Twenty-six new faces donned the Chargers' lighting bolt for a pair of workouts in Murphy Canyon.
First round pick Ryan Matthews kept all eyes -- including head coach, Norv Turner’s and general manager, A.J. Smith’s -- on him, as he took several handoffs and showed surprisingly good hands catching the football. Most of the starting offensive line came to check him out.
Overall, the former Fresno State star looked strong and fast, qualities for a good combination for a running back.
The Chargers expected Matthews to be a workhorse and handle questions like a veteran. Which he did. But the rookie admits everything didn’t come easy.
“I knew it was going to be fast paced and I know there was going to be a lot of reps and mental work," Mathews said. "It's hard work and it's going to take some getting used to, but it's all part of the process. I'm going to take as much as I can from these sessions and use it to prepare for mini-camp and the rest of the off season."
Mathews wore a No. 24 jersey, which will be his number this season. He wore No. 21 at Fresno State as homage to Tomlinson, but that number wasn't available.
"Coach Turner gave me a sheet of available numbers, and No. 24 was close to No. 21," Mathews said. "That was important, and I thought it looked good."
