Marcus McNeil Story, Richie!

December 16, 2006 From San Diego-Tribune

It's no secret history is against Chargers left tackle Marcus McNeill being voted NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Since 1967, that honor has been awarded to 30 running backs – including the lone Charger to win, Don Woods (1974) – along with seven receivers, two quarterbacks and, oh yeah, zero linemen.

That last fact doesn't figure to change this season, especially with several skill-position players (Vince Young, Reggie Bush and Maurice Jones-Drew, to name three) putting up big numbers. But two ESPN analysts recently spoke out in favor of McNeill, and Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer raised the subject yesterday.

“McNeill has been nothing short of remarkable in my view,” Schottenheimer said. “I don't know, has there ever been an offensive tackle make Rookie of the Year?”
There's no easy way to quantify how McNeill has played, but he must be doing something right. Most of the Chargers' running plays go to the left side, and last time anyone checked, LaDainian Tomlinson was having a pretty good season. Plus, the Chargers lead the league in scoring by 65 points. If they finish No. 1, they would become just the fourth team to do so with a rookie tackle starting at least half their games.

“Think about where we'd be if he wasn't . . . No, on second thought, don't think about where we'd be,” Schottenheimer said. “His ability to step in and play arguably one of the most difficult positions in football has been remarkable.”

McNeill said he hasn't thought about the award “because I'm just so used to all the running backs getting all the pub. I just come out here and do my job. . . . It's always good to have people notice you, especially on the offensive line. At the same time, I take it for what it's worth. My job is to protect the quarterback and make sure I open up holes and that's what I'm trying to do.”