We’ve just released Episode 77 of the Thunder Down Under Chargers Podcast.
Our synopsis for Episode 77 is below:
Our 2024 Guest Series kicks off with a bang! This week, veteran Locked On Chargers podcasters, Daniel Wade and David Droegemeier join us to talk all things Chargers football, from OTAs to Mandatory Minicamp. To finish, we revisit a past segment, “Dodge, Duck, Dip, Dive and Dave” and challenge our guests to the famous TDU Aussie Quiz. Don’t miss it!
You can also listen on our Spotify below!
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Hope you enjoy the episode! Thanks so much for listening 🙂
Alister (AKA “AussieBoltsFan”, “@TDU_Alister”)
For those interested, Tony Jefferson went on Locked on Chargers this morning to discuss why he joined the Chargers:
I was quite impressed! I can see why Derwin was eager for him to be signed. I got some Richard Sherman vibes listening to him speak about the game, and I expect he’ll be an awesome on-field communicator. We’ll find out if he can still play the guitar. But he certainly talks a good game.
At his best (that’s realistic to expect at this point in his career), we’ll have the best three-pronged safety attack in the league. At his worst, he’ll be an amazing player-coach through training camp and hopefully the regular season.
Glad to hear the TDU pod back in action. I am a regular listener and contributor to the LOC pod as well so it was a fun crossover for me as I know both shows pretty well. Looking forward to the offseason “guest” series to continue. When talking of the new offense I think people are sleeping on Herbert a little. I think he can still put up some good #’s in Roman’s offense. This isn’t going to be 3yds and a cloud of dust scheme. I doubt Harbaugh took this job to watch this team become the Rex Ryan Jets. I think a better running game will lead Herbert to be more efficient and open up some bigger plays downfield. I still think 4000 yds and 30 TD is plausible. And just for the record, I got the coin and Olympic city questions correct on the Aussie quiz!!! Looking forward to the next pod and tell jack he was missed!!
I guess it depends on your definition of sleeping. Personally, I’m predicting fewer yards/TDs, but higher efficiency, a superb TD/INT ratio + more team wins. I think there’s a world where Herbert can be in the MVP conversation for 2024, but perhaps 2025 would be the better bet for that by which stage he might have a better collection of weapons to target.
Your broader point about the Chargers not likely to become the “Rex Ryan Jets” will be interesting to monitor. I went searching for a Tweet by former Guilty As Charged collaborator, Arjun Menon, but interestingly he’s deleted it. Essentially, it set out how frequently Roman called a ‘run’ in situations where more than half of the league would call ‘pass’ based on the field location, down, and distance. His data showed Roman as the greatest outlier in the League for calling run over expected and pass under expected. And then he showed that almost all of the past 10 SB winners ranked in the top 5 in the League in pass rate over expected. On the face of it, that’s concerning. The recent story of the league seems to be that OCs who call passes at higher frequencies than you’d expect based on down and distance, are the ones who win Super Bowls.
Does that mean a run-happy team can’t eventually buck this trend? Certainly not since the League ebbs and flows all the time. As DBs and LBs get smaller, maybe we will see a run-happy team win the SB soon. But to your point about the “Rex Ryan Jets”, can an old dog like Greg Roman learn some new tricks? That will be Roman’s challenge for 2024-2025. With Herbert, will he continue to run the ball at near-League high rates. He might be tempted to, because no doubt, Herbert will bail the team out of many third-and-longs. But is that really the best style of Offense when you have a QB like Justin Herbert? Andy Reid’s utilisation of Mahomes is perhaps the best example of a great OC running the Offense through his great QB. We’ll see what path Roman chooses…
On the Quiz, I thought the Olympics question was a pretty easy one. Let’s see if our next guest can beat 0/3 :-p And yes, Jack will be back!
Alister,
I agree with your points on the Roman play call style. I have to think that if Harbs doesn’t like the offensive approach he will step right in and demand an adjustment especially if the scheme is not utilizing Herbert to his full potential. Maybe this season will be more run heavy to start in order to give the young WR room time to assimilate to the Pro game and pick up the nuances of the passing offense? I could see the passing game be progressive week to week to becoming like 55/45 passing by the end of the season. I do think this team is a season away from true contention especially in the offensive skill positions. I fully expect it to improve next year just off the development of the young guns alone. By the end of this season we will have a better idea of how the team used and views QJ, Palmer and Hurst and how well McConkey, Rice and Johnson have fit into their roles. I could totally envision an offseason trade for a big time WR like the Texans did with Diggs. Maybe someone like Deebo, McLaurin or Amari Cooper become available? I would say Davante would be perfect, but that trade never happens. As always looking forward to the next listen. Say hi to the boys for me.
I’ve carried water for Staley for long enough. Do I think he might have done better with a better GM and/or better assistants? Yes, I do. But he was given 3 years at the helm, and there’s no guarantee with his stubborn approach to things that he would have empowered or delegated appropriately to those better assistants, if he had them. He was not hard done by and being fired was an expected outcome following a disastrous campaign.
I hope Staley learns from his failures in LAC, is exposed to different defensive ideas in San Francisco, and gets another chance to be a DC sometime in the future.
As a Chargers fan though, I can hardly complain about where everything has ended up. The team should be well set-up under Harbaugh for sustained success.
Made me laugh on the “9-10 of them”. I agree that Staley was very limited in his professional contacts and probably would do better in the future with more contacts and more years under his belt. I watched Kyle DEs episode as well.
Great podcast gentlemen. I really like when you bring in the guest speakers. I was impressed with Daniel and David’s knowledge about the Chargers, and they had many insightful things to to say. Thank you for acknowledging AJ Smith and the teams that he built. Excellent comments about Leatherwood, Jefferson, and the front office turning over every stone. The leadership difference between Harbaugh and Staley is huge. “Attention to detail” focus as opposed to the level of complexity and fluff that Staley endlessly spewed. The whole conversation about the level of the assistant coaches is a huge difference for this team. I always felt that Brandon Staley was not able to start off his career with a strong coaching staff. Too many guys that just didn’t have the juice. Staley needed much more help than he got and whether that was his fault or a budget issue I am not sure. I am sure that Harbaugh when negotiating made it clear that he would want/require a huge coaching budget.
Herbert will throw for 4,500 yards and 35-TDs. I say NO. I will project 4,000 yards and 28-TDs and a team that will try to run the ball including more designed carries for Justin.
The Chargers will have 12 or more wins this season. I say NO. I will project 10-7 record. They will need another season of rebuild and getting the right players. The roster is good enough for a fringe playoff team.
The Chargers will have 3- WR with over 800 yards. I say NO. Maybe two. McConkey and Hurst.
Chargers will lead the league in sacks. I say NO. I think they will be top ten, but lack any difference-makers on the defensive interior
Chargers will have a 1,100-yard rusher this season. I say NO. RBBC will have several guys between 600-800 yards.
Junior Colson will be starting by week #1 . I say YES. I think he will win the job due to his familiarity with the defense. Unless the injury causes him to continue to miss time during training camp.
The Chargers make the playoffs this season. I say YES.
And why in the hell would any country design a “dodecagon” coin? WTF?!
I will be following Locked on Chargers as well.
I’m going to assume (but, of course, can’t ever know) that Staley got the exact coaches he wanted. The issue may simply have been his lack of contacts and pull. Harbaugh has decades of experience, winning and relationships to draw upon when searching for assistants. The staff he’s assembled is significantly more experienced. Surely that will lead to better outcomes. We’ll soon see!
I’ve taken note of your predictions and we can revisit them later this year.
Australia does fashionable coins well. You haven’t lived until you’ve felt a dodecagon coin in your hands, just before realising it takes 9-10 of them to order a coffee in 2024 🙂
Thanks for listening!
This was a really fun listen guys, really enjoyed the comradery between you all! Looking forward to the next episode already.
Glad you enjoyed it, and really excited about our next planned guest. Still need to work out some finer details but it would be our best get yet.
Sorry Al. Add “Figure out how to scale down featured images/logos” on my list of things to work on!