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Chargers make moves to acquire Ryan Matthews..

SAN DIEGO -- The Chargers didn't play it safe on Thursday when they traded up 16 spots in the NFL draft and snagged running back Ryan Mathews 12th overall.

Bravo, Chargers. Scared money doesn't win in the NFL.

If Mathews shows how many yards were being left on the field last year by his idol LaDainian Tomlinson, the wisdom of the move should become as obvious as a lightning bolt.

You might worry that the Chargers gave up too much when they dealt their 28th and 40th picks as part of a broader trade with Bill Parcells and the Dolphins, who are nobody's fools.

You might fret that the Chargers failed to address their defense when they poured so much into Mathews, who, pending another trade on Friday, will be their only selection from the draft's top 90.

You might believe that the Chargers should've invested less for a running back, because history tell us that good backs can be had in the lower rounds.

West Coast Bias still likes what the Chargers did. And not just because Mathews, a junior from Fresno State, is a West Coast guy who was shredding defenses while most of the country was headed toward bed.

The Chargers trusted their scouts and coaches. They made the pure football move. The grabbed a player they expect to be really good, soon. They didn't leave his acquisition to chance.

Of all the running backs available after Clemson zephyr C.J. Spiller went to the Bills ninth, Matthews was the only one who both excelled as a complete back and brought no heavy medical or makeup baggage.

The Chargers had a very good offense last year despite ranking last in the NFL in many rushing categories.

Now they can have a great offense.

"When you see this guy play, you're going to understand why we made the deal we did," said Chargers coach Norv Turner. "He's extremely special. A complete back. Physical. Fast. He's got great feet, great vision. He is complete in terms of catching the football."

I watched Tomlinson in every practice of training camp last year, either at Chargers Park or Qualcomm Stadium

In those workouts and scrimmages, L.T. showed good quickness and sure hands. Although he lacked the extra gear that used to allow him to run away from defensive backs, the 30-year-old darted and cut to good effect.

Something changed, though, when touch football became tackle football.

L.T. went down on first contact, far more often than not. It was painful to watch, such a great running back who longer was powering for extra yards, or even partial yards.

He said at season's end that he'd never been healthier.

Tomlinson, who averaged 3.3 yards per carry, wisely signed with the Jets two months ago. New York's offensive line packs more wallop than San Diego's offensive line.

Always a straight shooter, L.T. said San Diego's offensive line and Turner's passing offense worked against him last year.

He's right, but he's not wholly right.

L.T. left a lot of yards on the field.

The Chargers will give Mathews, who turns 23 next month, every chance to make that abundantly clear, if not sooner, not much later.

Five-foot-11 1/2 and 217 pounds, Mathews averaged 6.6 yards per carry last year and scored 19 TDs. Usually he ran out of a power, single-back formation behind a zone scheme that Turner said fairly mirrors San Diego's offense. The third-year junior clocked at 4.43 in the 40-yard dash.

"He's a complete back," Colts president Bill Polian told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Bob McGinn. "He's got great speed. He can break tackles. He can make you miss. He's got vision. He can go all the way. He blocks and he catches."

Skepticism comes from scouts who were annoyed that Mathews bounced runs to the outside as often as he did. Seemingly, he heard them. "I'm a little bit more between the tackles (than L.T.)," Matthews said on Thursday night, by phone from Fresno.

The name does give one pause. The last Ryan drafted by the Chargers in the first round was a fellow named Leaf.

With the No. 28 or 40 pick, the Chargers could've strengthened their defense. They still might. Turner hinted that general manager A.J. Smith could make a trade today that would allow the Chargers to draft before 91st, their current next pick. Don't be stunned if the Chargers deal a 2011 pick, or running back Darren Sproles, or linebacker Shawne Merriman to improve their position. Sproles, though, still seems an ideal fit as a third-down back, a dicey role that shouldn't be entrusted to a rookie.

For all the concerns about not getting a defensive lineman, let's not forget that Ron Rivera's defense, despite numerous injuries, had a respectable year. The team's loss in the playoffs to the underdog Jets wasn't the defense's fault. The Jets didn't score in the first half.

The rest of the AFC West still appears weak, particularly on offense. Maybe Rivera's prowess is causing the Bolts to ask for one miracle too many, but the Chargers still should have a defense good enough to win the division.

As part of the deal, San Diego gained Miami's sixth-round pick and moved up 16 spots via a swap of fourth-round picks. In addition to the 28th and 40th picks, the Dolphins got Tim Dobbins, an inside linebacker who had lost his starting job to Brandon Siler.

A Chargers fan, Mathews had heard that the Texans would draft him 20th. Then came the happy jolt from the Bolts.

"All the talk about Houston and stuff, it really started to scare me and everything," Mathews said. "I'm lucky and blessed that (the Chargers) traded up and picked me. I'm super-excited. It's mind-blowing that they did that."

Turner was offensive coordinator of the Chargers in 2001 when they drafted Tomlinson out of Texas Christian University. At the time, TCU was a member of the Western Athletic Conference, which is Fresno State's current neighborhood.

"I know how excited I was that day," Turner said. "I'm equally excited to get Ryan here now."

The Chargers, who admitted to doubting that Matthews would be there 28th, had been tracking him for more than a year. They were impressed well before he had a strong workout at the draft combine last winter.

He reminded them some of L.T., and not just because he wore No. 21 at Fresno State in honor of Tomlinson.

"They have some similarities," said Jimmy Raye, the Chargers' director of player personnel. "You don't like to compare guys, but style-wise, maybe a little bit."

Raye explained why the Chargers gave Mathews grades of "A-plus" across the board.

"He's a three-down back," he said. "We felt like he's a workhorse-type guy. He could handle the load. He is 220 pounds. He's got good speed. Good vision. Foot quickness. We feel like we can put him on the field every down, and he's effective.

"He's a well-spoken, articulate kid. He comes from a single-parent home. So everything he's had to get in life, he's had to work for, and you could see he was a hungry kid from the time he walked in here. He's never had any trouble. He's a good person."

Draft Day photos in Charger blue taken from Facebook Profile (Jenn Davis)

Story courtesy of nfl.fanhouse.com

RIP KEITH ELAM AKA GURU

Born on July 17, 1966, near Boston, Guru rose to fame in the late 1980s as part of the duo Gang Starr with partner DJ Premier. The pair helped define the New York underground rap sound in the 1990s. Their unique sound combined Premier's production palette, which leaned heavily on sampled jazz records and scratched vocals on the choruses, with Guru's uncompromising rhymes. Although the pair would work separately as often as they did together — Guru's Jazzmatazzseries of albums and Premier's work with Nas, Jay-Z, and underground act Group Home — Gang Starr continued to release critically acclaimed material throughout the late '90s and early 2000s.

Their 1998 album Moment of Truth was among their most critically lauded collections and Gang Starr's biggest-selling project to date. Gang Starr's last group project, The Ownerz, was released in 2003.
Guru found solo fame in 1993 when he released the first volume of his Jazzmatazz series, an all-star project that featured a number of collaborations with jazz icons such as Branford Marsalis, Donald Byrd, Roy Ayers and Ronny Jordan, as well as vocals from French producer Solaar and N'Dea Davenport of the Brand New Heavies. The album's mixture of jazz and rap was considered pioneering at the time, and the record spawned the hit "Trust Me." Guru would go on to make four volumes in the series.

Guru wrote his farewell letter while in the hospital, according to Solar. "I, Guru, am writing this letter to my fans, friends and loved ones around the world," it begins. "I have had a long battle with cancer and have succumbed to the disease. I have suffered with this illness for over a year. I have exhausted all medical options.

"I have a non-profit organization called Each One Counts dedicated to carrying on my charitable work on behalf of abused and disadvantaged children from around the world and also to educate and research a cure for this terrible disease that took my life. I write this with tears in my eyes, not of sorrow but of joy for what a wonderful life I have enjoyed and how many great people I have had the pleasure of meeting.

"My loyal best friend, partner and brother, Solar, has been at my side through it all and has been made my health proxy by myself on all matters relating to myself. He has been with me by my side on my many hospital stays, operations, doctors visits and stayed with me at my home and cared for me when I could not care for myself. Solar and his family is my family and I love them dearly and I expect my family, friends, and fans to respect that, regardless to anybody's feelings on the matter. It is my wish that counts. This being said I am survived by the love of my life, my sun KC, who I trust will be looked after by Solar and his family as their own. Any awards or tributes should be accepted, organized approved by Solar on behalf [of] myself and my son until he is of age to except on his own."

Guru very pointedly distanced himself from Premier in the letter, saying he didn't want his former musical collaborator to be able to participate in any tributes or events surrounding his death.
"I do not wish my ex-DJ to have anything to do with my name likeness, events, tributes etc. connected in anyway to my situation including any use of my name or circumstance for any reason and I have instructed my lawyers to enforce this," wrote Guru. "I had nothing to do with him in life for over 7 years and want nothing to do with him in death. Solar has my life story and is well informed on my family situation, as well as the real reason for separating from my ex-DJ.

"As the sole founder of Gang Starr, I am very proud of what Gang Starr has meant to the music world and fans. I equally am proud of my Jazzmatazz series and as the father of Hip-Hop/Jazz. I am most proud of my leadership and pioneering efforts on Jazzmatazz 4 for reinvigorating the Hip-Hop/Jazz genre in a time when music quality has reached an all time low. Solar and I have toured in places that I have never been before with Gang Starr or Jazzmatazz and we gained a reputation for being the best on the planet at Hip-Hop/Jazz, as well as the biggest and most influential Hip-Hop/Jazz record with Jazzmatazz 4 of the decade to now.

"The work I have done with Solar represents a legacy far beyond its time. And we as a team were not afraid to push the envelope. To me this is what true artists do! As men of honor we stood tall in the face of small-mindedness, greed, and ignorance. As we fought for music and integrity at the cost of not earning millions and for this I will always be happy and proud, and would like to thank the million fans who have seen us perform over the years from all over the world. The work I have done with Solar represents a legacy far beyond its time and is my most creative and experimental to date. I hope that our music will receive the attention it deserves as it is some of the best work I have done and represents some of the best years of my life."

At press time, Guru's family — from whom he was reportedly estranged, along with other past associates — had not commented on his death, and last month his nephew Justin Nicholas-Elam Ruff posted several emotional videos on YouTube saying that Solar was preventing them from seeing the MC during his illness.
"Solar has completely cut us off. My family has no way of knowing what is going on with Guru's situation," he said in the video. "Solar has complete control over the flow of information given from the hospital and will not disclose any information to us. The doctors and the hospital staff will not discuss any info with Guru's family." Ruff said in one of the videos that no one in Guru's family had not seen him since February 28, and that he was prevented from seeing Guru when he visited the hospital last month.


Story Courtesy of MTV.com

IS IT ALRIGHT!!!!!