The mob demanded blood and the San Diego Chargers have graciously made an offering in the form of first year Defensive Coordinator, Greg Manusky (per Kevin Acee). Hired to replace former DC Ron Rivera after Rivera became the Carolina Panthers Head Coach last off season, Manusky oversaw a defense that fell from #1 overall in 2010 to 16th in 2011.
General Manager A.J. Smith has preached that his teams must have a dominating, dictating defense and Manusky's was anything but dominating. Some will point to injuries to key players like Bob Sanders, Luis Castillo and Shaun Phillips. Some others will point to a lack of impact players and quality depth. Some others still will point to a shortened off season that likely hurt defenses more than offenses. All of these factors are at least partially responsible for the defense's failures this year, but it was reported repeatedly by Kevin Acee and others that the Chargers regretted hiring Manusky and that they felt he was consistently outcoached by opposing offenses.
Defensive coordinator Greg Manusky has been fired.
— S.D. U-T Chargers (@sdutChargers) January 5, 2012