Kyle Van Noy explains why Chargers’ lack of playoff experience means little

The Chargers have a quarterback whose most up-to-date postseason sport was the Rose Bowl.

They’ve a head coach who owns only a single playoff victory — as an NFL assistant.

They symbolize a franchise that hasn’t performed this deep into January in 4 years, solely six gamers nonetheless round from that group.

All of which “doesn’t matter,” in keeping with the person amongst them who has appeared in essentially the most NFL postseason video games.

“Playoff expertise doesn’t imply something to be sincere,” Kyle Van Noy stated. “However all people likes to speak about it this time of yr. Have a look at the Bengals final season. Their coach, their quarterback had no expertise, both.”

Certainly, Zac Taylor and Joe Burrow had been postseason rookies 12 months in the past when Cincinnati started its run to Tremendous Bowl LVI, which the Bengals misplaced to the Rams.

Van Noy has performed in three Tremendous Bowls — all with New England — and received two of them. Saturday when the Chargers go to Jacksonville on wild-card weekend he’ll seem in his thirteenth playoff sport.

“There are guys who’ve plenty of expertise who made bonehead performs within the playoffs,” Van Noy stated. “So their expertise didn’t work in that individual scenario, proper?”

In three years with the Chargers, quarterback Justin Herbert has began 49 video games, and one among them couldn’t have been a lot nearer to occurring within the playoffs.

The Chargers misplaced on the ultimate Sunday of the 2021 common season at Las Vegas when a win or tie would have superior them to the postseason.

Herbert threw for 383 yards and three touchdowns that evening, main the Chargers on an absurd, fourth-down-converting, logic-defying landing drive within the closing minutes to pressure extra time.

So, sure, he hasn’t really been within the postseason since guiding Oregon to a late Rose Bowl victory over Wisconsin on Jan. 1, 2020, however Herbert has been NFL playoff adjoining.

“He’s a big-time participant,” Chargers offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi stated. “Often, these guys shine brightest within the large lights. I believe he shall be effective.”

Head coach Brandon Staley shall be returning to the playoffs for the primary time since dropping at Inexperienced Bay because the Rams defensive coordinator within the divisional spherical in January 2021.

Again then, Staley was working for Sean McVay. Three years earlier, McVay had made his postseason debut as a head coach, his Rams dropping at residence as NFC West champions to Atlanta.

Playoff introductions could be sobering within the NFL, simply one of many issues Staley was requested about this week as he ready for his greatest sport as a head coach.

“They’re all crucial video games on the earth to me,” he stated. “That’s the solely manner that I’ve ever identified to compete, and that’s what I’ve tried to deliver to this group.”

The Chargers’ most up-to-date playoff look got here after the 2018 season after they received at Baltimore on wild-card weekend earlier than dropping at New England.

Joey Bosa, Keenan Allen, Austin Ekeler, Derwin James Jr., Mike Williams and Michael Davis are the holdovers from that group. 4 years later, they’re again after going 21-28 over three seasons and enduring a training change.

“We clearly know what’s up,” Ekeler stated. “Our season’s on the road. However we have to keep mentally locked in. Which means simply bringing it again to it being a sport.”

In his first season with the Chargers, Van Noy has emerged as a locker room chief, organizing players-only conferences and sharing knowledge together with his teammates on all the pieces from blitzing quarterbacks to elevating kids.

James was speaking not too long ago in regards to the 31-year-old Van Noy when he stopped simply wanting calling him “Grandpa Kyle.” James laughed and stated, “I’m going to name him Uncle Kyle.”

Van Noy and fellow linebacker Drue Tranquill had been within the scorching tub this week when Van Noy talked about that his groups have made the playoffs in seven of his 9 seasons.

Tranquill, in his fourth yr, is about to make his postseason debut. He was instructed of Van Noy’s reference to Cincinnati’s missing expertise final season.

“The Bengals case examine is a superb one to have a look at,” Tranquill stated. “Joe Burrow didn’t have any expertise within the playoffs. Plenty of these guys didn’t. The Bengals haven’t been lighting it up for the previous decade.

“If we simply keep level-headed and regular and play our model of soccer, expertise now not issues. The sport of soccer doesn’t change as a result of now it’s the postseason.”

The sport’s the identical, solely the stakes are greater. No playoff expertise is required to know that a lot.

And so forth.

Williams didn’t follow Wednesday as he continues to take care of a again damage suffered Sunday in a loss at Denver. Staley has stated repeatedly that Williams would follow in some unspecified time in the future this week. … The Chargers’ last full exercise is Thursday at their Costa Mesa coaching facility. They’re scheduled to journey to Jacksonville on Friday morning.