Adrian Peterson was asked at his offseason camp for kids in Norman, Okla., which was the toughest defense he faced during his rookie year.
“The San Diego Chargers,” Peterson replied.
He quickly added he was joking.
But . . . ouch.
Peterson, remember, is the Minnesota Vikings back who rushed for an NFL-record 296 yards against the Chargers last November. There were times the Chargers appeared to be ushering him rather than actually trying to tackle him.
No Chargers player or coach told of Peterson's humor had a response other than a smile or shake of the head.
That doesn't mean they're anything less than extremely frustrated by the current perception of their run defense.
Of course, they won't say that specifically.
But they don't deny they have given up way too many yards after contact because of missed tackles, have been caught out of position, been alternately too aggressive, impatient and not aggressive enough.
Sure, it's preseason. Sure, they're keeping the defense pretty basic. Sure, Jamal Williams hasn't been playing.
But it's troublesome. And part of the reason is it appears through three exhibition games the Chargers might be heading into a third consecutive season in which their run defense is not what it once was.
“Whether it's preseason or regular season we want to stop the run,” linebacker Shaun Phillips said. “That's one thing we pride ourselves on doing.”
At least they used to be able to take pride in it.
From 2004 to 2006, the Chargers were among the top three run defenses in the league. In 2004 and '05, they allowed 3.7 and 3.5 yards per carry. Teams didn't run on them. No one faced fewer rushes than the Chargers in 2004, and only two teams faced fewer in 2005. Teams still didn't rush against the Chargers in '06, even though they allowed 4.2 yards a carry, 20th in the NFL.
“I think run defense is always a deceiving thing,” coach Norv Turner said. “More important is the number of runs you let a team get. If you let a team start getting into the 30s with some runs, they're going to expose some things.”
Last season, as teams figured the way to move the ball was by spreading the Chargers out and minimizing their pass rush, the Chargers defense struggled as a whole, gave up a lot of big runs. Teams ran more and gained more against the Chargers than they had since the horrid season of 2003.
Including the playoffs, teams ran 30 or more times against the Chargers in five games. It had happened just eight times from 2004 through '06. The Chargers allowed 16 100-yard games from '04 through '06. They allowed seven just last season.
There are myriad reasons for the Chargers' troubles in 2007 and this preseason. Perhaps chief among those is Williams' knees. The Pro Bowl nose tackle was never quite right last season. The game against Minnesota came just two weeks after he underwent arthroscopic surgery. And it is not a coincidence that Peterson got 250 yards after defensive end Luis Castillo left the game with an ankle injury.
With a healthy Williams and Castillo, the Chargers most often dictate the line of scrimmage, making the job of the linebackers easier and more predictable.
But there is more.
The Chargers are maybe a little too fast for their own good. The linebackers too often overpursue. A patient runner can expose them with cutbacks. They're working in practice on field awareness, body position and discipline.
But let's not make this more complicated than it is.
The troubles begin with tackling.
After the Chargers allowed the St. Louis Rams 102 rushing yards on their first 16 carries on Aug. 16, inside linebacker Matt Wilhelm said, “It seemed like everybody missed (a tackle).” He vowed that against Seattle, “We're going to go out there and shore it up and eliminate the questions.”
It wasn't much better against the Seahawks on Monday night. In fact, with the season closing in, there is increasing worry the Chargers' Super Bowl hopes could be trampled, literally.
“You're always concerned when you miss tackles,” said Ron Rivera, inside linebackers coach.
But, as coaches do, Rivera and defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell believe they have solutions.
“It would be a lot more troubling if they weren't in the right spot,” Cottrell said. “ . . . They know when it's going wrong. They come right off and say, 'Ted, I missed a tackle' or 'I was in the wrong position.' ”
Since the exhibition opener, the Chargers have been regularly devoting time in practice to tackling drills.
Said Cottrell: “We're going to do that every week, two or three days a week, until we get along good with it.”
Kevin Acee: (619) 293-1857; kevin.acee@uniontrib.com
