The San Diego Chargers are heading into the 2013 season with high expectations after bringing in new head coach Mike McCoy and as the team tries to overhaul its defense, things may have hit a snag in the preseason, as draft pick Manti Te'o sprained his foot and that could mean he ends up not starting right out of the gate on defense.
According to ESPN.com, Te'o suffered a sprained foot in the team's first preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks and McCoy said that the young middle linebacker will sit out of practice this week and will not play in the next preseason game against the Chicago Bears. McCoy said that the second round pick was in a walking boot after getting injured in the game and now he will have time to recover as the team prepares for its third preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals. Te'o was a starter in the opening game of Week 1 and he was also expected to be a starter in the regular season when the schedule opens with Houston.
The Chargers lost the opening game 31-10 and while there were a number of issues on both sides of the ball, McCoy said there was a lot to be happy with despite losing the first game of the preseason. Te'o was diagnosed with the injury after the game and he joins a list of players that are dealing with ailments, including Danario Alexander, who will be out for the season after tearing his ACL and now Philip Rivers will have to find another receiver to step up for him and one that could benefit is Robert Meachem after an awful 2012 campaign.
The Chargers are also dealing with some offensive line battles during preseason and in training camp, as Max Starks has fallen behind King Dunlap and there is a chance he could end up starting when the season begins. The Chargers had a very disappointing season in 2012 with Norv Turner as head coach and the team feels that McCoy is the right man to turn things around on offense after the team was wildly inconsistent last season.
