Good morning.
Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune says that San Diego Chargers head coach Mike McCoy needs a game-management assistant.
The impetus for Acee’s critique is Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Dirk Koetter acknowledging that he hired a game-management assistant this week. One of the reasons given for that is Koetter, Tampa Bay’s offensive coordinator last season, will continue to call plays.
Unlike Koetter, McCoy is freed up to focus on game-time decisions because offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt will call plays on game days.
McCoy told Acee that while he will not specifically designate a quality control coach as a game-management assistant, he will rely on a few assistants with certain strengths for input throughout the week and during games to help with game-management decisions.
My take: I agree with Acee here. The Chargers finished 3-9 in games decided by eight points or less last season. So doing a better job managing critical, end-of-the-game situations could mean the difference between winning or losing for McCoy and the Chargers. According to this ESPN Insider piece by Andrew Healy of Football Outsiders, McCoy was one of the worst head coaches in 2015 on strategic decision-making, so there’s room for improvement. Designating an assistant with a background in analytics would help.
Ricky Henne of Chargers.com writes that seventh-round selection Donavon Clark is eager to show off his position versatility.
My take: Clark spent time at right guard during Friday’s first day of rookie minicamp but played all across the offensive line at Michigan State.
Tom Krasovic of The San Diego Union-Tribune writes that fourth-round selection Joshua Perry looked smooth in team drills for the Chargers.
My take: I was impressed with both Perry and Jatavis Brown. As a fifth-year senior, Perry brings a maturity to the team seldom seen from college players first entering the league. Once again, Saturday’s practice is open to the public, with gates opening at 9:15 a.m. Pacific time.
Elliot Harrison of the NFL Network gives us his top-5 Chargers of all time in this video.
My take: Dan Fouts surprisingly tops the list, with Junior Seau No. 2 and LaDainian Tomlinson No. 3. I would have gone with Seau, but Fouts is certainly a deserving choice.
