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John (obviousman)

Mar 26, 2008 Dec 17, 2009 647 6882

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One of the most intriguing questions in the NFL these days is this: What do the San Diego Chargers know about December that nobody else does?

After last Sunday's win over the Dallas Cowboys, the Chargers have won a record 16 straight regular-season games after Dec. 1. Since 2005, the Chargers are 18-3 during the regular season after that date—giving them an 86% win rate. Only one other team in recent years, the perennial powerhouse New England Patriots, has performed as well as the Chargers during crunch time.

The NFL Team That Solved December

A good article about the Chargers and their current December winning streak from the Wall Street Journal. However, after reading about the practice methods of failed coaches in December I would've loved to hear what Norv does differently.

about 16 hours ago Chargershorse_tiny John (obviousman) 11 comments 0 recs

FOX Sports’ Alex Marvez is reporting that Chris Henry is on life support in a Charlotte hospital after being throwing from a pick-up truck Wednesday afternoon. Marvez is told that the situation is "dire."

UPDATE: Chris Henry has died from his injuries. Instead of posting your thoughts below, I implore you to go to Cincy Jungle and do it there. As Kirkendall says in his post, these players become like family to the fans. It's going to be an emotional week/game for Bengals fans.

1 day ago Chargershorse_tiny John (obviousman) 16 comments 0 recs

Ogemdi Nwagbuo Needs Your Help

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....

 

  1. 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!"
  2. 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?
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. 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.
  7. 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.

Continue reading this post »

40 comments  |  0 recs |

Week 15 Chargers Playoff Scenarios

via Bill Williamson

The San Diego Chargers are closing in on clinching a playoff berth. The Chargers, who are 10-3 and have won eight straight games, can clinch their fourth straight AFC West title when they host Cincinnati on Sunday. 

Here are the scenarios: 

San Diego clinches AFC West division title with: 

1) DEN loss 

or 

2) SD win or tie + DEN tie 

San Diego clinches a first-round bye with: 

SD win + DEN loss or tie + NE loss or tie 

Continue reading this post »

72 comments  |  0 recs |

BFTB Answers Your Chargers Questions

Hey, Bengals fans.  My name is John and I run Bolts From The Blue, SB Nation's community for Chargers fans.

Every week of the NFL season I've been posting a FanPost at the community of the Chargers' upcoming opponent to help answer any questions the fans might have going into the game.  It's been a rousing success, both fun and educational, and I expect much of the same to happen here.

Usually I do my post on Tuesday.  Mondays are meant for reflection from the previous week.  However, immediately after the final whistle of both the games in Minnesota and Dallas yesterday, fans were already talking about this game.  It is, essentially, a playoff game.  That's why I'm pushing it up a day.

Both teams have battled injuries all year, and both would welcome the opportunity to have a bye week.  Also, both teams have holes (Cincy has offensive issues, the Chargers have defensive issues) and need to enter the playoffs with some momentum if they want to make any noise.

This isn't anything new to you guys.  You know this game is huge.  Anything you don't already know about the Chargers, feel free to post in the comments and I'll make sure to respond ASAP.

Please do me two favors.  One, keep the trash-talking to a minimum.  I'm not a very nice person when I go into that mode and I'd prefer to be able to come back here should these teams face each other in the playoffs without having enemies or being banned.  Two, Rec this FanPost so that it stays towards the top of the home page.

99 comments  |  10 recs

Highlights from yesterday's win over the Cowboys.

3 days ago Chargershorse_tiny John (obviousman) 1 comment 1 recs

Bolts & Dolts: Chargers at Cowboys

San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates (85) pulls in a touchdown pass in the second half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys,  Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009 in Arlington, Texas. The Chargers won 20-17. (AP Photo/Amy Gutierrez)

More photos » by Amy Gutierrez - AP

4 days ago: San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates (85) pulls in a touchdown pass in the second half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009 in Arlington, Texas. The Chargers won 20-17. (AP Photo/Amy Gutierrez)

When you factor in things like how the opposing teams have played in the games immediately before or after their showdown with the Chargers, you could make a case that this Cowboys team is the 2nd or 3rd best team the Bolts have faced all year.  Although it's December, they're playing much better than they were in the beginning of the season (when the Broncos beat them) and it was going to take a complete game by the coaching staff and players to get a win.

Well, that was about as complete of a game as you can have in the NFL against a legitimate opponent.  The defense, similar to the game against the Browns, seemed to play a soft zone in the beginning and end of the game.  They struggled to stop any of the Cowboys three star RBs, and yet Dallas was only able to score one meaningful touchdown in the game.  I have no idea how Ron Rivera keeps doing it, but he continually keeps points off the board.

The offense is currently unstoppable.  It's clicking in a way it never has before, with Philip Rivers playing his best football and Norv Turner calling all the right plays at the right times.  It helps when you have 5 guys on the field who are receiving threats on any given play.  Even LaDainian Tomlinson, who isn't much of a feature-back these days, seems to become a better player near the goal line and whenever the Chargers need a big run for a first down.

It's a good time to be a Chargers fan.  The division crowd, the playoffs and a first round bye are no longer just dreams.

Continue reading this post »

96 comments  |  3 recs |

Chargers Defeat Cowboys 20-17, Continue Winning Streak

San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) passes as Dallas Cowboys linebacker Anthony Spencer (93) and defensive end Stephen Bowen (72) defend in the first half of an NFL football game,  Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009 in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Sharon Ellman)

More photos » by Sharon Ellman - AP

4 days ago: San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) passes as Dallas Cowboys linebacker Anthony Spencer (93) and defensive end Stephen Bowen (72) defend in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009 in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Sharon Ellman)

Well, this day has worked out just lovely, hasn't it?  The Chargers defeat the Cowboys, and look good doing it, and the Broncos and Bengals both lose their games.  A win against the Bengals next week and Norv can start thinking about resting players on Christmas and against Washington.

This a team that's not just about their personnel, but about their coaching.  Ron Rivera managed to hold the Cowboys to 10 points (those last 7 were in garbage time) with any run defense (outside of the goal line stand).  Norv Turner looked like he knew every Dallas defensive call before Wade Phillips did.  Play-calling on both sides of the ball was absolutely perfect.  It's the performance of the coaching that has been the biggest factor in the Chargers winning 8 straight games in 2009, and 16 straight games in the month of December.

Philip Rivers won the battle of the QBs against Tony Romo, and I will not hear it differently.  Romo had the benefit of a strong running game, and the defenses were playing just about the same, yet he could not consistently get first downs.  Besides the 99 yard drive (that Tony was barely involved in), I was not very impressed by the Cowboys offense today.  Rivers did everything he possibly could (including avoiding many rushes) to win this game and looked great doing it (besides the interception).

Some quick Bolts are below.  As always, your feedback is appreciated and will be a part of the final selections after I re-watch the game.



76 comments  |  0 recs |

Chargers at Cowboys, 2nd Half Thread

Dallas Cowboys special teams coach Joe Decamillis, rear, looks on as quarterback Tony Romo (9) holds for kicker Nick Folk (6) before the start of an NFL football game against the San Diego Chargers, Sunday, Dec.13, 2009 in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Amy Gutierrez)

More photos » by Amy Gutierrez - AP

4 days ago: Dallas Cowboys special teams coach Joe Decamillis, rear, looks on as quarterback Tony Romo (9) holds for kicker Nick Folk (6) before the start of an NFL football game against the San Diego Chargers, Sunday, Dec.13, 2009 in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Amy Gutierrez)

If you're wondering where I've been, I managed to break my pinky knuckle in a fight with a wall (which makes typing this extremely painful).  I'll be back in fighting shape by tomorrow though, I'm sure.

The Bolts looked great in the first half, and if they could come out in the 2nd half with a TD they could take away the Cowboys running game in a hurry.  Also, a bigger lead would probably get more carries for Mike Tolbert, which can only help matters at this point.

515 comments  |  0 recs

Chargers at Cowboys, 1st Half Thread

It's late in the season and it seems that each week the Chargers are playing the most important game of the season.  This one is no different.  The Chargers great December record against Dallas' poor December record in a matchup of teams that are fighting for division titles and need this win badly.

431 comments  |  0 recs