Moving to the beach was the easy part.
The day after the lockout ended, former USC CB Shareece Wright received a call from the San Diego Chargers organization, which had drafted him in third round of the 2011 draft.
“We were there the next day checking into the hotel getting ready for camp,” said Wright.
Wright had spent the months waiting and working, but now the actual work was about to begin.
“The way we play man coverage in the NFL is very different than the way we play in college,” said Wright.
The technique that made him top dog with the Trojans was no longer going to cut it. The 24-year-old found himself up against full grown men instead of rambunctious teenagers that usually talked bigger than they played.
“I’m going up against our best receivers in practice and it definitely helped me get better. And when they do better in a game it lets me know that my hard work in practice is paying off.”
The feeling was, if nothing else, familiar.
“Going into something brand new, you feel like a freshman again in college,” joked Wright. “You gotta hit the books hard and study hard and try to remember everything as much as possible every day.”
Week 8, at Kansas City, Wright got the chance to actually use some of that new knowledge.
“I was a little nervous,” admitted Wright. “I didn’t get any tackles, but I did what I needed to do and it was fun.”
Fun. That is part of it. And then there is everything else.
“It’s your job.”
The San Bernardino native was now getting a check in the mail every week.
“It changes your perspective a lot,” said Wright. “It’s my career and it’s up to me to how long I’m going to be in this career in football that I have. It’s up to me to take care of my body and stay mentally ready.”
And for a first year on the job, he didn’t do too bad. He logged four tackles, three of which came against Denver in Week 12.
“I had my ups and downs and lows as a rookie, but it’s been good.”
