Chargers’ Timing Just Might Be Right : They Vastly Outnumber Bengals in Players With NFL Experience
Before they flew to Cincinnati Saturday, the new Chargers worked out for a couple of extra hours, just to make sure everyone knew the game plan. They also wore their official uniform pants, just to make sure everything fit.
“I don’t want guys to get there and find that their pant legs come down only to their thighs,” Coach Al Saunders said. “Don’t laugh. I’m serious.”
Today’s game between the non-union Chargers and the non-union Bengals at Riverfront Stadium (10 a.m. PDT) is serious, too. The result will count as much as any other regular-season game. You’ll definitely need a game program to figure out who’s who, and so will the coaches. It wasn’t until late this week that Saunders knew all the names of his offensive unit, and there still are a few unfamiliar faces on defense.
But they are Chargers, nonetheless. There are lightning bolts on their helmets, nonetheless. The regular Charger players are on strike, but even they realize the importance of this game. If the non-union Chargers win and the strike ends Tuesday, Dan Fouts and the rest of the guys will take a 2-1 record to Tampa Bay next Sunday.
Certainly, the regular Chargers would have been heavy underdogs to the regular Bengals. So, in one sense, the Chargers are benefiting from this strike. The non-union Bengals have only two players with National Football League game experience, and the non-union Chargers have 20. Reggie Williams, a Bengal linebacker, is the only regular from either team to have crossed the picket line.
“Oh, we’ve got a better chance (than the regular team) of beating Cincinnati and also a better chance of beating the Raiders in a couple weeks,” said Todd Spencer, a non-union running back. “If I were the Chargers, I’d hope this strike goes on about three weeks. They’ll be 4-1 and leading their division.”
Actually, the non-union Chargers may have to be concerned about just getting inside the stadium today. The striking Bengal players are planning a mass picket line, and the striking Cleveland Browns and Indianapolis Colts have been invited to join them because they don’t have home games to picket. Also, AFL-CIO representatives will be there.
“The hardest part of this game will be getting in and out of the stadium,” Saunders said. “We’ve told the guys to bring sleeping bags.”
Several Charger coaches plan to miss the team bus today. They’ll walk to the stadium instead.
Punter Joe Prokop said, “What are they going to do? Beat us up? Scare me some more.”
Meanwhile, Boomer Esiason, the Bengal quarterback and the team player representative, is hush-hush about his team’s picket line game plan.
“Even if we have something planned, I’m certainly not going to tell you what it is,” he said.
Guessing the Charger game plan is just as difficult. Rick Neuheisel will be the starting quarterback, and his receivers are Al Williams, who had 105 catches in two seasons with the Arizona Outlaws; Tag Rome, who is a former Canadian Football League star; and Harry Holt, formerly of the Cleveland Browns. Neuheisel isn’t adept at throwing downfield, so there will probably be a lot of dump-offs to his running backs and tight ends. On the other hand, Charger coaches seem to think they have a pretty decent running game, led by Spencer.
Joe Namath, who will be a commentator on Channel 39’s telecast of today’s game, watched a Charger practice last week, and asked Neuheisel: “Rick, have you ever played a game where you knew nothing about your opponent?”
Neuheisel, who played for the San Antonio Gunslingers of the USFL, said: “Yeah. Late one year in San Antonio, we ran out of film before one of our games. . . . I guess my San Antonio experience helps.”
Actually, Charger coaches have been poring over old scouting reports to get a read on the Bengals’ non-union players. Some of these Bengals were former late-round draft picks, so the Chargers’ player personnel department knows a little bit about them.
And the non-union players know it all can’t last forever.
“Might be my last game ever,” Spencer said. “Then it’ll be time to get a real job.”
Charger Notes The following players have been de-activated for today’s game: six-year NFL veteran wide receiver Calvin Muhammad, running back Jeff Powell, quarterback Russ Jensen, tight ends Jeff McCall and Harper LeBel, guards Rod Price and Gary Schippang, defensive end Jim Stuckey and former San Diego State nose tackle Levi Esene.