Coryell Seeking a Fair Solution in Green Case

In the interest of winning, matters of conscience usually don’t receive high priority in pro football.

The Chargers are caught in a struggle between doing the right thing and the expedient thing with respect to a young player who had served them well until an unwise act got him into legal trouble.

The struggle is evident in the public utterances of Coach Don Coryell as he tries to decide the proper course for handling the case of linebacker Mike Green.

Green was the Chargers’ leading tackler the last two years and was considered one of the team’s more upstanding citizens until he was arrested on drug charges last week.

As the Chargers await his arraignment on Wednesday, they are looking for a suitable compromise between being fair to him and doing all that is possible to curtail drug use. And they are trying not to compromise the team’s image or its won-lost record.

If it sounds complicated, it is.

Coryell, when he first learned of Green’s arrest, angrily criticized the young linebacker for letting down the team.

Now, the anger has abated, and Coryell seems to be looking for an honorable way to accept Green back into the fold if the legal consequences of the case will permit it.

“The law comes first,” Coryell said Sunday, “but if he is not convicted (of a felony), we certainly hope he will be able to get another chance.

“Mike is a bright person and we are all hoping he will learn from this and straighten up. Heck, until now, I don’t think he ever was known to eat a candy bar or smoke a cigarette.”

Coryell’s comments came in response to a question about whether he thought owner Alex Spanos would deal with Green in a lenient manner.

Spanos, who has not commented on the Green case, is considered a hard-liner on drug use. He has vowed to rid the Chargers of drug abuse, and, true to his word, recently traded Chuck Muncie after vowing the running back would never play for the team again.

Muncie was suspended last fall by National Football League Commissioner Pete Rozelle for recurring drug involvement. He was reinstated and promptly traded on Friday.

Coryell cautioned Sunday against reading too much into the handling of the Muncie situation.

Each instance of wrong-doing--be it a missed curfew, a missed plane or a drug bust--is examined and treated on its individual merits, Coryell said.

“Chuck had a long history of drug use, but this was a new thing with Mike,” Coryell said. “You can’t equate their cases.

“I reacted strongly against Mike last week because he has been such a fine person, and I was so disappointed in him. If he had been a borderline person, I probably would have reacted differently.”

The implication was that if Green’s conduct had not been exemplary in the past, there would be little hope of his remaining with the Chargers.

Coryell made it clear he wasn’t wavering on the issue of ridding the team of drug offenders.

“There’s no place for (drug abuse) in such a demanding sport as pro football,” he said. “We’re all in this together, and we all have to depend on each other.”

Coryell, who still hasn’t talked to Green, said he doesn’t believe drug use is widespread among the Chargers.

“I don’t care if people think I’m naive,” Coryell said, “I just don’t believe many players are involved in this stuff. It would be hard to find as good a group of people as pro football players--even doctors, lawyers and school teachers.”

A group of Charger veterans held a private meeting Saturday to discuss ways of dealing with the drug problem, and Coryell said he thought the action was a positive step.

“It means they’re concerned about their teammates, and about winning,” Coryell said. “They don’t want to be lumped together (by fans) as all being drug users, and I can certainly see their point.”

Details of the players’ meeting were sketchy because the Chargers felt the need for confidentiality in order to keep the trust of teammates.

While the problem of drug use has been much on the minds of the Chargers, other aspects of human behavior have come under consideration, as well.

Take the matter of conditioning.

The Chargers have never been regarded as one of the NFL’s better conditioned teams. Quite the opposite, in fact.

But Coryell is attempting to change that image.

The 76 players who reported to camp Saturday were subjected to a rigorous afternoon of testing that left no doubt who was in shape and who wasn’t.

When the rest of the squad reports next week, the same tests will be employed. No one will escape.

The country club days are history.

In the past, veterans who came in early were permitted to skip one of the twice-daily workouts, and to return home at night. No more. This year, if a veteran came to camp early, he is there for good, subject to the same demands as the rookies.

“People just don’t get in shape on their own,” Coryell said. “They have to work out as a group, and they have to be pushed. About the only exception I can name is (veteran receiver) Charlie Joiner.”

Coryell said he was pleased with the overall condition of the players, particularly the linemen.

Charger Notes

Defensive back Johnny Ray Smith was waived because the coaching staff thought he was lacking in ability compared to some other young defenders on the premises. . . . Coach Don Coryell had these observations on receiver Trumaine Johnson, recently signed after two years in the United States Football League: “He has good ability and we’re anxious to work with him. He has a lot to learn about our system, but we think he will develop into a fine receiver.” . . . And on veteran linebacker Shane Nelson, obtained from Buffalo after missing nearly three years because of injuries, Coryell said: “He is very aggressive, has fine quickness and is very gung-ho. He had the flu last week and he’s been dehydrated, but I’m impressed by his conditioning. He seems to have no ill effects from his knee injury.”