New look Chargers get a shot in the arm

By Michael Melissa Sports Central Columnist

Dan Fouts had Chuck Muncie and Lionel "Little Train" James to hand off to, Stan Humphries had Natrone Means, and now there is Doug Flutie to LaDainian Tomlinson.

The Flutie/Tomlinson tandem may not get the Chargers into the playoffs or even eight wins this season, but what they will get them is a booster shot of self-confidence. The missing ingredient in San Diego's 30-3 win over Washington opening day was the sense that something bad was going to happen. The sad fact was with Ryan Leaf and Jim Harbaugh at the controls, that feeling almost always became reality.

New GM John Butler, offensive coordinator Norv Turner, and Flutie worked hard in the offseason to change that attitude. Once hired in January, Butler ripped up the old roster and set into motion his plan of attack. He signed free agents Flutie, DE Marcellus Wiley, CBs Ryan McNeil and Alex Molden to bolster one of the worst pass defenses in the league last season. However, Butler's coming out party may have been two days prior to the NFL draft when he shuttled the first pick in the draft to Atlanta for wide receiver Tim Dwight, a first round pick (No. 5 overall), a third-round pick, and a second-round pick in 2002.

It was a gamble that paid off.

Not only did the Chargers pick up Tomlinson in the first round, they were also in position to pick Purdue quarterback Drew Brees who had slipped out of the first round. Butler couldn't have wished for a better draft; everything he wanted fell into his hands.

Despite missing more than a month of training camp and getting into just two preseason games, Tomlinson proved his worth against the Redskins. He rushed for 113 yards on 36 carries with his first two career touchdowns (three- and one-yard runs). It was an impressive debut for the TCU running back and the shot in the arm the San Diego needed.

Not since Means had healthy legs have the Chargers had a legitimate rushing attack. Tomlinson gives the Chargers that added threat. A Heisman Trophy finalist, Tomlinson rushed for over 2,000 yards last season to become just the second running back, along with New Orleans' Ricky Williams, to accomplish the feat. He also ran for a 5,263 yards while at TCU, ranking him sixth all-time in NCAA Division I history.

If Tomlinson produces as he did Sunday (113 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 36 carries), the Charger offense could be very potent. The passing game should open up for Flutie, especially with a healthy Curtis Conway and Dwight working the corners. It worked in Denver when Terrell Davis established himself as a running back, allowing John Elway to open up the passing game on any down.

The Chargers were last in the league last season in rushing yards (1,062), average yards per carry (3.0), and next to last in rushing touchdowns with seven. The trio of Robert Chancey, Jermaine Fazande, and Terrell Fletcher, the three main running backs for San Diego last season, rushed for just 893 yards.

Denver made their lack of a running game work for many years, but they also had John Elway throwing. Since Humphries retired, the Chargers have had no real passing threat, either. Leaf was a disaster (thank Bobby Beathard for that one) and Harbaugh, while still a gamer, struck little fear in defenses whatsoever. You need a QB with intelligence if you plan to forego the running game and the Charger didn't have that -- until now.

Flutie gives them the leadership and experience necessary to pull the offense together. The fact that Brees comes from the same mold of quarterback as Flutie is a strong sign that the San Diego front office finally has a clue. The former Purdue QB is a scrambler with a strong arm and a nose for the end zone. With Flutie in his ear and leading the team on the field, Brees should become a solid NFL QB within the next two years.

For the first time in probably ten years, the Charger defense wasn't able to pull the team out of it's 2000 tailspin. Behind outside linebacker Junior Seau and safety Rodney Harrison, the San Diego defense struggled against the passing games, allowing a league high 30 touchdowns. Against the run, the Chargers were once again in the top five, but when you know you can go lights out through the air, why put the ball on the ground? With a stable offense look for the defense to play with a renewed fire, which fans saw against Washington where they held running back Stephen Davis to just 39 yards and helped bounce quarterback Jeff George from the game.

That being said, do they have a shot this season at the playoffs? With parity in the NFL, I guess anything is possible. The Chargers have a last place schedule this season and their first five games are against teams that won a combined 25 games last season (Washington, at Dallas, Cincinnati, at Cleveland, at New England). There is a strong possibility that a team that went 1-15 last season could be 5-0 by mid-October.

How's that for a confidence boost?

Article courtesy of Sports Central.