Chargers Taking Their Lone Victory in Stride
There was relief but not much celebration for Bobby Ross after his first NFL coaching victory.
“I just went home and propped up my feet,” Ross said.
General Manager Bobby Beathard was about as subdued.
“It’s a bit of a relief to have that part over, but it certainly doesn’t mean we’re out of the woods,” Beathard said. “But it was great to win a game. We needed it badly.”
Maybe Ross is subdued because he realizes the pressure from above will not leave him after one victory over the struggling Seattle Seahawks.
“We’re making progress, obviously we’d want faster progress in the won-loss column,” Ross said. “I would be the first to want that before anybody, other than perhaps Bobby Beathard or Mr. (Alex) Spanos.”
Ross said it’s important that he has not panicked despite a 1-4 start.
“What you have to guard against is that you don’t back away from your plan,” he said. “You stick to the things that will get you there long-range wise. That’s been one of the toughest things to do, to persevere.”
Beathard said liked the way quarterback Stan Humphries has persevered and he also praised the play of tackle Eric Moten and receiver Anthony Miller, but he wasn’t happy with the Charger offense’s performance in the second half. It produced no points and only 82 yards.
“If we ever get in a situation like that again we need to be as productive in the first half as we were in the first half,” he said. “We were probably in a position where we never enjoyed a lead like (17-3) and we probably sat on it. We won’t always be able to do that.”
Beathard said Sunday’s crowd of 36,783, the smallest in four years at Jack Murphy Stadium for a Charger home game, was not surprising.
“When you think of the way we’ve played, I don’t think anybody expected any more,” he said. “We have to earn the fans’ respect. The only way to earn it is to do better.”
The trading deadline is only a week away, but Beathard said he doesn’t anticipate making any deals.
“We’ll probably be just like we are,” Beathard said. “We’ll go with the people we have. I’d be surprised if we don’t.”
Beathard said his phone has been unusually dead lately. He’s only received one call and that was from a general manager offering a player.
Marion Butts played only 12 plays before reinjuring his right knee. But Ross said Butts’ injury could have been much worse than a stretched knee ligament.
“He got a hit pretty good,” Ross said. “We were lucky he didn’t get it hurt real badly. His foot did not catch in the ground. If his foot had caught, we’d have been looking at major surgery.”
Ross said he’s hoping the two week weeks between games can return Butts to his old form. Butts, a Pro Bowl performer the past two seasons, is averaging only 3.3 yards a carry and has yet to score. His long run is 15 yards.
“I don’t think Butsy’s been at full strength since Kansas City (the opening game),” Ross said. “A running back has to have his legs. He really hasn’t had them at full speed for the whole year.”
Starting right tackle Broderick Thompson is ready to come off the injured reserve list, but Ross did not say whose roster spot Thompson would take.
Linebacker Billy Ray Smith (hamstring) is eligible to come off the injured reserve list for the Indianapolis game Oct. 18. But Ross said that doesn’t necessarily mean he will be ready to play then.
“He can be coming along real well, but then (he gets hurt) again real quickly,” Ross said. “We were figuring it up the other day, he’s had about seven days of practice since we started camp.”
When Smith is activated, Ross said he will play behind Henry Rolling.
The Chargers aren’t looking for another kicker, but Ross said he is not happy with John Carney, who missed two field-goal attempts Sunday, including a 31-yarder.
“We have to make those,” Ross said. “When we control the ball as we did and drive the length of the field, you don’t want to come away with nothing. That’s a downer for a football team.”
Beathard said the team is prepared to stick with Carney, but that he always has an emergency list of kickers available.
Ross said there is nothing behind the benching of Shawn Jefferson, the team’s third leading receiver. Jefferson, who has caught 13 passes, played only three snaps.
“We didn’t use some of the schemes that we had with him,” Ross said. “Shawn’s got to play more than three plays.”
Bill Arnsparger’s defense has moved from second to first in total defense in the AFC. The Charger defense has surrendered only 233.8 yards a game. Kansas City is second at 250.8.
Ross gave the team Monday and Tuesday off. They will practice Wednesday afternoon, Thursday and Friday morning and take the weekend off before beginning preparations for the Colts on Monday.
Why is a 1-4 team taking four of seven days off in its bye week?
“In my younger days, I would probably have worked them real hard,” Ross said. “I’ve learned now that you don’t do that.
“You can overwork. That’s particularly true at this level. You don’t have as many players, the season is longer, so I think it’s really important to give them some time off.”
The Charger coaching staff will spend Thursday afternoon evaluating each other.
Beathard and rookie defensive end/linebacker Kevin Little flew to New York on Friday to meet with NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. The NFL is investigating the possibility that Beathard “stashed” Little, a fifth-round draft choice from North Carolina A&T;, on the injured reserve list with a fake knee injury. Little was placed on injured reserve before the season, which means he is not eligible to play again this year.
Beathard is still awaiting word from the NFL office, but he is confident he will be cleared. If the NFL finds that the Chargers placed a non-injured player on injured reserve, it could take away a draft choice next season.
“The kid was hurt,” Beathard said. “The paper this morning said he never came up on an injury report. He came up every week on a injury report since he began treatment.”
Beathard said Little came down with tendinitis in his knee during training camp.
“It really hindered his chances to get better, because he just slacked off,” Beathard said.
Beathard said he has no problem with the NFL’s recent emphasis on penalizing teams that were stash players.
“I made a suggestion they do crack down, open up practices for the league people to come randomly and see who the teams are practicing,” Beathard said.
