Morning Dump

SAN DIEGO —- The Chargers have big plans for Marcus Gilchrist. The second-round draft pick has an opportunity to become the team’s starting nickel back and return specialist as a rookie, and a solid training camp could send him further up the depth chart.

Last year Bill Belichick dug up his umpteenth diamond in the rough by signing Danny Woodhead, an undrafted rookie out of D-II Chadron State. To be fair, Woodhead wasn’t totally unknown having previously enjoyed a brief 15 minutes of fame as a New York Jet running for 158 yards in a preseason game against Philadelphia, but he was let go by two teams before Belichick gave him his first chance to shine.

SAN DIEGO — Chargers linebackers might need name tags in their position meetings. Just five linebackers remain from last season, and three of them were sidelined by injury most of the year while another was signed in Week 4.

The San Diego Chargers were also making a play for Hayward, and that should come as no surprise. The Chargers now employ former Bucs special teams coach Rich Bisaccia, who holds the same post with his new team. Hayward was among Bisaccia’s most reliable special-teams assets figured to be a player he would recommend to Chargers management.

The interest appears to be mutual, and Floyd makes a lot of sense for Baltimore because of his ability to provide a big red-zone and stretch the field. He’s also eight years younger than veteran wide receiver Derrick Mason.

San Diego running back Ryan Mathews(notes) was a bust in his rookie season, by just about any measure. His setup was fantastic with the Chargers, as the presumptive featured back in a high-yield offense. But fumbles were an early issue, then health was a problem, and then Mike Tolbert(notes) became an immovable object.