The Chargers have been working on it since May and 
Tomlinson got his wish Sunday, and the result was a five-yard touchdown run.
“We were just sitting there saying, ‘Coach, when are you going to call it? We’re ready,’” Tomlinson said.
LT took a direct snap and raced into the end zone untouched on the play, which he expected to do as soon as he scanned the defense before snapping the ball.
“I knew when I looked at the defense and the formation they were in, they were kind of confused,” Tomlinson said. “It kind of helped in the blocking scheme. That’s why the hole was so wide open.”
Tomlinson’s run was the first time the Chargers had run the formation, and it was the only play they were in it Sunday. Head Coach Norv Turner said the call was made in part in effort to give a jolt to the Chargers’ struggling red zone offense after they went 2-for-5 near the goal line last week in Kansas City and have had their issues throughout the season.
The Chargers were 2-for-3 Sunday in goal to go situations.
“We continue to look for different ways in the red zone to have success and we had better success,” Head Coach Norv Turner said.
Tomlinson serves as the Chargers’ point man in the Wild Frog and is a big fan of the wrinkle.
“You have options and you can really take the ball anywhere,” Tomlinson said. “It’s kind of like a quarterback draw. You have the power blocks up front, the pulling guard and the fullback leading up in there so it gives you many options.”
The drawback is that it takes the ball out of
“We’ve got enough variety to do it,” Turner said. “I get nervous about putting Philip out there at wide receiver, but it’s something we can expand on and will expand on.”
When Tomlinson was asked if any of his options on the Wild Frog play involved throwing to Rivers, he laughed and said, “I don’ think that’s a play we’ll be doing any time soon.”
LT had plenty of reasons to smile Sunday. Not only did his two touchdowns go a long way in giving the Chargers their 13th-straight win over the Raiders, he also went over the 12,000-yard mark on his career. He reached 12,000 rushing yards in just 132 games, making him the fourth-fastest player in NFL history to get to the milestone.
“I knew I was close and I was looking forward to it,” Tomlinson said. “At the same time, you look for so much more. I’m a guy who is never satisfied so I look for so much more. I’m happy to reach that mark but I still have a lot of football to play and I’m expecting bigger and better things.”
