The Chargers hold their first rookie mini-camp at the end of the week and all of a sudden there’s one position battle that will be very interesting to watch.
Manti Te’o entered the NFL with the kind of hype and curiosity we don’t see very often, and that’s only including his on-field performance. Te’o was a Heisman Trophy finalist revered as a playmaker at the collegiate level but among the fraternity of NFL Draft scouts there were doubts.
Was he physical enough to survive in the NFL? Was he fast enough to make the kinds of game-changing plays he made at Notre Dame? The Chargers thought so, trading up in the second round to take him 38th overall in the 2013 NFL Draft.
So far the decision has not panned out. Te’o has battled injuries, only appearing in 23 of 32 regular season games. He has one sack and one interception (of Tom Brady, so maybe we should ask him about the inflation level of the football). When he has played, Te’o has shown improvement. However, his development has not been as fast as the Bolts would have hoped, and they may be running out of patience.
At least, that’s the opinion of one website based on statistical analysis, www.numberfire.com. Numberfire recently published a story identifying eight NFL starters who are in danger of losing their jobs. Te’o was on the list (you can read the entire article here).
The authors say Te’o’s lack of impact plays, the overall middling nature of the Chargers defense the last two years, and the fact the Bolts drafted Miami (FL) middle linebacker Denzel Perryman in the 2nd round this year as proof San Diego is putting Te’o on notice. Maybe the Chargers are trying to send a message to a middle linebacker; but maybe it’s a different guy.
After two solid seasons in 2011 and 2012 Donald Butler has fallen off steadily. Last year he made a career-low 45 tackles in 14 games before a dislocated elbow ended his season. It was the first time in his career Butler did not intercept a pass. If the Chargers see Perryman as most everyone else does, as a guy who destroys ball carriers but is not going to be as much of a freelancing playmaker, then maybe they see him as Butler’s replacement instead of Te’o’s.
Manti has not simply forgotten how to play football. Towards the end of last season he was starting to show more of that old form from his Fighting Irish days. Te’o picked off Brady in Week 14 and after Butler went down Manti’s tackle totals skyrocketed. He had eight against San Francisco and nine against Kansas City, setting a new career-high each time. Butler never had more than seven tackles in any game in 2014. Te’o got his first career sack against 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in Week 16.
If he has a consistent performer next to him, who's to say Te'o does not continue to improve and become the difference-maker San Diego was hoping to find? Will that man be Donald Butler? Denzel Perryman? And don't forget Kavell Conner, who is also in the mix although seemingly better suited as a 2-down linebacker.
New linebackers coach Mike Nolan has worked wonders with individual players before. His list of Pro Bowl linebackers includes Ray Lewis (although he was going to the Hall of Fame no matter who his coach was), Peter Boulware, Elvis Dumervil, Terrell Suggs and Adalius Thomas. Maybe he’s the guy who can get Butler back on track and accelerate Te’o’s development.
If not, Nolan will be working with Perryman, too, so those other guys will have to keep an eye on their rear-view mirror.
