6 BIG Preseason Trends: Mike McDaniel's Chargers are ready to COOK

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Preseason snaps are fake until they are not. Six things showed up on tape this August
that I think carry into Week 1, and a few of them should change how you draft.

The Chargers are the headline. Mike McDaniel has flipped this offense in a single
preseason: outside zone from 17.6% and 29th in the league to 56.1% and first, pre-snap
motion from 18th to first, play action from 17th to second, multi tight end from 31st to
fourth. Motion and play action are the cheat codes of modern NFL offense and Los Angeles
just went from bottom third to top of the league in both.

The Raiders are suddenly moving people. Pressure rate allowed went from 37.8% and 30th to
28.6% and tied for ninth, and running back yards before contact went from 0.61 and 31st to
1.66 and third. Only the Seahawks, Cowboys and Chiefs matched them in both.

Then the worries. Washington and Jacksonville both have lines I do not trust, though for
different reasons, and the Commanders are the one that concerns me more: dead last in
first-down pass rate by a full seven and a half points. Tennessee is dead last in pre-snap
motion at 18.8%, which would be easier to dismiss if it were not exactly Brian Daboll's
history. And Cincinnati is running play action at 34.9% after finishing 32nd last year,
which is real if it holds.

The Giants are the surprise, and it is a good one.

CHAPTERS
0:00 The six trends
0:36 Chargers: outside zone, flip flopped
1:53 Chargers: motion and play action
3:13 Chargers: heavy tight end looks
4:40 Raiders: moving people on the line
6:34 Michael Mayer, the rare No. 2 tight end
8:03 Commanders and Jaguars: two lines nobody likes
9:14 The Commanders pressure problem
10:04 Why I am less concerned about Jacksonville
10:52 Washington is not being creative
12:02 Titans: trouble in paradise
14:15 Daboll's old friends
15:57 Cam Ward has nothing downfield
16:21 More play action for Burrow
17:56 Kudos to Zac Taylor
18:35 Good things from the Giants
20:25 Get the Draft Kit with code IAN35

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