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Originally posted by sonorajim
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Here are my notes, observations and takeaways. A lively live period
The Chargers opened 11-on-11 with an unscripted period. Early in camp, the Chargers’ 11-on-11 periods are most often scripted, with all downs and distances predetermined regardless of the previous play’s results. These unscripted periods become more regular as the team gets further into training camp and closer to Week 1. And they tend to be the most competitive periods of camp.
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Each of the three quarterbacks — Justin Herbert, Easton Stick and Max Duggan — got one drive. Ball carriers were marked down on first contact. Downs, distances and field position were then tracked as if it were live game action. The offense started each possession at its own 35-yard line.
Herbert and the starting offense went first against the starting defense. New offensive coordinator Kellen Moore has talked often about using tempo with his unit, and the Chargers were pushing the pace offensively throughout this period. Initially, that pace gave the first-team offense a clear advantage, and Herbert moved the ball effectively. On the third play of the drive, Herbert drew the defense offside. With the free play, he connected with Keenan Allen over the middle of the field to move the offense into plus territory.
That was the first of four straight completions for Herbert. He hit Mike Williams on a slant. He fired a laser to Donald Parham Jr. from outside the pocket. Eric Kendricks was in good position in front of Parham in the middle of the field, but Herbert cleared the linebacker with velocity and high ball placement. The Chargers moved inside the 10 when tight end Gerald Everett came wide open on a corner route.
The defense then buckled down in the red zone. Herbert tried to hit Joshua Palmer on a slant in the end zone, but Palmer dropped the pass. Asante Samuel Jr. was in tight coverage and disrupted the timing of the route. On the next play, the defense won the drive. Herbert took the snap, and Khalil Mack had one of his best rushes of camp, driving left tackle Rashawn Slater into the backfield with a fierce bull rush. Herbert felt the pressure and got rid of the ball, looking for Parham on an out route. But he could not get much on the throw with Mack in his face.
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Safety Alohi Gilman read the play perfectly. He broke on Parham’s route, jumped in front and secured the interception.
Stick had similar success early in his drive with the second-team offense. He converted a third down on a slant to John Hightower. Later, he hit rookie Quentin Johnston on another slant route. The throw was low, and Johnston made a good adjustment to snatch it with his hands before tacking on some yards after the catch. Stick then kept the drive alive with a third-down scramble, avoiding pressure off the edge from Chris Rumph II.
Three plays later, Stick and the second-team offense faced a third down from the 10-yard line. Rookie defensive lineman Scott Matlock exploded through the middle and got to Stick for the sack to win the drive for the second-team defense.
Duggan got off to a sluggish start on his drive with a broken play and an overthrow. But he found his rhythm, converting on a third-and-long and then a fourth down with completions to tight end Michael Ezeike and receiver Keelan Doss, respectively. Duggan capped his drive with the lone touchdown of the period on a QB-keeper run.
Chargers training camp: Deane Leonard, young DBs shine in first padded practice OL vs. DL 1-on-1s
On Tuesday, I moved over to the trenches for the one-on-one period to get a look at the offensive linemen against the defensive linemen and edge rushers in pass rush/pass blocking drills.
Some highlights …
• Slater matched up with Mack on two reps. On the first, Mack attempted a speed rush to the outside. Slater moved well to guide Mack wide and steer him clear of the quarterback. On the second, Mack came with a bull rush. He forced Slater back on the initial push. But Slater reset his anchor and stopped Mack’s progress. Slater’s ability to reestablish his anchor after losing his balance is, to me, the most impressive part of his game. He makes it look easy, even against some of the best pass rushers in football.
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Here is Slater on facing off with Mack and Joey Bosa: “Joey and Khalil, they’re so smart in the way they play off of O-linemen. Every training camp it’s like, if you have just one little mistake in your technique here, they’re going to find a way to exploit that. They really keep you honest. The margin for error is so small, I think it really teaches you quickly what you’re doing wrong and what you need to fix.”
• Bosa dominated the first rep of the period against Foster Sarell, who was at right tackle with the starting unit in place of the injured Trey Pipkins III. Bosa cut quickly to the inside and got to the quarterback virtually untouched. Sarell responded, though, in his second rep against Bosa, who tried to bend to the outside. Sarell showed good reactions and quickness, and similar to Slater on his first rep against Mack, guided Bosa wide.
• Jamaree Salyer, playing at right guard, was extremely stout in his two reps. His best attribute might be his strength, and that showed in this period. He stood up Matlock on the first rep. On the second rep, he did not relinquish an inch to Terrance Lang, another rookie defensive lineman.
Jamaree Salyer showed off his strength during Tuesday’s pass-blocking drills. (Kirby Lee / USA Today)
• Zion Johnson, at left guard, took all three of his reps against Sebastian Joseph-Day. Johnson lost the first two reps. On the first, Joseph-Day got free on a spin move. On the second, he caught Johnson with his weight forward and ripped through to the inside. Johnson responded on the third rep, anchoring down to stand up Joseph-Day.
• Rookie edge rusher Tuli Tuipulotu got one rep, against Zack Bailey, who has been playing right tackle with the second team while Pipkins has been out. Tuipulotu showed a good get-off, beating Bailey off the snap. But Bailey recovered and was able to steer the rookie wide to win the rep. News and notes
• The Chargers’ three other team periods, outside of the live one we highlighted, focused predominantly on third downs. Two of the other three team periods were exclusively third downs, including the lone seven-on-seven period. In that seven-on-seven period, Herbert converted on five of his six reps. He hit Williams on a crosser. He connected with Everett on an over route, beating safety Derwin James Jr. He completed a deep shot to Johnston down the right sideline. Johnston made a good adjustment against Ja’Sir Taylor. Johnston’s ball-tracking has been a bright spot in camp. Herbert also completed to Doss on a corner route and Hightower on a go route. Hightower beat Deane Leonard off the line of scrimmage. On the Doss completion, safety JT Woods was late to react and created a window for Herbert. It should have at least been a pass breakup — if not an interception. The defense answered back in the 11-on-11 third down period, as the pass rush came alive. Morgan Fox got home for a sack on the interior. A blitz derailed the second rep. And pressure got to Herbert again on the third rep. Herbert tried to escape, but Kendricks was in great position to prevent a scramble up the middle.
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• Pipkins missed his third straight practice. His injury remains undisclosed, but he had a sleeve on his right leg Tuesday. He first suffered the injury during individual drills on Saturday.
• Cornerback J.C. Jackson participated in seven-on-seven drills but sat out 11-on-11.
• During the second-to-last 11-on-11 period of the day, linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. and Everett got into a minor scuffle after a completion to Allen. Murray and Everett wrestled each other to the ground after the play and had to be separated by teammates and coaches.
Here is defensive coordinator Derrick Ansley on that: “From a defensive perspective, there’s a fine line between being too animated and being a professional. We want to make sure that we have total respect for each other, which we do. Sometimes, the competitive nature of an individual or two may spill out. We’re all teammates, we’re all in this thing together. Everybody loves each other. That’s just competitive football. But you always want to make sure that you keep the professional brand intact and move on to the next point.”
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