San Diego Chargers Need Melvin Gordon to Step Up to Justify 1st-Round Selection

Over the past few years, the running backs position has become a devalued position. In 2013 and again in 2014, a running back wasn't even selected in the first round of the draft.

However, the position seems to be on a fast rise back to relevance. This might be due in part because of the playoff success of teams like the Seattle Seahawks, who combine smart defense with a battering ground game to dictate tempo and ball control. 

The rise in running back popularity also might be due to the 2014 success of teams like the Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys—teams who paired a bruising back with a top-tier passer to create a nearly unstoppable offense.

Whatever the real reason, running backs are a hot football commodity once again. More than one veteran back was able to parlay that popularity into a big-money deal in free agency. We also saw a pair of running backs drafted in the top half of the first round in April's draft.

The St. Louis Rams spent the 10th overall pick on former Georgia star Todd Gurley. The San Diego Chargers used the 15th overall pick on former Wisconsin running back Melvin Gordon. In theory, the selections made sense for both franchises, as Nathan Rickard of Pro Players Insiders:

The Rams, who might just have the league's best defensive front, seem to want to emulate the Seahawks' formula of pairing defense with a star running back. The Chargers, who have a Hall of Fame-caliber quarterback in Philip Rivers, want to build a balanced offense that cannot be stopped.

"You pair [Gordon] with [Danny] Woodhead, and you've got a perfect scenario," NFL Media analyst Mike Mayock said during the draft (via Mike Huguenin of NFL.com). "He changes the whole balance of their offense now.

However, only one running back has played well enough this season to put his team's respective strategy into action.

Unfortunately for the Chargers, that running back isn't Melvin Gordon.

No, the reality is, Gordon has been more of a disappointment than anything else, especially when you compare his production to Gurley's.

Gordon has rushed for 251 fewer yards than his St. Louis counterpart and has scored four fewer touchdowns. Gurley, for the record, has appeared in two fewer games than Gordon and only saw a handful of snaps in his inaugural appearance.

In fact, Gordon doesn't compare particularly well with a few backs from his rookie class. He came into Monday's game against the Chicago Bears averaging just 3.7 yards per carry with four fumbles (three lost) and zero scores. He averaged a mere 2.8 yards per carry on Monday.

He is rated just 54th among running backs by Pro Football Focus.

Player, NFL Team	Combined Runs and Receptions	Total yards	Avg. Yds/Touch	Touchdowns	Draft Position
Todd Gurley, St. Louis	131	752	5.7	4	Round 1, Pick 10
Karlos Williams, Buffalo	56	382	6.8	6	Round 5, Pick 19
T.J. Yeldon, Jacksonville	134	589	4.4	2	Round 2, Pick 4
Melvin Gordon, San Diego	135	531	3.9	0	Round 1, Pick 15
Thomas Rawls, Seattle	72	384	5.3	1	Undrafted
Duke Johnson, Cleveland	94	448	4.7	2	Round 3, Pick 13

Though the Chargers have tried in earnest to get Gordon involved in the passing game, he has struggled there as well. He's averaging just 7.0 yards per reception on the season.

What's even more troubling is the fact that Gordon has rarely looked like the same explosive back he was at Wisconsin. He came into Monday night with just five runs of 15 yards or more. Though he has rarely been explosive, Gordon has been even worse when he can't find open field.

Of Gordon's 413 yards rushing this season, 121 have come on those five 15-plus-yard runs. This means his other 109 runs have netted an average of just 2.67 yards per carry. This simply isn't good enough, and it is seriously limiting what San Diego can do on offense. 

If this isn't apparent from a statistical standpoint, just consider that a healthy first-round draft pick only saw 14 touches on Monday night. Also consider that the Chargers offense looks a whole heck of a lot better with former one-time undrafted rookie Danny Woodhead in the backfield. The 5'8" Woodhead racked up 111 yards and a touchdown on his 12 touches (six runs, six receptions).

Heck, even journeyman Donald Brown looked more explosive than Gordon against Chicago. He logged his first two carries of the season on Monday and netted 13 yards.

The Chargers will probably try to forget about Bears rookie Jeremy Langford, who racked up 142 yards and a touchdown on 21 touches. NFL Network's Alex Flanagan noted Langford outrushed Gordon and expressed disappointment in Gordon not performing as well as expected:

It's all a bit baffling because Gordon was just so darn good as a collegiate back. He finished his 2014 season at Wisconsin with 2,587 yards rushing, 32 total touchdowns and a 7.5 yards-per-carry average.

Now in a Chargers uniform, he's almost recognizable. 

On Monday night, the Chargers took a 16-7 lead into halftime. However, the team could do virtually nothing offensively in the second half, thanks in large part to Gordon's struggles and an inability to run the football. 

Not only is Gordon disappointing in a big way, but he's also actively hurting the team at this point. The Chargers are making it a point to keep him involved in the offense likely because of his draft status. Gordon is responding by moving the ball about as efficiently as a blindfolded cat on a skateboard.

“So many times in the running game it’s just getting to enough runs where your guy can break loose for two or three,” offensive coordinator Frank Reich said before Monday's game, per Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. “And we’ve seen that Melvin has that incredible ability. He’s had a number of 20-plus runs. So we’ve just got to keep feeding him the ball.”

Feeding Gordon the football is something the Chargers really cannot afford to do with his performing like this.

The reality is that Gordon must significantly improve his play on the field. Otherwise, the Chargers are going to look extremely foolish for wasting a first-round pick on him. San Diego will look even more foolish if Gordon keeps performing like he has been, and the team keeps making him a focal point of the offense.