Williamson: Perfect storm led to Melvin Gordon's breakout

Matt Williamson is a former scout for the Cleveland Browns, and spent the last 10 years at ESPN as a scout and co-host of "The Football Today Podcast."

With Philip Rivers getting up in age, the San Diego Chargers traded up two spots in the first round of the 2015 draft to select Melvin Gordon, who they clearly viewed as a franchise back. The thinking was that a great running back would be the last piece in their offensive puzzle, and would take some strain off Rivers as he aged.

Well, needless to say, that was anything but the case in Gordon’s rookie season. After Year 1, he looked like a bust. Now, he certainly had some things going against him. As had become the norm in previous seasons, San Diego's offensive line was decimated by injuries throughout 2015. Gordon, much like Wisconsin runners before him, wasn't a particularly patient runner, and grew accustomed to running through big holes at the college level. He also thought that because of his excellent speed, he could bounce runs to the outside, and wasn't satisfied with a short, productive run, thinking he could take everything to the house. The Chargers' scheme was different than what he ran in college, and, in his defense, it has to be noted that Gordon had microfracture surgery on his knee in January, and was playing with the injury for at least a portion of his rookie year.

Gordon surprisingly didn't find the end zone last year as a runner or receiver. In his 14 games as a rookie, he averaged just 3.5 yards per carry, rushed for a measly 641 yards, and caught 33 passes. The B word was being thrown around quite a bit.

Let's just say that 2016 has gone differently. Not only are Gordon's yards per carry up by half a yard, but he's just five catches away from equaling the total during his rookie year, and, amazingly, he's reached pay dirt 11 times in nine games.

What's different this year? A lot. First off, Gordon is much more of a professional runner now. He isn't always a creative back that will shake tacklers out of their shoes, but he's learned that not every run will be a home run and isn't bouncing runs to the outside as much. He gets downhill quicker, which fits his skill set. He's also running with tenacity. He finishes runs, battles for every inch, and is breaking more tackles. Gordon is gaining far more yardage before and after contact this year.

But there are several other major components at play here. Because of the rash of wide receiver injuries, namely to Stevie Johnson, and then the big one early in the year to Keenan Allen, the Chargers have had to go to the ground more. In fact, they've used much more base personnel with fewer wide receivers on the field.

San Diego drafted Derek Watt, Gordon’s pure lead blocking fullback in college, in the sixth round in the latest draft, and has utilized far more two-back runs, which is right up Gordon's alley, in 2016. So, in a way, the wide receiver injuries have benefited Gordon a great deal.

The injury to Danny Woodhead has also benefited Gordon in the passing game. Dexter McCluster was added to the roster, but it's been Gordon, who was a decent player in this capacity last year, that has stepped up huge in Woodhead's absence.

Not only has the Chargers' offensive line been healthier and better this season than last, but having more blockers on the field has clearly helped Gordon. We see a lot of inside zone runs, often with Watt leading the way and San Diego's offensive line double-teaming at the point of attack. He reads these runs well, and can explode through the line when given a crease without having to do a lot of creating on his own.

Gordon is coming off a mostly dominant performance against Tennessee in which he racked up 259 yards from scrimmage, including 196 on the ground, although he also had many runs for two yards or less. He was at least equally impressive the week before against Denver, and is having a terrific sophomore season. It's safe to say he has arrived as a big-time performer in this league, and, as noted above, there are many reasons for the massive step up in production.