Tag: Mike Pouncey

Scott Quessenberry capable of being full-time starter for Chargers

Scott Quessenberry is capable of being the full-time starter for the Los Angeles Chargers in 2020 and beyond.

Scott Quessenberry had a dream growing up.

Quessenberry, the La Costa native, grew up as a Chargers fan, watching his favorite player, Nick Hardwick on a weekly basis at Qualcomm Stadium with the hopes of suiting up in the blue and gold one day.

That dream became a reality when he was selected in the fifth-round of the 2018 NFL draft by his favorite team. He chose the number that Hardwick wore in No. 61 in hopes to have a big impact just like his role model did.

Entering the season, Quessenberry was listed as the third-string center, but injuries happened that resulted in him shooting up the depth chart rapidly.

Mike Pouncey suffered a season-ending injury in Week 5, putting Quessenberry as the backup and then Forrest Lamp’s season came to end two weeks later, which meant that the former UCLA product was now the starting center.

Quessenberry made an impact early on that many may have not been expecting from him when handing him the starting duties. But it became evident that the second-year player benefited from learning from the four-time Pro Bowler.

He’s played very well. I think a lot of it is because he was able to watch Pouncey for a year and a half essentially and learn from arguably one of the best centers in the league. So I think that was a big thing for him,” guard Michael Schofield said about Quessenberry.

Quessenberry has kept pressure away from quarterback Philip Rivers on the inside, using his high football IQ to recognize blitzes and staying true to his technique in pass protection, along with using his stubborn mentality to pave the way for running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler.

Quessenberry’s play has been promising enough that he could very well be the starting center when the 2020 regular season begins.

Pouncey is slated to become a free agent after the 2020 season, which means that the Chargers could move on from him earlier than anticipated to save some money. That is unless Pouncey’s injury is more severe, which could force him to retire, thus likely penciling in Quessenberry as the Day 1 starter.

Former Dolphins DL relives practice fight with Mike Pouncey

After Myles Garrett’s helmet swing, former Dolphins DL A.J. Francis relived a fight with Mike Pouncey in which a helmet was involved.

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The transgressions of Cleveland Browns DE Myles Garrett left the football world buzzing yesterday. In case you missed it, Garrett and Steelers QB Mason Rudolph got into a scuffle on the ground with just seconds remaining in Cleveland’s 21-7 win against the Steelers on Thursday Night Football — which culminated with Garrett swinging Rudolph’s helmet at the quarterback, hitting him atop the head with it. The ensuing chaos included Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey tackling Garrett to the ground and landing haymakers to defend his quarterback.

The NFL wasted little time handing out discipline, with Garrett getting an indefinite suspension that will include a minimum of the rest of the 2019 season, Pouncey getting a 3-game suspension and both teams being fined $250k.

Everyone had an opinion on the manner. Including former Miami Dolphins defensive lineman A.J. Francis, who was prompted by the incident to tell a story of how he and former Dolphins center Mike Pouncey got into a fight during organized team activities (OTAs) and how Pouncey nearly used a helmet as a weapon.

It’s a super fun read — all 14 tweets worth of it. Some of the highlights from Francis include:

  • Joe Philbin’s Dolphins circumventing the collective bargaining agreement and conducting illegal contact drills during OTAs
  • Then DL coach Kacy Rodgers encouraging Francis to stand his ground to Pouncey during one on one drills and show some fire
  • Francis bull rushing Pouncey to kickstart an offensive line versus defensive line melee, where Pouncey ends up pulling Francis’ helmet off before winding up to take a swing with it — before discarding it and punching Francis in the face

Ultimately, Francis culminates his story by pointing out that Mike Pouncey, in a fit of anger, still had the judgement to avoid using Francis’ helmet as a weapon in a fight — and that any NFL player should be able to maintain their judgement in the heat of the battle.

Saturday mornings are great for light reading, so go swing over to Francis’ timeline and read the story for yourself!

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