In the immediate aftermath of the Chargers' 26-24 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Head Coach Anthony Lynn promised to evaluate anything and everything after the team dropped to 0-4 on the year.
On Monday, he expanded on those thoughts.
"I told you I was going to evaluate everything last night," he said. "I'm looking at how we practice. I'm looking at our practice schedule. Our meeting schedule. Anything that is going to give us an advantage to get over the hump here in this next quarter of football."
That means changes are on the way.
Even though the head coach wasn't totally sure what all those changes would be at the moment, fans will see some lineup tweaks come Sunday against the New York Giants.
"Coaches are working on that while we're speaking. Certain guys are going to get more looks. Guys that are making plays. And as far as our scheme and how we call plays, hopefully that plays out on Sunday."
One player who can expect an uptick in action is Austin Ekeler. After turning heads as an undrafted free agent throughout training camp and preseason action, the 5-10, 200-pound running back took his first NFL handoff 35-yards to the end zone. The electric Ekeler has also caught five passes for 47 yards, so the Bolts will look to find ways to get the ball in his hands.
"You can put him in that mix since every drive he's in the game, we move the chains," Lynn simply summated.
Changes along the offensive line also appear to be in the making.
"(Dan) Feeney is going to be rotated in. Michael (Schofield) is going to be rotated in at right tackle. We'll see how that works out throughout the week."
Despite the struggles, Lynn feels like his team is close to turning the corner. However, close just isn't good enough in the National Football League.
"We have to figure out what the heck is going on here," Lynn said. "We've lost three of our games by three points or less. In these close games, it's been the little things and execution here and there. We're just looking at everything right now."
Watching the tape back from Week 4's loss to the Eagles was a difficult pill to swallow. While miscues throughout the first three weeks contributed to those defeats, Lynn felt this was the first time the loss fell squarely on their own shoulders.
"This was the first time I watched the tape and felt like we beat ourselves. Penalties. Guys are playing hard. Penalties at the wrong time. Hands to the face. Little things like that; that's a discipline thing really (more than) a fundamental or technique thing. But in execution, it's one guy missing a gap here, one guy missing a block here, that's breaking the play. What I'm stressing to the guys is that any play can make the difference. It doesn't always come down to the last play. Any play can make a difference."
