Chargers Seeking a Rare Achievement : NFL: A victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would give the Chargers a record of better than .500.
If the Chargers claim a victory today over Tampa Bay to improve their record to 6-5, it will be the first time they have topped the .500 mark this late in a non-strike season since 1981.
Twice before--in 1990 and 1984--they reached this point with a 5-5 mark only to falter in Game 11.
The 1992 Chargers, however, have won five of their last six games and have overcome a four-game losing streak to open the season. They are 8 1/2-point favorites to win again today in San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium, and the Bobby Ross-Bobby Beathard turnaround continues.
“Anytime you win it’s going to make the team feel better,” Beathard said. “But this is a win-by-design as opposed to maybe a year ago when you win and there’s nothing changed that you can look back on as the reason for winning.
“This time when they’re winning they can look all the way back to training camp and see the habits that Bobby has tried to develop in these guys, like working hard in practice, a faster tempo in practice and pushing yourself hard.
“It’s like when they were 0-4 this year they was still more of a bonding. They believed this was going to work, there’s something good here. They felt they had a chance, whereas before when we went 0-4 we were pointing fingers. There wasn’t that direction, that leadership and now Bobby has given them that.”
The NFL’s easiest schedule has been crucial to the Chargers’ overnight rise, but there has also been the standout play of quarterback Stan Humphries, wide receiver Anthony Miller, defensive end Leslie O’Neal, linebacker Junior Seau, cornerback Gill Byrd and safety Stanley Richard.
Defensive coordinator Bill Arnsparger has befuddled the opposition, defensive tackles Blaise Winter and George Thornton have exceeded expectations and the special teams no longer provide aid to the enemy.
“I haven’t heard anyone around here that’s feeling comfortable,” Beathard said. “It took a lot to get back to being even, and we still have a lot to prove.”
The players believe they are playoff-bound. They have looked ahead at that schedule, which does not feature a team with a winning record, and they have counted themselves in.
“That’s scary to even talk about,” Beathard said. “Like a lot of those teams on our schedule, we’re in the same boat. We’re all struggling to get better, so there’s no reason to believe we can just show up and win the game.
“This is the type of team that is going to have to fight, scratch and claw to win any game. If we do win, I don’t think there will be a lot of pretty wins. This group hasn’t been here before and experienced this, so we don’t know how they will handle it.”
The Chargers have not been in the position very often of opening a game as the prohibitive favorite to win. Reporters have labeled the Buccaneers “mutts,” and Tampa Bay arrives having lost five of its last six games.
“Tampa Bay just beat the Bears,” Beathard said. “I mean history has shown that this team (Chargers) has been here before and just gone down the chute. We obviously have to be careful.”
Tampa Bay (4-6) ranks 11th on offense in the league and 15th on defense. Coach Sam Wyche has brought the no-huddle attack from Cincinnati, but instead of Boomer Esiason, Wyche has Vinny Testaverde at the controls.
“I don’t think he’s the problem,” Wyche said. “At the same time he’s not exempt from some of the blame.
“He’s the result of a player being taken and put right in the lineup without a good football team around him. He got beat up pretty good and bad things happened, and of course he’s always standing there with the ball in his hands so the fans think it must be the quarterback’s fault.
“I think this guy has as much talent as any quarterback I’ve been around in terms of pure passing ability. He’s plenty smart and plenty poised when you give him time to throw the football. The things that are missing on this team this year are the things that are going to make him look good within the next year. I think it may take us a year to get some of the things fixed.”
Wyche benched Testaverde earlier this season and played veteran Steve DeBerg, but the Buccaneers didn’t win with DeBerg, and so Testaverde returned. He has completed 56% of his passes and thrown for seven touchdowns with nine interceptions.
Reggie Cobb, who has been bothered by a sore toe, leads Tampa Bay with 749 yards on 200 carries. If Cobb can’t play effectively because of injury, former Charger running back Gary Anderson, who has 151 yards on 41 rushes, will play.
“It’s my fault, because I haven’t used him (Anderson) like he should have been used this year in terms of the quantity of plays,” Wyche said. “We’ve had the right kind of scheme for him, but we probably didn’t call his number enough.”
The defense has received a team-leading nine sacks from rookie defensive tackle Santana Dotson. Defensive end Keith McCants, however, has been unable to practice this week because of a sore knee.
“We’re just a long pass away from being 4-6 just like them,” defensive end Burt Grossman said. “We’re only 5-5; it’s not like we’ve done anything special yet.”
The Buccaneers, however, are winless in four previous tries against the Chargers. Tampa Bay has lost seven consecutive games in California, and in its last six games this season, the team has been outscored 83-168.
The Chargers’ turnaround looks like it will continue.
“You can’t take any team lightly in this league,” cautioned Byrd. “Our record doesn’t say that we’re too much better than Tampa.
“We’re in a position to get to the playoffs and we shouldn’t be afraid to say that. Once that is said, everybody has to turn it up a notch. We shouldn’t be afraid to be successful.”
