In an exclusive interview, Los Angeles Chargers running back Austin Ekeler discusses his rise with the team, the 2020 season, head coach Anthony Lynn and the growth of rookie quarterback Justin Herbert
Saturday 19 December 2020 11:17, UK
Austin Ekeler casts his mind back to 2017, an ironic chuckle and raising of the eyebrows recognising that no preseason in the NFL might well have meant no Austin Ekeler in the NFL.
So for an undrafted free agent playing a collision-heavy position whose longevity and investment value is under ever-mounting scrutiny, a year ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic has served as both a familiar dose of motivation as well as an insight into how an unfavourable entry into the league could have been even more adverse.
"I probably would not have made the team [without preseason]," said Ekeler in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports.
Untouched through seven rounds three years ago, the Western Colorado Mountaineer with school records in rushing and all-purpose yards landed with the Chargers, where a now very Ekeler-esque performance of 50 yards rushing and 53 yards receiving while playing 44 percent of special teams snaps in the preseason finale against the San Francisco 49ers secured him a spot on the 53-man roster.
COVID-19 made sure there were no such breakout tales in 2020 as usual preparations were either delayed, cancelled or moved to virtual formats.
"I needed all that time," he added. "People forget we didn't have an offseason either which was like eight weeks of being with the coaches and running around with the team.
"I played slow during that time, when I came into training camp and preseason games that's when I had a little bit of time off to study and get the playbook down and that's when I started playing a little bit more like myself and not thinking as much."
"It would have been rough, if I didn't have those games I don't think I'd be sitting here talking to you."
His route to prominence from undrafted to competing with two-time Pro Bowl running back Melvin Gordon to taking the backfield reins on a full-time basis has fortified an unwavering work ethic in a bid to keep his job.
That burning desire to contribute took an untimely hit in Week Four amid a losing season for the Chargers as he suffered a hamstring injury and a hyperextended knee, putting him on injured reserve from October 9 until November 28.
"I've been playing football for like 16 years now and this injury that I had to my hamstring was the most time that I've missed in those 16 years in all of my seasons and so just sitting on the sidelines I felt almost like neglected and left out," he explained.
"I felt like I just didn't have as much purpose on the team, like 'argh I can't do anything'. I do my rehab and then hang out around the building but there's nothing I can do.
"I was doing as much as I could trying to get out there and motivate the guys but it's always frustrating, even when you're on the field, to see your team coming up short in really close games."
He knows his own story poses as a reminder of the NFL's 'next man up' tendency, and even now plays with a mentality of 'proving himself'.
"You have to because the league is designed to just rotate guys in and out," he said. "If you don't play well there's another guy that's been practicing right behind you who's trying to take your spot.
"So there's always a consistent pressure to play at your best and to keep your body in the best shape because once you start falling off there's always some younger guys, new guys on different teams that are looking to take your spot."
An extended spell on the sidelines piled onto an already frustrating year, which saw offseason team activities become virtual meetings and training camp disrupted by social distancing measures.
Ekeler strived to suppress frustration with innovation early on in the pandemic as he began streaming on Twitch, initially hosting gaming videos before harnessing the platform's power to bring him closer to fan communities than ever before.
No pedestal, no divide, no external influence, no need for a middle man and an enhanced player-supporter relationship at the end of it.
"It's been a big part of my life because it is that interaction, especially right now with COVID, that we're missing out on so I'm able to pick that up with live streams," he said. "People can type in the chat and I re-chat or I'll sit down and talk for a couple of hours, we'll hang out, chill, maybe play a game.
"It just allows you to be in control of your own content where a lot of times especially like football everything is directed in a certain direction. Now, this is time where you can just relax and have casual conversation with people that supported you."
On the back of that, he has launched Gridiron Gaming Group with the aim of helping pro athletes expand their brand and introducing them to new revenue streams in the gaming industry.
"I'm trying to create a platform for athletes and influencers to come and not have to start on ground zero with streaming, they can come in and already have support and other opportunities for them to come forward," he continued.
Such is the level of access Ekeler and other professional athletes are able to provide on the platform that he recently used his channel to deliver an update on his return to action following his injury.
Ekeler made his comeback in the Week 12 defeat to the Buffalo Bills, during which the enormity of his role in the Chargers offense was underlined by 14 carries and 11 catches from 16 targets for a career-high 25 touches, not to mention his involvement in 80 percent of the snaps. Welcome back.
After the 45-0 defeat to the New England Patriots the following game, Ekeler was back in full flow in Week 14 with 79 yards rushing from 15 carries and nine catches for 67 yards in the win over the Atlanta Falcons.
While admittedly wary of his heavy usage, he can talk about it with a smile knowing it is merely a compliment of his value.
"Coming in even to this year I tell my coach like 'I'm a 195-pound man, five-foot-eight, I'm not one of these big bruisers that can take the full load of an entire NFL offense so you've gotta make sure you be careful with my body' and so they've been trying as much as they can to limit my touches," he said.
"But I feel like I'm just really efficient so they try and push me for sure. It's just trying to find a balance of what works for me and for our team as far as being successful and moving the ball goes."
It's testament to the versatility that earned him a four-year $24.5m contract extension in March in reward for his development and an outstanding 2019 campaign that saw him post 557 yards rushing for three touchdowns alongside 92 catches for 993 yards and eight more visits to the end zone.
An initial back-seat role amounted to Ekeler playing 48.72 percent of special teams snaps in his rookie year, and just 18.34 percent on offense. That dipped to 40.47 compared to 34.97 in 2018, before the 25-year-old played 56.51 percent of offensive snaps in 2019 and less than one percent on special teams.
"I was never sure how my role was going to evolve," he explained. "I knew coming in it was special teams and then I knew that I was going to try and expand on my role and be as efficient as I can with my opportunities.
"I started getting some more opportunities on offense and started having some success and then just started gaining momentum and then I was able to stay healthy for the most part so when people would get nicked up here and there I would get those opportunities."
Said 'opportunities' are reflective of the rather cliche NFL 'turnstile' Ekeler came through to assert himself as a star commodity.
He was well on his way towards governing the running back department even before Gordon moved onto the Denver Broncos in the offseason. And now with the experience logged, he welcomes the chance to mentor the likes of Joshua Kelley, Justin Jackson and Kalen Ballage as they try to make their mark as he did.
"You kind of grow up really quick because if you're on the field it doesn't really matter where you came from, whether you're drafted or not you're expected to perform and if you do that you'll be rewarded," he said.
"If you don't you'll be replaced. And that's what I've been trying to get across to the younger guys. That's why I feel like I've stepped into that role, more of a leadership role just because I have been around the longest in the running back room.
"It's just kind of showing them 'I was in your shoes two years ago, I was in your situation and this is what worked for me, this is what I'm seeing that you guys aren't doing that you need to step up' or 'you guys are doing the right thing', so it's just been being able to provide more insight to these younger guys."
Part of setting the tone has been continuing to play hard in a season the Chargers will be keen to forget in a hurry come 2021.
It has also been accepting some of the blame as a team amid heavy external criticism of widely-respected head coach Anthony Lynn, whose job security has been questioned in the media of late.
"Players get pressure to play well, coaches also get pressure to coach at their highest ability and make smart decisions, so if you're ever losing it's always going to turn towards something in the organisation not being correct," he said.
"Coach Lynn just happens to be our head coach so if the organisation is losing they're all going to look at the coach like 'what's going on here? This is all your fault' when in the end this is a team sport, the ultimate team sport.
"It's not necessarily all coach Lynn's fault, I'm sure he's made some screw-ups, we have too as players, but it comes down to a whole organisation and being consistent.
"You're going to see a lot of stuff in the media like 'oh fire Coach Lynn, do this, do that' and from an outsider view, you just don't see the depth that it takes to have a successful NFL team. It's not just the head coach."
Ekeler points to 'inconsistency' and 'decision-making' as contributing flaws to the Chargers' season, but takes optimism from the undeniable talent across the roster, the level of which is why multiple blown leads and one-score losses have perhaps come as such a surprise.
The year hasn't been without a monumental plus point, though, with rookie quarterback Justin Herbert offering pretty emphatic assurance that the powers above have found their guy.
Herbert's two touchdown passes in the Chargers' Week 15 win over the Las Vegas Raiders saw him equal Baker Mayfield's record of most by a rookie quarterback in a single season with 27.
The Offensive Rookie of the Year contender is also the first rookie quarterback in NFL history with multiple touchdowns in seven successive games.
"I think he's starting out on a really high level," said Ekeler. "You never know with rookies, especially at the quarterback position, where they're going to struggle at and I feel like Justin has shown incredible arm talent, throwing the ball from different positions, running, getting hit.
"And then now as I've been playing with him and he's been getting a few games in he's been starting to understand the knowledge of recognising defenses and switching plays that are more beneficial against a certain defense so he's really maturing as an NFL quarterback.
"I think it's the mental part which is really the most significant part when it comes to playing quarterback. You don't even have to have the best arm strength."
Having overseen the final years of Philip Rivers' time with the Chargers, Ekeler is now witness to the start of a new era for the franchise.
"Playing with Philip he didn't have the best arm strength throwing it 60 yards down the field, he's definitely super accurate when it comes to mid-short gain, but he was just so smart in protecting himself with sliding the protections or calling the plays that were correct and that's why he had so much success.
"But Justin has kind of shown that he can push the ball down the field too so just with more time I'm really looking forward to seeing him grow as an NFL quarterback and I'm glad I can be out there with him."
The Herbert-Ekeler tandem is one the Chargers could get used to.
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