As the Bolts charge forward looking for a bounce back 2016 campaign, Offensive Coordinator Ken Whisenhunt is dead set on jumpstarting a rushing attack that has been dormant in recent years.
San Diego’s offense was electric at times over the two seasons between Whisenhunt’s stints as OC, and he is quick to point out all the good the staff accomplished with Philip Rivers at the helm. Nonetheless, the Chargers made a number of coaching changes on offense as only one coach remains in the same position heading into 2016.
A major reason for that change was a need to improve the ground game. The Bolts ranked under 13th in the NFL under Whisenhunt in 2012, yet fell to 30th and 31st the past two seasons.
While the offensive coordinator has numerous priorities throughout the offseason, he admits that is chief amongst them.
Whisenhunt: “...the one thing that stands out is we need to run the football better than we did last year. There is no blame associated there, as there are always factors that are involved. But that is probably the biggest thing we have to do, because then your play action builds off of that, your time of possession increases where you can control the ball and you are in better third down situations. All of those things tie in together."
The Chargers struggled to run the last two seasons, and the addition of Melvin Gordon didn't help in 2015. Whisenhunt's offenses have performed better when he's the OC and not the head coach, so his commitment to the running game should be good news for Gordon. Danny Woodhead likely remains the better option in PPR leagues.
