Breaking Down Melvin Gordon's NFL Preseason Debut

It was an uneventful debut for Melvin Gordon of the San Diego Chargers.

Gordon was the team's first-round pick in the 2015 draft, a player the franchise thought enough of to trade up for. Trading up in the draft to acquire a player always builds expectation for when he eventually hits the field, and even more so with a running back.

Running backs are widely considered low value pieces nowadays, with most teams willing to wait on supposedly less talented players instead of investing early.

Add in the Chargers' potential as a contending team in the AFC and it's easy to paint Gordon as a rookie with greater expectations early on than any of his peers. Those expectations weren't being met through training camp, which isn't unusual for any rookie.

Starting quarterback Philip Rivers highlighted the challenge Gordon faces in the passing game, via Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports:

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"He's still having to adjust to protections and to the route running...not that I've had to sell it to him, but I said, hey, you pick up the right guy on third down and pick up the protection, and...it helps us win...Now it's first down, and you get another carry. We don't get it, and we punt, and you look up...you're going to be standing over there watching us in two-minute stuff."

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Pass blocking may seem like an overstated part of being a running back, but it's important. No offense will rely on a running back who is likely to get his quarterback hit repeatedly. Tre Mason found that out as a rookie for the St. Louis Rams just last season.

Surpassing pass protection, there have also been question marks about Gordon's patience as a runner.

At Wisconsin, Gordon could just outrun his opponents when he needed big plays. It was less important for him to make good decisions or approach the line of scrimmage at the right speed, because once he found any kind of space he could take off.

Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union Tribune wrote that Gordon had struggled to find a balance between aggressive and patient play through training camp:

"The first-round pick is a patient runner, more patient than most rookies and almost too patient at times. He'll spend the preseason searching for that balance between patience and decisiveness."

Therefore, entering his preseason debut against the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday, there were clear areas for Gordon to try to address.

In a performance that yielded 11 yards on six attempts, Gordon failed to flash any of the potential that made him a top draft pick. He did not alleviate any of the concerns about his early struggles in training camp.

That's no reason to panic, it was just a missed opportunity. An opportunity that will come again next week, the week after and for many more weeks to come. What Gordon did in this game ultimately doesn't matter.

Yet, because of who he is and his importance moving forward this season, the quarter of football that he played was still important in the moment. It may not have provided any clarity, but at this stage of his career, it's worth examining Gordon's skill set at every opportunity we get.

A major reason for Gordon's inability to flash more of his skills was the Chargers inability to put him in space.

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One of the question marks facing Gordon as a top NFL running back is his ability to create space and get the most out of the blocking he receivers. Todd Gurley was superior at setting up his blocks, staying disciplined and anticipating what was happening in front of him at the college level.

Gordon's physical skill still made him a top back and he was able to show off his strength early.

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The Chargers gave their rookie the start and immediately put the ball in his hands on the first snap. It was a simple hand-off up the middle, but the Cowboys were aggressive in defending it. Gordon was immediately faced with an incoming, unblocked defender.

It was a defensive lineman who had found a gap in the blocking scheme.

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Any speed back is going to have difficulty breaking the tackle of a much heavier defensive lineman in tight like this. Gordon isn't just any speed back in this sense though. He carries a thick frame with impressive lower-body power.

He used that power to fight his way through and ultimately shed the tackle attempt of the defensive lineman 

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Gordon made a mistake once he broke the tackle, though. He turned his shoulders towards the sideline and attempted to run back across the field. He should have continued forward and pressed towards his left, where there was immediate space to attack.

In college, he could turn to run laterally towards the sideline and likely give himself a good chance to break down field. In the NFL, his athleticism isn't so much further ahead of the defense that he can do that and expect to have the same level of success.

After immediately getting the ball, Gordon was withdrawn to the sideline. He was taken out as the Chargers spread their offense out. Danny Woodhead took his spot in the offense.

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After Philip Rivers found Keenan Allen down the sideline to convert a long third down, Gordon returned to the field. The Chargers' first drive began deep in Cowboys territory, because Brandon Weeden lost the ball over his head after a bad shotgun snap.

This meant that Gordon was immediately running in the redzone, an area of the field where space is constricted.

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With a brand new right side of their offensive line in place, the Chargers attempted to run a counter play that would send Gordon into space off the right side. D.J. Fluker had moved to right guard, giving way to Joseph Barksdale to start at right tackle.

They were both effective at creating space for Gordon at the line of scrimmage.

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This was the first glimpse of Gordon's issues with hesitation. As he was crossing the line of scrimmage, he stopped his feet and shimmied. He didn't have an obvious running lane in front of him, but he had space and options to make a more aggressive move that would manipulate the defense.

By taking the time to gauge what was in front of him, Gordon gave the defense an opportunity to close in on him. He should have looked to set up an outside run or be more aggressive initially running inside.

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He was eventually able to burst forward and finish the play moving forward, because he had the power to drag the defensive back in front of him who was trying to pull him down. Gordon is known for his speed, but as he proved on his first carry, he can also be a powerful runner.

This should be particularly beneficial against smaller linebackers and defensive backs in space. Despite those physical traits, the biggest takeaway from this play was Gordon stopping his feet.

It's something that will be a major issue in the NFL if he doesn't learn how to act faster in his process as a back. Being technically sound is more important in the NFL because everyone is a great athlete. Stopping your feet when there isn't reason to can be a fatal flaw for the most talented of runners.

On the following play, Gordon was given the ball going off right tackle once again. This time, he was given space and he attacked it quickly, but there was a second-level defender in position to prevent him from getting too far downfield.

With question marks lingering about Gordon's ability to be valuable in the passing game, the Chargers were in no hurry to provide answers. Once more, the rookie was taken off the field in passing situations to make way for Woodhead.

Woodhead ran the ball in for a touchdown from a shotgun alignment, a big play, but a meaningless one for Gordon who watched on from the sideline.

To start the second drive, the Chargers fed Gordon again going between the tackles. The running back had no opportunity to even get back to the line of scrimmage though, as the Cowboys defensive line was able to push multiple Chargers offensive linemen into the backfield.

On second down, the Chargers made a more aggressive attempt to get Gordon to the edge in space.

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The play was blocked well, but the defense reacted quickly. Gordon was faced with a defensive back in the hole. Once again, his technical attributes became more relevant than his physical ones as he needed to make an aggressive move to make the defender miss.

Instead of doing that, he lowered his head and drove into the smaller defensive back. He broke through the tackle, but fell over the top of the defender for just a one yard gain.

It became clear quickly that the Chargers were intent on sending Gordon off right tackle. For his next carry, he was given a handoff at speed running behind his right tackle and right guard. He aggressively ran upfield to the inside before battering into a linebacker on the second level for a short gain.

Once more, he ran without vision, but on this occasion he could be excused. As he passed through the line of scrimmage, he was bumped by a blocker, causing him to stumble his way to the second level uncomfortably.

That brought the first quarter to a close and Gordon stayed in for just one more play. He got an opportunity to line up in a spread out formation, initially lining up wide to the right before motioning into the backfield.

Unfortunately, Gordon wasn't in pass protection. He ran a route into the right flat, but the play was blown dead before he could even escape the pocket as Kellen Clemens threw the ball instantly at the snap.

Gordon's debut came and went with a whimper. It told us very little about the rookie and what he will be able to do this season. Weeks 2 and 3 should be much more telling. There is clearly no need to panic or get too excited at this point.

His evaluation remains incomplete.