Former general manager A.J. Smith drafted RB Ryan Mathews to be a three-down workhorse, but "you can count the number of third-down receptions he's had in his career on two hands," UT-San Diego's Michael Gehlken said. Norv Turner's coaching staff never trusted Mathews' pass protection or route running in high-leverage third-down or two-minute drill situations.
Outside of Vincent Brown and perhaps Philip Rivers, Danny Woodhead was the Chargers' most impressive player in spring practices.
"So Woodhead is going to be a big part of this thing," Gehlken said. "Woodhead is just better in a lot of areas than Ryan Mathews."
Woodhead is a sneaky pick, especially in PPR formats given his propensity to catch passes out of the backfield. There's a good chance that Woody plays on most third downs and in the Chrargers' two-minute drill, putting a considerable dent in Mathews' upside.
