Chargers News: Giff Smith's First Game As HC Draws Rave Reviews From Players
Despite an incredibly difficult coaching debut highlighted by a tough opponent and the absence of his team's two best players (Pro Bowl quarterback Justin Herbert and Pro Bowl wide receiver Keenan Allen), Bolts interim head coach Giff Smith impressed on Saturday night.
Squaring off against a surging Buffalo team that had won 3 of its previous 4 (only loss coming in overtime against Philadelphia whilst scoring 34 points), the odds were stacked to the fullest extent against someone who was the team's outside linebackers coach just 9 days previous.
Yet, Smith and co. showed out, holding Buffalo to 24 points and possessing the lead at multiple points, including starting off the game up 10-0.
Smith's performance wasn't just visible on the outside, but incredibly appreciated on the inside. Here's a look at what the team had to say about it (per Eric Smith of Chargers.com):
"It was great," running back Austin Ekeler said. "Giff's done a great job keeping us together and making sure that he's implemented his message which is the family aspect of bringing everyone together, play for each other … make sure you leave everything out there.
"When you do that, you're going to be excited to go play again," Ekeler added. "That's what we saw there and looking forward to playing for him again next week."
"A lot of energy, not just [Saturday] but throughout the whole week," safety Derwin James, Jr. added. All week long we had fun and executed, we just came up a few plays short. You saw a team that was out there trying to fight hard.
"He was awesome all week," Easton Stick said of Smith's coaching. "He told us that was the plan going into it, let's get this thing to the fourth quarter and find a way to win it. Obviously, came up a little bit short. But, the way that he rallied the guys this week, and you saw how hard we played, that's a credit to Giff and that's a credit to the guys in the locker room. He did an unbelievable job this week."
These comments culminated in Derwin James remarking that "we had all hands on deck... every guy was in."
Given where the Bolts were at so recently with the loss of Brandon Staley, them rallying around Smith despite being eliminated from playoff contention and having such a challenging matchup in front of them was impressive, and reflects the team's character and the leadership Smith possesses.
It remains to be seen what the Bolts do with Smith, as it's unlikely he's retained as head coach (unless they win out in impressive fashion), but it's clear that the players love him and he has some degree of potential.
The next couple of games will be strong reflectors of his ability to keep this up, and if he passes the test, don't be surprised if he possesses a strong position on this Bolts staff, if not on another team.
