Every year or so an NFL team decides to give up on Danny Woodhead, and every year Woodhead shocks everyone by over performing and bringing value and versatility to an offense.
This past off-season Woodhead was supposed to be a value pickup for the San Diego Chargers. Now 16 regular season games, and 1 playoff win later, and Woodhead may actually be the Chargers best offensive player.
Philip Rivers told USA Today that the addition of Woodhead has elevated the Chargers offensively.
“Danny’s been awesome,” said San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers of his backfield mate. “Any time you have a running back that has 70 catches, I don’t know exactly how many carries he has had, but he has ran the ball effectively for us all year long and he is just so versatile. It’s been great to have him as a part of our team.
“I’ve said this all the way back earlier in the year. And no disrespect to any of our other free-agent signings this season because we needed every one of them, but he was the one I was most excited about, just because of what he can bring to an offense. He has lived up to every one of our expectations.”
After fill in roles with the Jets, and three seasons with the Patriots, Woodhead had his best season as a pro. Woodhead led NFL running backs with six touchdown catches and finished second in receptions with 76 for 605 yards during the regular season.
He rushed for 429 yards and two touchdowns in 106 attempts (4.0 yards per carry) and had over 1,000 total yards from scrimmage.
“When Danny’s played, he’s made big plays for us, so I hope he plays a big role for us Sunday,” said San Diego offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt with a grin, keeping his plans to himself. “He makes a lot of plays for us.”
