Gordon jabs Chargers, says he’s prepared for playing with no fans
The NFL might be playing games with no fans in the stands this season due to the coronavirus outbreak, which is a foreign situation for everyone to navigate.
Well, everyone except Broncos running back Melvin Gordon, formerly of the Los Angeles Chargers.
In an interview with former NFL cornerback Marcus Cromartie, Gordon joked that his time with the Chargers prepared him for a season with no fans in the stadiums.
“Bro, we didn't have fans anyway,” Gordon said. “We didn't have many Chargers fans at the game. I'm just going to be honest. We didn't have many Chargers fans at the game. Much loyalty, love, but we didn't have many. So I'm not missing anything.”
Ever since the Chargers moved to Los Angeles in 2017, their home games have been notorious for being overwhelmingly populated by opposing fans. The Chargers spent the last three seasons playing in Los Angeles Dignity Health Sports Park, which was designed to host soccer games.
The stadium only seats about 27,000 people. That's not even half the capacity of most NFL stadiums.
There's a chance that games with no fans turns out to be a positive for Gordon, the Chargers and players who recently played on the Chargers. They've grown so accustomed to playing 16 away games that no crowd noise would be a step in the right direction for them.
At the very least, it's a step up from being booed in your own home stadium.
MCCARTHY PREPS ’BOYS FROM GREEN BAY
Mike McCarthy has spent most of his first offseason as coach of the Dallas Cowboys at home in Green Bay.
He's also leaning on the experience of 13 years leading the Packers to help figure out how to implement a new program while the coronavirus pandemic prevents him from being in the same room with players or assistant coaches.
Meantime, McCarthy sure is ready to get back to the Cowboys' facility north of Dallas, particularly because live offseason practices would be happening now under normal circumstances.
“I have been with my family the whole time, except for maybe the first 10 days of the pandemic,” McCarthy said Wednesday in his first teleconference with reporters since the draft. “But I am anxiously preparing, frankly, to get back to Frisco as soon as possible. It's time, I know, for me to get back.”
McCarthy replaced Jason Garrett in early January after the Cowboys fell short of lofty expectations by missing the playoffs in the former Dallas quarterback's ninth full season.
After a year away from the game following his firing in Green Bay, McCarthy replaced most of the coaching staff and geared up for the draft.
Two weeks after that, the
Cowboys had their virtual rookie minicamp and have spent recent weeks in virtual meetings with veterans and first-year players under the NFL's pandemic guidelines.
McCarthy said the emphasis has been on terminology and overall philosophy as coaches wait for on-field instruction time. And that's where the experience of previous, more traditional offseasons in Green Bay comes into play.
“This challenge has clearly made everyone - especially myself - take a step back,” McCarthy said. “Don't react as fast as you may have in normal times. I think you've really got to trust your instincts, the awareness and your experience in this particular time.”
Quarterback Dak Prescott hasn't been part of the virtual meetings because he hasn't signed the $31 million one-year tender under the franchise tag and is using his absence as leverage to get a long-term deal. The deadline for a multiyear contract is July 15.