Chatman answers call
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – No matter how big or small the opportunity, Jesse Chatman has a habit of making something productive happen.
He turned a scholarship at Eastern Washington, one of the few schools that recruited him out of high school, into an All-America career on the I-AA level.
When the San Diego Chargers invited him to training camp as an undrafted rookie free agent, he turned that tryout into a three-year stay with the franchise.
Last off-season, when the Dolphins thought they were adding just another tailback to boost training camp numbers, Chatman, who had been out of football for nearly two years, pushed the entrenched starter for playing time.
Now that Sunday’s knee injury has ended Ronnie Brown’s season, Chatman is in line to make his first NFL start against the New York Giants on Sunday in London. Don’t be surprised if he takes the ball and runs with it, literally and figuratively.
“This is what I get paid to do,” Chatman said. “When the time comes I’ve got to be ready, and I am. I’m a pro.”
Chatman, 28, proved that against the New England Patriots, when he gained 73 yards and scored a touchdown on his seven carries as Brown’s replacement. It was the second-highest rushing total of his career, trailing only his 103-yard effort for the Chargers in the 2004 season.
Dolphins coach Cam Cameron knows what Chatman can do from their days together in San Diego, where Cameron was offensive coordinator. Situations like this were the reason Cameron pushed for the Dolphins to sign the fifth-year veteran.
“We feel like he’s a solid back, and he’s played well in this league,” Cameron said, referring to 2004, when Chatman averaged 6.0 yards a carry, rushing for 392 yards and three touchdowns while backing up LaDainian Tomlinson. “Now he’s got to step up. This is his opportunity to help this football team win.
“He had taken on a role of one of our better special teams players. Now his role has changed. He’ll continue to do some special teams, but not near as much.”
That’s because he is being called on to shoulder the bulk of Brown’s workload. Chatman, however, doesn’t have to carry it alone. Cameron said Patrick Cobbs, who spent last season on the practice squad, and rookie Lorenzo Booker, the former Florida State standout drafted in the third round, will also be involved in the game plan.
But that could be determined by how Chatman performs. He has rushed for 117 yards and caught 11 passes for 72 yards.
“You don’t replace a Ronnie Brown,” Cameron said. “But you say, ‘These are the guys we have. How do we maximize the guys that we have? Who are our best 11?’
“You’re going to tweak your offense with the best 11 guys you have. Then how does the 12th guy factor in, and the 13th guy or 14th?’ We’re reassessing that right now.”
Whether he’ll be the featured tailback or share the snaps, Chatman aims to prove he’s still the same talent who led the Dolphins with 18 carries for 116 yards and two touchdowns in the exhibition season, and a month ago was pushing Brown for playing time.
Considering the offensive line has helped the Dolphins average 5.0 yards a carry and score nine rushing touchdowns – which are both second best in the NFL – Chatman is confident he’ll have the help he needs to keep the ground game going.
“Our line has been competing with the best of them this year,” he said. “They’ve been getting the job done and putting (the backs) in a position that helps us use the best of our ability. That’s how we’ve been successful, and how we’ll continue to be successful.”