculously good. His playoff games in the 2007 season cannot even compare to the games he's put up every week of this season.

VJ's numbers are incredibly consistent when you compare his stats by quarters, by halves or even by down. 88% of his catches have been for first down! He leads the team in receiving TDs with 7. The next highest player has 2.

In 2009, Vincent Jackson has been every bit as important to the offense as Philip Rivers. If he isn't with the Chargers in 2010, it will be the shock of the century.

	Receiving						Kickoff Returns					Punt Returns
G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	Lng	TD	KR	YDS	AVG	Lng	TD	PR	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
8	42	722	90.3	17.2	55	7	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Chargers' Defensive Player of the Half-Season

Eric Weddle

#32 / Free Safety / San Diego Chargers

Height: 5-11

Weight: 200

Born: Jan 04, 1985

College: Utah

Things I just realized in the last 30 seconds....

Eric Weddle looks a lot like my wife's ex-boyfriend from high school. They're practically twins.
Eric Weddle is exactly 2 weeks older than me.

Anyways, back to the award. Eric Weddle has been ridiculous this season. Talk about fitting out a stat sheet...

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2009 - Eric Weddle	8	1	6	1	31	1	46	9	55

Every box has a number in it! On top of those stats, he also is second on the team with 4 defended passes. He's been solid against the run and the pass, and has even found some time to lay a handful of big hits on receivers coming over the middle.

Much like Shaun Phillips has been better with the recent re-emergence of Shawne Merriman, Weddle has been even better with Kevin Ellison/Paul Oliver playing next to him since Clinton Hart was waived.

Chargers' Rookie of the Half-Season

Kevin Ellison

#25 / Strong Safety / San Diego Chargers

Height: 6-1

Weight: 221

Born: Jan 08, 1987

College: U-S-C

Here's my argument for Ellison over Louis Vasquez and Larry English. Vasquez almost won the starting job by default due to Kynan Forney's neck injury in camp, and English has yet to make a big splash in any game. Ellison was a 6th round pick and 3rd on the depth chart at the beginning of the season, and is now starting and playing on 90% of the snaps. That not only shows the talent he possesses, but it shows that he didn't give up and continued to fight in practice for the spot even after it looked like he wouldn't get a shot this season.

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2009 - Kevin Ellison	4	0	0	0	0	0	17	6	23

By the way, anybody else realize that Jackson, Weddle and Ellison all have birthdays within 10 days of each other? Random.....

Chargers' Comeback Player of the Half-Season

Luis Castillo

#93 / Defensive- End / San Diego Chargers

Height: 6-3

Weight: 290

Born: Aug 04, 1983

College: Northwestern

It's funny how confused he looks in that picture. Anyways, I'm not even going to bother posting his stats because they don't matter. He's on pace for a Jamal Williams-type season, where the stats don't show up because the offense he's facing is too busy double and triple-teaming him.

He's been a beast this season and has earned his big contract. The key has been his health. For the second consecutive year, he's managed to stay on the field. The difference this year is that he's practicing and generally seems to be avoiding his usual nagging injury. This is the player we all fell in love with in 2006 and 2007.

Chargers' MVP of the Half-Season

Philip Rivers

#17 / Quarterback / San Diego Chargers

Height: 6-5

Weight: 228

Born: Dec 08, 1981

College: North Carolina State

Was there ever any doubt? Similar to Luis, Philip may be having his best season yet but you wouldn't know it by looking at the stat sheet. Without a rushing attack to speak of, an offensive line to block for him or a defense for the first quarter of the season, Rivers managed to keep himself healthy and dangerous.

His game-winning drives against the Raiders and the Giants speak for themselves. What has impressed me the most has been his ability to avoid mistakes while avoiding pass-rushers on seemingly ever play.

With his strong play, Rivers has solidified his spot as a top 10 QB in the league and has even made some fans in the fanbases of opposing teams. Now it's the Chargers' job to give him the support he needs to finally get that Super Bowl ring that both Ben Roethlisberger and Eli Manning have gotten.

		Passing									Rushing					Sacks
	G	Rating	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/G	Y/A	TD	INT	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Sack	YdsL
2009 - Philip Rivers	8	94.6	166	274	60.6	2245	280.6	8.2	14	6	15	47	5.9	3.1	1	18	119

Bolts & Dolts: San Diego Chargers at New York Giants

John (obviousman) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:41:46 -0000

by Bill Kostroun - AP

about 1 month ago: New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs (27) is tackled by San Diego Chargers linebacker Stephen Cooper (54) in the fourth quarter of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009, in East Rutherford, N.J. The Chargers won 21-20. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

View full size photo »

Hello friends. Look, I made it out of Giants Stadium alive!

I couldn't be happier at this moment. The first San Diego Chargers game I see in person in years, and it turns into an incredible win that's capped with a late TD that happened right in front of me. The sun was shinin' on me yesterday.

So now that I've gotten home, "slept it off" and watched the game on television.....let's get to quite possibly the longest edition of "Bolts & Dolts" ever.

Bolts

Offense

Philip Rivers - 24/36, 209 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT. Just barely. Two plays put him in the Bolts category. One, obviously, was the game-winning touchdown pass to Vincent Jackson. The second happened right before that, when Rivers saw a blitz coming and audibled to a Darren Sproles pass that picked up 21 yards in the flash of a eye. Outside of the last drive, Philip had a poor game by his usual standards. Throwing twice into double-coverage (and getting picked both times) is not his style and I don't expect to see it again.

Vincent Jackson - 5 catches, 58 yds, 2 TD. At this point, VJ should be in the MVP conversation. He has been that dominant in every single game. I think his 3 non-TD catches yesterday were all for first downs. Also, he had a good game against fantastic coverage from Corey Webster all night. I don't think there's another receiver in the league that has that kind of game against a CB playing that well.

Brandyn Dombrowski. Anyone want to guess why? If you're planning on re-watching the game, pay close attention when the ref is calling defensive pass interference on Corey Webster in the end zone. You'll see Dombrowski waiting patiently behind the ref the entire time. The second the ref turns around, Brandyn clearly symbols and says "I'm an eligible receiver" and the ref gives him a thumbs up. Fantastic job, Brandyn.

Defense

Ron Rivera. I've been guilty of bashing Rivera quite a bit this season. This game, I will eat my crow and give him praise. He obviously came in with a game plan to stop the run and stop the big plays in the passing game. Well, there was the occasional gash in the running game but there were just as many stops on 2nd & 2 or 3rd & 1. Travis Johnson is proving to be a valuable linemen in those situations, by the way. Anyways, there was plenty of blitzing that kept Eli Manning running around outside of the pocket more often than he would've liked and the Giants' passing game had only one play that went for 20+ yards (and that was a WR screen to Hakeem Nicks for 29 yards). The defense was good enough on this day, and a big reason for that was Rivera's excellent play call.

Shawne Merriman - 3 tackles, 2 sacks. This doesn't even tell the whole story. Merriman had his hands on Eli close to 10 times during the game. He was incredibly disruptive, and both of his sacks came on huge 3rd down players late in the 4th quarter. Ladies and gentlemen, "Lights Out" is back.

Shaun Phillips - 8 tackles, 1 sack. Wow. I had almost forgotten what an amazing weapon Phillips is when he's not being double-teamed on every play. He was everywhere during the game. Those short run-stops that ended New York's drives? On just about every one of them you can see Phillips either making the tackle or screwing everything up along NY's offensive line by beating his man easily. He also played well in coverage (the Kevin Boss TD was not his fault) and......(take this with a grain of salt because it's just one game)......Shaun acted like the leader of the defense. 5 sacks in 3 games is no joke. Phillips is currently playing out of his mind and I couldn't be happier with his game last night.

Eric Weddle - 9 tackles. Where did that sledgehammer come from? Early in the game I was pretty sure he gave Boss a concussion, and during the Giants last possession he damn near killed Steve Smith. As usual, Weddle seemed to be around the ball on every single play. Not as usual, he was making it really scary for Giants receivers to go over the middle. Unreal game from him.

Luis Castillo - 1 tackle. Want to know why Eli Manning was constantly running out of a shrinking pocket? That would be Castillo. He spent all night destroying double-teams and chasing Eli Manning right into the hands of the Chargers OLBs. The stats aren't there, but he reminded me of Jamal Williams last night. I think this may be Castillo's best season yet and yesterday's game was probably his best this year.

Special Teams

Darren Sproles. I'm not going to put stats up because they don't matter for why he got the Bolt. He gets the Bolt because the Giants were willing to sacrifice great field position just to have him not touch the ball. The Chargers average starting position was on their own 32 yard line. If you take out the Giants interceptions, their starting position was on their own 21 yard line. That's a big swing, and that had everything to do with Sproles and......

Mike Scifres. 3 of his 5 punts pinned the Giants inside their own 20 yard line. It would've been 4 of 5 if Mike Tolbert hadn't been called for holding. After that call, Scifres' punt was downed at the Giants 21 yard line. He was consistent, accurate and had the big booming leg when he needed it. Between him, Merriman and Phillips, it's like the Chargers traded for players from the 2007 Bolts team mid-season.

Miscellaneous

Chargers fans. There were a ton of Bolts fans for a game across the country from San Diego. There was probably one Chargers fan for every 5 Giants fans. Also, with the exception of my personal bodyguard/chauffeur, they were all quite well-behaved. Considering how drunk and angry the Giants fans were (and rightfully so), it was surprising to only see one fight during the game.

Clip Show. He couldn't have been a better guest. We had a ball drinking and watching the game together. Even after one game, I consider him a friend and will definitely try to catch a Chargers game with him in San Diego. Also, he came through with a digital camera after I left mine at home (not surprisingly). He should have a picture-laden FanPost up here sometime this week after he gets home and spends some quality time with his baby girl.

Giants fans. Not at all what I was warned about. I had to take the occasional heckle, but I'd be disappointed if it didn't happen. Giants fans were nice and very accommodating. Even the one my friend was badgering all game didn't do anything but throw an empty soda bottle after the game. Well played, Giants fans. Also, when the Giants took the lead, those NY fans were loud. Louder than I've ever heard it at Qualcomm. So loud I couldn't talk to Clip Show right next to me. I hope the new stadium they're building next door is that loud. Those fans deserve it.

Referees. The first Chargers game in years where I wasn't able to pick out one bad call. Usually, whether it's for or against the Chargers, there's one call where the announcers look at the replay and say "I have no idea what he saw there." Not the case in this game. Although the penalties were called heavily in the Chargers favor, every penalty was clearly backed up when watching the replay. A solidly-called game.

Norv Turner. I think each year, as the team finally starts to take shape, Norv lightens up a bit. Before that it's like he's stoic and....almost nervous. Yesterday he was pumping his fist, laughing and hugging LT. It's not too much emotion, but it's something and it let's the players know that he's invested in the team with them. I've noticed that in December he always seems to wear his heart on his sleeve a little more, and I saw that from him yesterday. It's a great sign. Oh, and he also called a fantastic game as the offensive coordinator.

Dolts

Offense

LaDainian Tomlinson - 12 carries, 22 rush yds, 2 catches, 8 rec yds. The plan for this game was simple. The Chargers wanted to get up early to try and take away the Giants rushing game. They did that, and at half time (losing the time of possession battle 2-to-1) it seemed they decided to try to work the clock and help out their tired, banged-up defense by running Tomlinson a lot. It didn't work. As usual, with the exception of one or two decent looking runs, LT looked very astute at taking the handoff and falling forward for 2 yards. His 1.8 yards per carry shows that he couldn't even do that every time.

Why does LT always seem to be falling down? The good RBs around the league have fantastic balance. You have to wrap them up and bring them down because you're sure as hell not knocking them over. Even Sproles is like that. With LT, it seems like he could be tackled by a stiff wind. Half of the time he's going down after bumping into one of his offensive linemen. I think his days of bursting through the arm tackles at the line of scrimmage are behind him. To get more than 3 yards on a carry, he needs a BIG open hole to run through.

Antonio Gates - 5 catches, 67 yards. I very nearly didn't make him a Dolt. He had a very good day, and would've been a Bolt if it weren't for those two drops. After watching the game on tv though, I couldn't let him go. Those were two very easy catches, one for a huge play and the other for a third down conversion, that he just lost because he didn't look the ball into his hands before trying to make a play. That's the type of "focus" play that he's known for making. I hope, and I don't think it's just wishful thinking, this is his last time as a Dolt.

Defense

There are no defensive Dolts this week.

Special Teams

There are no special teams Dolts this week.

Miscellaneous

Chris Chambers - 3 catches, 70 yds, 2 TD. This guy is apparently only good for the second half of seasons in which he switches teams. Seriously though, a 54 yard catch? Catches 3 of the 4 balls thrown at him? That doesn't sound like the Chris Chambers I remember.

With a Pittsburgh victory tonight, the Chargers are one-game behind the Broncos with a game against them in two weeks. I'd call that "controlling our own destiny". Go Steelers. (We'll be doing an open thread here tonight during the game.)

Bolts & Dolts: San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs

John (obviousman) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:06:38 -0000

More photos » by Ed Zurga - AP

about 1 month ago: San Diego Chargers running back Darren Sproles (43) gets past Kansas City Chiefs safety Jon McGraw (47) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009, in Kansas City, Mo. Sproles ran 58 yard for a touchdown on the play. The Chargers beat the Chiefs 37-7. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

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I know it won't come as a surprise, but there won't be many "Dolts" after yesterday's game. It was a well-played game against a weaker opponent, so I'll tone down the positive rhetoric as well.

The one thing that should be noted, though, is that for the first time in a long time the Chargers did not play down to their weaker opponent. This was a game they knew they should dominate and they did. With a weak schedule ahead of them, this is a fantastic sign of things to come.

Onto the best and worst from Week 7's win in KC.

Bolts

Offense

Philip Rivers - 18/30, 268 yards, 3 TDs (122.6 QB Rating). No interceptions and no mistakes. The only way the Chiefs were going to be competitive in this game was if they got a few turnovers, and Philip made sure that wasn't going to happen. His deep ball wasn't perfect (it was raining), but it was good enough. Add on his 2 runs for 18 yards (is that becoming a weapon?) and you have a great all-around game. Everything we'd expect from Rivers when he's given time to throw.

Vincent Jackson - 5 catches, 142 yards, 1 TD. (Yawn) Another average day for Vincent Jackson. He's having a hell of a season. In the offseason I was hoping the Chargers wouldn't try to sign him, because top-flight WRs are extraordinarily expensive, and now I think he should be the team's top priority. Apparently top WRs are so expensive because they're worth it. It should be noted that VJ came about 6 inches away from having 2 TDs yesterday.

Darren Sproles - 5 rushes, 41 rush yds, 3 catches, 58 rec yds, 1 rec TD. Sproles was used to perfection in yesterday's game. This is precisely what I'd like to see from him every week. He wasn't forced to be the focal point of the running attack, and he made one big play catching the ball out of the backfield that put the game out of reach. He was also solid, but unspectacular, in the return game. Can you really argue with a 8.2 yards-per-carry and 19.3 yards-per-reception?

Mike Tolbert - 1 catch, 2 yards. This has nothing to do with stats. Mike Tolbert is developing into the FB that everybody wanted him to become when they saw his Lorenzo Neal-like frame. The running game works much better when he's blocking for LaDainian Tomlinson instead of Jacob Hester. Enough of the FB by committee. Tolbert should be the full-time FB.

Defense

Tim Dobbins - 11 tackles, 1 defended pass, 1 interception. What a game! He looked better than Stephen Cooper out there. Dobbins was all over the place, making tackles and making plays. Would I trust him in coverage against the Broncos or Colts? I don't know. The Chiefs couldn't really test his pass coverage, but everything they threw at him he destroyed.

Defensive Front Seven - You know how every time Eric Weddle ends up the team's leading tackler, nobody is real happy about it? If a Safety is your lead tackler, your front seven didn't do their job....right? Let's look at the Chargers' leading tacklers from yesterday by position:

Dobbins (LB)
Siler (LB)
Phillips (LB)
Merriman (LB)
Gregory (Nickel CB)

Luis Castillo - 2 tackles. Luis was a beast yesterday that the Chiefs could not contain. He stopped running plays in their tracks, got consistent pressure on Matt Cassel and even tackled a WR "over the middle". Although the stats don't show it, and they normally won't if you're the best player on the 3-4 defensive line, this may be turning into the best season of Castillo's career.

Steve Gregory - 4 tackles, 1 sack, 2 defended passes, 1 interception. The most questioned member of the Chargers "re-tooled" secondary had the biggest game. We certainly saw why he was moved to Nickel CB over Antoine Cason. What Gregory lacks in size, he makes up for in physicality, toughness and smarts. He was much better rushing the passer from the nickel spot than Cason has ever been. He took risks that I don't think Cason would've ever taken, and they usually worked out. I still worry about Steve getting burned by a fast receiver, but the Chargers needed desperately to win the short game before worrying about the deep game and Gregory helps them in that regard.

Eric Weddle - 3 tackles, 1 sack, 1 defended pass. Eric Weddle has turned into exactly what I thought he would when he was drafted. He is a solid, intelligent player that delivers consistently. Is he a great leader? Not necessarily. Does he have weaknesses? Sure, he can't really cover TEs. Still, what he can do he does very well and he's hardly every out of position. I think one of Eric's best talents is rushing the passer, and Ron Rivera apparently agrees. In obvious passing situations yesterday, Kevin Ellison was taken off the field and Weddle was moved to SS as a sometimes-blitzer (with Paul Oliver playing FS). The Bolts saw plenty of success with that personnel, and I imagine we'll see more of it in the future.

Special Teams

Jacob Hester - 1 blocked punt, 1 fumble recovery, 1 ST TD, 3 rushes, 8 rush yds. For as much as I've been disappointed in him as a FB/HB this year, I've been just as impressed with Jacob on special teams. Which is funny, considering Tolbert was the one who was kept on the roster because of his contributions on special teams. I think he should still be a part of the offense, because he has soft hands and good speed, but I don't know exactly where he fits. Either way, Hester may be the rightful heir to Kassim Osgood's special teams throne in 2010.

Mike Scifres - 4 punts, 49.0 yards-per-punt, 2 punts inside opposing 20 yd line. Yesterday's game included a 63 yard punt from Scifres, which means he's 100% healthy or close to it again. Also, when facing one of the better punters in the league, Scifres had a higher YPP, less touchbacks (0-1) and didn't have any of his kicks blocked (0-1). Although it was a good competition, Mike came out the victor.

Dolts

Offense

Chris Chambers - thrown to 4 times, 0 catches. Fans and coaching staff alike have always looked past Chambers' dropped passes because he caught the ball when it mattered. On third down, in the fourth quarter, in a playoff game, etc. When the heat is on, Chris' hands turn to magnets. Not the case yesterday. There were several drives that were stopped dead in their tracks because he couldn't make an easy catch on 3rd down. That's not acceptable.

Brandyn Dombrowski - Before you can win a football game, you need to eliminate mental errors. When you line up as an eligible receiver, you better know it and you better know to report. Especially when you're that close to the end zone. That was a really stupid mistake that ended up costing the Chargers 7 points. In a close games, mental errors mean everything. Thank you lucky stars it wasn't a close game and work on thinking when you're on the field.

Editor's Note. I am not including the offensive line because as poor as they may have been when close to the goal line, they were fantastic otherwise. It was apparent to everybody watching that the Chargers were desperately trying to get LT a running TD, just as it's apparent that LT can no longer get any yards when running to the outside. The Chiefs did the right thing in putting 10 or 11 guys in the box and sending them all at Tomlinson. That's part of what made the Offensive Line's job so difficult down there.

Defense

There are no defensive Dolts this week.