JOHN R. McCUTCHEN / Union-Tribune
Veteran wideout Chris Chambers is one of the few NFL players to have changed teams in midseason.
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Unlike baseball teams, some of which harbor no misgivings over unconscionably, inexcusably trading players during the season – even to dreaded, hated intradivision rivals (see Padres, Maddux, Dodgers) – the NFL doesn't work that way. At least not very often.
Phone chatter between general managers doesn't end when September rolls in, but little gets done via trade once the money games begin.
“More than 90 percent of the time,” Chargers General Manager A.J. Smith says, “nothing comes of it.”
To the best of Smith's recollection, there were but two in-season NFL trades last year. “I think one involved Tampa,” he says. “I should know this. I'm not sure.”
He remembers the other one, though. He made it. And it was a pip.
As October arrived, the hapless Miami Dolphins were, well, hapless. The talented but mysterious Chargers, still trying to make the acquaintance of latest head coach Norv Turner, had lost three of their first four games. And, despite a pair of subsequent wins, the stock in their wide receiver cupboard was young and inexperienced.
Miami was ready for a fire sale. According to Smith, the Dolphins were chumming five players as trade bait, but he chose to nibble at one. That would be veteran receiver Chris Chambers. And the GM, giving up a 2008 second-round draft choice, jumped on Oct. 16.
You can't say the Chargers wouldn't have won the AFC West without Chambers, because the division stunk and they clearly were the class of it. But would they have won eight straight and reached the AFC Championship Game without him?
Maybe not. I can say probably not.
The trade was similar to the one Smith made with Tampa Bay in 2004, when he acquired veteran Keenan McCardell. The receiver proved a rock, as Chambers did in 2007.
“Similar, but different,” Smith says. “McCardell was brought in here to jump-start winning. He was at the tail end of his career. He was the classic pro. Chambers is, too, but he's younger, with the potential to be here much longer.”
Chambers had 2½ years left on his contract when he arrived in San Diego, and that was attractive to Smith. The former Wisconsin star didn't disappoint, either, immediately becoming the No. 1 receiver the team had been seeking. He played in 10 games, starting seven, catching 35 passes for 555 yards and four touchdowns. He caught 16 more passes in January.
The receiver's transition was eased by the fact that Turner had served as Miami's offensive coordinator in '02 and '03, so Chambers knew the drill, but not those participating in it. He did well without spending a training camp here. He's been through one now.
“It's totally different, night and day,” says Chambers, who just turned 30 and is entering his ninth NFL season. “I'm a lot more comfortable. There's a big advantage in knowing all the guys. You work in one place for seven-plus years, and it's all you know . . . it hurts when you get traded. But it was the opportunity of a lifetime for me.
“So, I wasn't unhappy when I was traded. I understood. I can't fault them. I had a lot of fans there. I was disappointed we hadn't been winning.”
Interesting that Turner uses similar words now that Chambers has a Chargers camp in his digestive system.
“It's night and day,” Turner says. “The benefit he had last year was that he had been in our offense and things weren't foreign to him in terms of the system.”
Chambers doesn't need a GPS anymore. He knows the landscape. As Turner says, it takes time for personalities and talents to mesh, “to get a feel for each other. This game is played by people and you react to people. (The receivers) have a great chemistry and a great feel for each other right now.”
It's hard to get to know folks when they're in your orbit but a few weeks. Chambers was on a carousel in Miami.
“There's great talent here and camaraderie,” Chambers says. “They grow guys here. In Miami, they brought in 20 to 30 new guys every year. I didn't get a chance to know anybody. There's no separation of players here. I felt comfortable as soon as I got here. And I don't have to be the club spokesperson like I was in Miami. We have guys to handle that.
“I went through four or five storms in Miami – literally, two of them were hurricanes. There was tremendous turnover, and when you're losing, you have to motivate yourself in different ways. When you're out of the playoffs by Week 7, you can't wait until the season ends. It's hard to stay focused.”
Here, Chambers knows who his quarterback is. Who his head coach is. Who his fellow receivers are.
“We went through at least 12 quarterbacks in Miami while I was there,” he says. “I feel so much better. It made no sense. It's so much easier.
“I just turned 30 and I feel I'm in my prime, but I'm still learning. I've had a good career. I feel I have a lot of years left. I know a lot more. I'm comfortable.”
Comfort. Got to love comfort.
Nick Canepa: (619) 293-1397; nick.canepa@uniontrib.com
