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How good can Melvin "Flash" Gordon be?

As good as he believes he can be.

By roghinojosa
Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports

Confidence. Melvin Gordon has been playing with more confidence compared to his rookie season and it shows on the playing field. Say what you want about his rookie season, I think we can all agree that Gordon's season last year was disappointing and left Chargers' fans wondering whether the trade was worth it. Some may disagree, but, yes, the injury ridden offensive line had an effect on Gordon, but it is not the sole reason as to why his rookie season was a disappointment. There were many moving parts which led to a poor start for Flash, but it seems like he's ready to bounce back from his first season.

Last year, there were moments where we saw flashes of greatness from the rookie running back. There were several times that I could remember him being one tackle away from taking it to the house. Who can forget one of his first carries?

Gordon can take contact and keep running. He may have occasional awareness problems or may not see the open gap, but that could have been a confidence problem during his rookie season or a lack of gaps to run through. His body language now just shows his confidence. Gordon's touchdown run last Sunday was a prime example of how great Gordon can be. He hits the open gap at full-speed and caps off a good audible by Rivers.

Gordon is finally gaining some steam and the Chargers need to have confidence in his running ability. If the offensive line is able to stay healthy (knock on wood), we will finally see the Flash we were expecting. The return of the Wiz has definitely helped out so far in the preseason and it would be nice to see Coach Whisenhunt call a play on third down in the red zone that goes to the Chargers' starting running back so he can have the opportunity to score.

It is the preseason so maybe we shouldn't read into it so much, but if there's anything we can take away from Gordon's pair of touchdowns, and overall preseason performance, is that he's ready to roll. He looks hungry and ready to get back and show everyone that he is that running back from Wisconsin. He doesn't run scared, in fact he's running through tackles to power his way into the end zone.

It's hard not to be excited for the way Gordon is running. He will be a top running back in 2016 if he is able to carry the momentum going into the regular season if he continues to run with confidence, and if he can fix some of his rookie mistakes. Let's hope the Chargers are able to stay healthy up front and that the play calling improves so that we can see Flash finally emerge as a top NFL running back.

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