LA Chargers: Five takeaways from Hard Knocks episode 3
5. Tyrod Taylor’s different leadership style
This week we saw a rewind through the career of Tyrod Taylor. Frankly, I almost forgot he was the backup quarterback to Joe Flacco during that Baltimore Super Bowl season.
After that, Taylor details how he played a part in breaking Buffalo’s nearly two-decade-long playoff drought. Cleveland, as he remarks, didn’t go the way he wanted. Every step of the journey has helped the veteran quarterback prepare for this opportunity with the Chargers.
We saw in this episode the differences in leadership between Taylor and someone like Rivers. Rivers was always fiery, boisterous, and ultimately more extroverted. Lynn mentions that Taylor is an introvert, but also how that’s OK. Taylor is never afraid to speak up but leads through being more reserved while letting his actions do the talking.
This also could impact the development of Justin Herbert. Learning how to play at the pro level from Rivers as opposed to Taylor would’ve been different in many ways, but I think Herbert having a personality more in line with Taylor’s lends itself to having a bit more chemistry with him in the quarterback room. Lynn said something along those lines at the start of camp:
#Chargers HC Anthony Lynn compared rookie QB Justin Herbert's "introvert" personality to that of Tyrod Taylor, said the latter will be a great influence on the rest of the room.
— Jason B. Hirschhorn (@by_JBH) July 29, 2020
Taylor’s communication to his team is a lot different than previous Chargers’ quarterbacks, but I’m still confident that he can lead in his own way.
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What were your favorite parts of Hard Knocks: Los Angeles episode 3? Let me know in the comments down below.