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Hey Stormcloud.
We’re going to have a mailbag segment on Wednesday leading into the Raiders game.
Any questions you have for us please drop a comment. Preseason, Regular Season, Raiders, NFL, anything. FIRE AWAY!
Over/under on Herbert passing yards week one? I really have no clue what to expect. Preseason provided nothing. I’m sure they’ll try to run the shit outta it, but wouldn’t be surprised if Herbert goes big.
@feeblepubliccableaccessshow Sorry that we didn’t get to this question on the show buddy. It was on my list but we ran out of time.
We are left guessing really but I would set the line at 245.5 and I would take the overs. We’re expecting a run heavy attack this year, but I also think the Raiders secondary is exploitable. Jakorian Bennett is fast but a second year player and raw. Jack Jones is a gambler in coverage (a bit like Marcus Peters used to be). Their secondary depth is poor if someone were to get injured. I could see a deep connection or two being achieved with some Hurst completions over the middle and other underneath stuff when Patrick Graham plays Cover 3.
@alisterlloyd Oh no worries, dude. Was a marginal question anyway. Love yalls stuff!
I predict ~34 passing attempts per game for Herbert (a career low) in the Roman offense, in part because I expect the Chargers to be in the top 10 in rushing attempts and in the top 10-15 in defense.
Consequently, assuming he stays healthy, I predict 4300 passing yards and 30 passing TDs. Given the plantar fascia injury, I predict 200 rushing yards and 2 rushing TDs.
Thoughts from the TDU crew?
@tau837 Impossible to disagree much with these well researched predictions. My point of difference would be guessing that Herbert has > 2 rushing TDs. 2022 was the only season where he had fewer than 3 Rushing TDs and he claimed today that his foot has fully recovered. I’ll bang the overs there. Otherwise agree.
You guys did a great job covering the Chargers opponents already , which answered a bunch of my questions. Here’s a few more:
- Do the Chargers make a big in-season trade? If so, who do they acquire? My answer: I do not have a lot of confidence in Hurst staying healthy, so I could see a trade for a TE (like Tyler Conklin).
- Who leads the Chargers in rushing? My answer: Vidal. I think Gus will get his carries and Dobbins will look good early in the season. As the season wears on, Vidal will see more of the field and will significantly contribute to what I expect will be a playoff push down the stretch. Keeping “tread on Vidal’s tires” early in the season will pay dividends late in the season. FYI – I expect Vidal will be inactive for the first few games.
- Who leads the Chargers in receptions? My answer: Palmer for catches, McConkey for yards.
- Who leads the Chargers in sacks? My (idiotically optimistic) answer: Bosa. After not being able to stay on the field for the last 2 years, I think this staff keeps Joey reasonably healthy by limiting his snaps and better conditioning.
- Who leads the Chargers in INTs? My answer: Zont. In a contract year, I think the ball-hawk we saw in the 1st half of the Jacksonville playoff game will re-emerge under this coaching staff. Bonus prediction: Zont signs a huge contract elsewhere in 2025,
- Biggest positive surprise for the 2024 NFL season? My answer: The Chiefs do not win the AFC-W. Runner-up: Russell Wilson leads the Stealers and Cousins leads the Falcons to playoff births
- Biggest negative surprise for the 2024 NFL season? My answer: The Bengals finish with 8 or less wins, getting Zac Taylor fired.
- NFL MVP? The homer in me wants to say Herbert (so that’s my answer). Runner up: CJ Stroud. A few years ago, Tau and I went back/forth on the Wilson trade. I thought the Broncos would have been better off packaging all the picks to trade up for Stroud. In a division with Mahomes and Herbert, I do not see how the Broncos or Raiders are going to compete without their own young franchise QB. I thought the Wilson trade was a colossal fuck-up, which turned out to be right (an unusual situation for me). The Texans have some juice and I think Stroud is going to ascend this year.
- Super Bowl Prediction: My (homer) prediction: All-Cali SB (and a rematch of SB XXIX): Chargers 31, 49ers 17
@kevdiego Thanks for all this Kev! We’ll answer some of these (and the other question you’ve discussed with Tau above) on the show 
We have some other fun stuff planned. Maybe even a role play between Popper and Harbaugh 😉
@alisterlloyd The Harbaugh/Popper bit should be funny. I enjoyed watching Popper make Staley squirm. Showed us who Brandon was. I think he’s going to be less successful (and more annoying – at least to me) if he continues to harass Jim.
If you want to be funny, why not have Jesse Minter explain defense to Brandon Staley? Or, maybe rank the top-5 Charger HCs of all time? My ranking:
- Sid Gilman: Only HC to win a championship
- Bobby Ross: Only HC to get a Charger team to the SB
- Don Coryell
- Marty
- Really struggling here – Norv?
I think Jim can quickly jump to the top of this list with a deep playoff run (which is really a pathetic).
@alisterlloyd Came up with another couple questions while playing golf today (I played early & by myself, which was fun):
- What record do you think the Chargers would have with the 2024 roster being coached by the 2023 staff? (my answer: 3-14)
- What record do you think the 2023 Chargers would have being coached by the 2024 staff? (my answer: 12-5, with Herbert staying healthy)
One more: I asked for your top-5 Charger coaches. What are your bottom 5? Here are mine:
- Kevin Gilbride (6-16): Total disaster and an asshole to boot
- Harlan Svare (7-17-2): Oversaw the decline of the Chargers from the Sid Gilman era
- Dan Henning (6-32): We used to chant “Hang Henning” after games. One game in Anaheim, we hung out in the stadium (with sufficient lubrication) – he had to walk by us to get off the field. We had the entire crowd chanting “Hang Henning.” You could tell it bothered him
- Mike Riley (14-34): Nice guy, shitty coach
- Tied: Mike McCoy (28-37, 1-1 playoffs), Staley (24-24, 0-1 playoffs): Staley won more, but would have eaten shit if giving another year (like McCoy). He also didn’t win a playoff game (like McCoy did).
By the way, it’s interesting to note that the Chargers went from 4-12 in 1992 to 11-5, 1-1 in the playoffs in 1992 (Bobby Ross’ first year)
- What record do you think the Chargers would have with the 2024 roster being coached by the 2023 staff? (my answer: 3-14)
- What record do you think the 2023 Chargers would have being coached by the 2024 staff? (my answer: 12-5, with Herbert staying healthy)
For these questions I would want “GM” included in staff. Because it’s more interesting to consider how Staley + Hortiz would have performed, equally Harbaugh + Telesco. Impossible to know though.
@alisterlloyd I left GM out because Telesco would have done significantly worse than Hortiz. I was trying to focus exclusively on the difference coaching makes in the NFL (I think it’s significant).
It may be interesting to consider:
- What the Chargers would look like going into 2024 with Telesco/Staley still in place. I think it would be a dumpster fire and we all would have our pitchforks out
- The question of “how would the 2024 Chargers roster do under the 2023 staff” is essentially answering the Staley + Hortiz question
I think the more amazing point here is that the Chargers have had a FRANCHISE QB in each of the last 20 years. The only HC that made a serious championship run was Norv-fucking-Turner. Imagine what a good HC would have done with those rosters? Give Belichick the 2004 Chargers roster & Rivers is the GOAT. Give Reid the 2013 roster and we have multiple SBs. Met a few mates for a pint earlier, but I really believe this ownership group has let the great players down by skimping on the HC. I think that ends this year. Jim Harbaugh is a great coach. Excited to see what a Charger team led by a great coach looks like (haven’t seen that since Coryell).
Wow! I love your optimism! But as a long suffering fan (based on your avatar, 40+ years just like me), I prefer to be more pessimistic until the team proves me wrong. I’m hoping for a #7 or #6 seed based on the 3rd easiest schedule we have and 10-11 wins due to a more competent coaching staff and the Harbaugh effect. A deep playoff run is possible but I’m thinking more of the future. 2026 could be our year to the Superbowl. Excited for the season! FU, Staley!
@aircoryell73 I’ve told this story several times before, so I’ll give you the short version: My dad’s best friend in his youth was a guy named Allen Bond. Allen’s dad was Lyle Bond, the sports anchor for CBS8 in San Diego. In the early days of the Chargers, games rarely sold out. Lyle had access to virtually unlimited numbers of tickets, which he shared with my dad. So, my dad, brother and I went to almost every Charger home game. So, yea, I’ve been a VERY long suffering fan (One of my earliest Childhood memories was the Chargers shitting the bed in an early 70s game. Harland Svare was the coach. I think Svare had a long-term contract. The Chargers were in the middle of a 2-11-1 record – a fan hired a plane to fly over the stadium with a banner: “Four More Year” in reference to Harland’s contract. The whole stadium was chanting “4 more years.”
If you’re interested, here’s a bit with Lyle Bond interviewing a few Charger legends:
Does this O-Line really have the ability to create rushing lanes when it was so poor last season? Bozeman and Alt are the additions, and Pipkins has slid inside. None are known (at least yet) as superb run blockers.
@kathmandusteve Sorry Steve, this was another one we didn’t get to but I believe the Harbaugh/Roman combination will work wonders for the rushing attack. Slater, Zion, Bozeman and Alt are all plus run blockers. Pipkins is the great unknown but his film shows occasional pancakes in the running game particularly when in space. I would be comfortable with Pipkins or Zion pulling on Power plays and I have confidence in Bozeman/Pipkins executing duo blocks on inside runs with one moving to the second level. I think the results will be pleasantly surprising this year, and I don’t mind the depth either if McFadden is called into action.
@alisterlloyd Well, Alister, I hope so. But I hear the Raiders front seven are real run stoppers. It could very well be that the Harbaugh/Roman penchant to run the ball up the gut may have tough sledding in this first game — hope they can adapt the game plan to meet the challenge of Christian Wilkins, Max Crosby and their other great run tacklers.
@kathmandusteve I agree with that observation. The Raiders are stout up the middle. It will be a battle of wills early if that’s the Bolts’ game plan. But could they surprise us by coming out in spread and attacking with the passing game early? We soon find out!
My question is can Rkymtnguy be kept off this website? No seriously do you feel like the CB’s will be able to work together and form a decent secondary or will it be up to the pass rush to be outstanding in order for them to not look poor ? Oh and when will the team consider bringing back Cheerleaders I believe only 8 teams don’t have a squad?
@lalbolts God I hope he makes that decision for us by never attempting to join. I’m an inclusive person but I have my limits. Not sure if I’ve agreed with a single thing he’s ever written and seeing his recent commentary on BFTB, that hasn’t changed over the offseason. Bloke never met a bad idea he didn’t embrace.
The other questions…we will deal with on the show 😉 Thanks!
@lalbolts Another we didn’t quite get to yesterday! I think disguise/blitzing + zone coverage in the secondary will really help the CBs in this scheme. Pass rush obviously helps but even when the pass rush was poor in the preseason games (eg, v Dallas) the secondary feasted. I am confident they’ll outperform the secondary of last season.
My wife and I watched the Cowboys Cheerleaders program on Netflix and it was an intriguing insight into how seriously the whole process is taken by some organisations, including the cheerleaders themselves! I would love to see it happen, purely for love of the art (and maybe other aesthetic reasons :-p)
I noticed that Andy has joined the SC Community. Glad to have him here.
Can the Bolts take advantage of the imbalance that the Raiders showed in the run game? It was Poor rushing attack, and poor run defense overall for them. Which Charger will lead in rushing against those degenerate pirates?
Never mind the Politics. World stability is in danger here.
Family. Trust. Respect.
Outside of injury to Herbert, or just a rash of injuries to important players across the board, what can you see as a possible reason for this season to perhaps not be as successful as people expect in Harbaugh’s first year?
Where does the TDU staff’s optimism lie?
@buck-melanoma I have the team going…*scrap that*…Aussies like to say ‘us’ and ‘our’ about our sporting teams. So I have us going 11-6 with losses coming to the Steelers, Ravens, Falcons, Broncos and Chiefs (2x). I think we make the Divisional Round and lose to either the Chiefs or Texans.
Not bad for Yr 1 of the Harbaugh experience!
What do you think mate?
@alisterlloyd I like your optimism but I’m not ready to venture into double digit wins. I’m saying 9 with my biggest concerns at center and IDL.
I’ll gladly be wrong and hope for your estimate.
@buck-melanoma I’ve already walked back one or two of my predictions (unofficially and off-record… read: in my head) from the various opponent series eps, but its higher than it was last year. I see real promise in this outfit under Harbaugh, with valid protection, a run-game and a defence that isn’t predicated by slogans. I’ll consider losses to Cinci, Baltimore, @Denver, KC (x2) and Atlanta for 11-6.
@tdu_andy I think our offensive success hinges on play at center and I have serious concerns there. My draft disappointment was not addressing this position.
I hope yours and Alister’s optimism wins out.
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