Coryell Warns: Make Big Play or Face Big Fall : Borderline Chargers to Get Last Shot Against Cardinals

Don Coryell was talking specifically about linebackers when he issued this advice for tonight’s exhibition finale: “Any guy with a chance to make a big play, better.”

But there are borderline players at nearly every position on the team, and they would all do well to heed Coryell’s dictum.

Among the more noteworthy players battling for a place on the roster tonight against the St. Louis Cardinals are offensive lineman James FitzPatrick, quarterback Tom Flick and linebacker Woody Lowe.

They are part of a group of 15 players, including two on the injured reserve list, whose future with the Chargers is tenuous. The Chargers must trim their roster from 50 to 45 by Monday (the players on injured reserve don’t count against the limit).

The defense presents a more confusing picture than the offense.

“We’ve never gone into a season with the defense so unsettled,” Coryell said. “But I have more hope for this defense than I’ve had in several years because we have better players. I think we’ll piece together a pretty good defense.”

The line is the most promising--and settled--part of the defense. Lee Williams, Chuck Ehin and Earl Wilson have been joined by newcomers Leslie O’Neal, Terry Unrein and John Walker.

The Chargers are hoping this group can increase the team’s sack total from 40 to nearly 60. The Chargers will need all the sacks they can get because the coaches are fearful of long pass plays.

Linebacking remains an uncertain area. More than 20 prospects have been auditioned. A half dozen have emerged as likely to survive the final cut, including Ty Allert, Thomas Benson, Fred Robinson, Derrie Nelson, Mike Douglass and Billy Ray Smith, the only guaranteed starter.

Less certain of a job are veteran Lowe and newcomers Andy Hawkins, Gary Plummer and Ronnie Washington. Lowe likely will make the team, coaches say, because of his experience and stability.

Allert, a rookie from Texas, emerged as a possible starter as a result of a strong game last week against the Rams.

“He has a heckuva chance to be a starter, but he needs to do as well (tonight) as he did last week,” Coryell said.

“He was hurt early in camp and we haven’t had a chance to see as much as we’d like. Mike Douglass has been hurt, too, but he’s a 10-year veteran and we know an awful lot about him.”

Nelson is considered a likely survivor because of his excellence on special teams.

Coryell is concerned by the lingering injuries in the secondary.

Safeties Jeff Dale and John Hendy have not played a down in the exhibitions to date. Dale may be available for some action tonight, but there is now doubt about whether Hendy will be ready for next week’s season opener against Miami. Both Dale and Hendy are recuperating from knee problems.

The offense has its share of questions--more than many fans would suspect, according to Coryell.

“We’re not set, like everyone thinks,” he said. “One injury could change much of our thinking. And we have no idea who will be available on waivers or in trades next Monday.”

The Chargers are debating whether to go with 22 players on offense and 21 on defense, or whether to reverse those numbers.

It’s entirely possible they will go with 22 on offense because they have more skilled players on that side of the ball.

The exhibition season has provided answers to several questions on offense, such as who would replace the retired Ed White and how well would Gary Anderson function as a wide receiver.

The White matter has been satisfactorily resolved with Gary Kowalski claiming a job at tackle, Sam Claphan moving to guard and rookie Jeff Walker emerging as a capable backup.

“We’ve really solidified our line,” assistant head coach Al Saunders said. “We think it will be outstanding.”

Outstanding is too mild an adjective for the coaches’ expectations for Anderson. Their projection is that he will emerge as a Pro Bowl-caliber superstar.

“He’s even tougher, faster and a better receiver than we had hoped,” Coryell said. “On the first day of camp, when we tested our players’ fitness, Gary ran 10 40-yard dashes at 30-second intervals, and his times ranged from 4.42 to 4.65, and he didn’t even sweat. That’s unbelievable.”

The Chargers went into camp uncertain about the potential of three reserve quarterbacks, Wayne Peace, Tom Flick and Darryl Dickey. Flick eliminated the competition and has nearly persuaded the coaches he’s capable of winning games in the event of injuries to Dan Fouts and Mark Herrmann.

“We hope we will be able to play him a majority of the game tonight,” Coryell said. “We anticipate him doing as well as he did against Philadelphia (14 of 21, 287 yards, 4 touchdowns), but he doesn’t have to be that good to make the team. It certainly would ease our fears if he did play that well again. Anybody, not just Tom, could play his way off the team with a bad game.”

That anybody would seem to apply to FitzPatrick, the first-round draft choice from USC who is regarded as the biggest disappointment of training camp by the coaching staff.

FitzPatrick reported out of shape and was criticized for lack of effort before coaches spotted improvement in last week’s exhibition.

Still, he hasn’t locked up a spot among the final 45.

“It’s safe to say he hasn’t clinched it,” Saunders said, “although I would add he very likely will make it. He is among a group of 10 or 12 guys fighting for jobs.

“He enhanced his position by a better performance last week, and we’re hoping he shows enough continued improvement that he will be able to make a contribution this year. We know James can help us in the future, but this team’s future is now. We’re hoping he shows a real spark tonight.”