Mindset puts Tomlinson on verge of franchise TD mark

By: JAY PARIS - Staff Writer | Saturday, October 14, 2006 11:40 PM PDT ∞

SAN FRANCISCO ---- LaDainian Tomlinson clutches the handoff and unleashes his dazzling physical skills. He cuts left, cuts right, cuts right through the heart of another defense.

Tomlinson's body is a work of art. It allows him to deceive tacklers, outrace rivals and see things others can't.

But when noticing the attributes oozing from his 5-foot-10, 221-pound chassis, don't overlook the most important thing.

The potency that comes not from his frame, but his mind.

"Once your mental part leaves you, that's when you know you don't have it anymore,'' Tomlinson said. "And I wouldn't say it is a stretch that the mental part is just as important as the physical part.''

Tomlinson loves to get physical, never shying from a heavy workload. But among the reasons he could eclipse Lance Alworth's club record 83 touchdowns today against the San Francisco 49ers is his mind is as stout as his legs.

"Obviously you have to have some physical tools,'' said Tomlinson, who holds or has a share of 18 Chargers records. "But a lot of it is mental. Think about all the guys whose physical skills were there, but mentally it wasn't there and they couldn't survive.

"If you are not mentally strong in this game, I don't care how many physical skills you got. You are not going to amount to anything; it's not going to happen for you."

Tomlinson bridges his mental will to his self-respect. He possess the characteristics to be the best and wants to be the best. And that's not restricted to Sundays.

"Definitely I'm strong mentally, and I think also one thing about me is my pride,'' he said. "Sometimes it is bigger than I like it to be, and that is in all walks of life, even with my marriage. To me pride ties in with my mental aspect ----the way I think about things, the way I carry myself, the way I play, all of that.''

He's all that in the NFL because his mind won't settle for anything less. He zeros in on his tasks with a laser-like precision that starts before the first snap.

"You really focus on what is in front of you,'' he said. "You play the game in your mind, and that really has a calming presence about the game. You think about successful things, about running free, catching the ball, blocking ---- pretty much all positive stuff."

But human nature shows focus is fleeting.

Even the best athlete occasionally stiff-arms a dose of daydreaming about family, friends and paying the bills, right?

"Not before the game, because at a time like that there is no time to think about mortgage payments,'' Tomlinson said, with a laugh. "Sometimes when you're playing a game that is less meaningful, sometimes you might think, 'Hey I wonder where my wife is sitting?' But for the most part you just try to focus in on the game because there is so much stuff going on, so much stuff running through your mind."

It was matter over mind when Tomlinson first started. The six-year pro has learned that it's about you, not them.

"Sometimes there is so much stuff going on mentally, that you can get caught up in what they are doing and you have to say, 'OK, let me concentrate and focus on me and what I need to be doing instead of watching them moving around. I know it's still play-action. I know I have to get this guy.'

"You can't get caught up looking at the defensive tackle backing up a step or crazy stuff like that. Because if you are just being distracted for a minute, that is what they want so you won't get your block on this guy or whatever.''

So the three-time Pro Bowler cuts those thoughts like he does a pass rusher.

Same goes for not spending his mental capital in pregame drills.

"I've learned that before games you might get all pumped up and tire yourself out before the game has even started,'' he said. "You are mentally drained already. Instead, I try to save that mental energy to really be able to understand what is going on out there."

Tomlinson understood when the great Barry Sanders retired, while others shrugged. It wasn't Sanders' body keeping him from the all-time rushing mark, it was his mind.

"Barry knew he could physically still play, but mentally he wasn't there any more,'' Tomlinson said. "He spent 10 years without getting serious injured but he knew it was time because mentally he said. 'I am not here.' "

Tomlinson is here in San Francisco, eager to push the Chargers mark to 4-1. But when marveling about his numerous physical talents, keep in mind what's rattling underneath Tomlinson's helmet.

"When you don't have the mental strength,'' he said, "your confidence goes out the window.''

Contact staff writer Jay Paris at jparis8@aol.com.