CHARGERS: Tuning in: Bolts LB Wilhelm gets call on, off the field

Bolts LB Wilhelm gets call on, off the field

By JAY PARIS - Staff Writer | Thursday, August 7, 2008 7:41 PM PDT ∞

SAN DIEGO ---- Chargers linebacker Matt Wilhelm's iPhone buzzes again.

"My wife sends me e-mails of him in the pool, him rolling over ---- I feel like I'm missing out on everything, and I've only been gone two weeks,'' he said.

Wilhelm is talking about his first child, son Mason, who turned 5 months old Thursday. While Mason embraces the ups and downs of his infancy, Wilhelm has pushed aside his own wild ride of 2007, looking for smooth sailing this year.

"It was a roller coaster,'' Wilhelm said.

By the time the wheels stopped spinning after four games, last year's Chargers were 1-3 and Wilhelm was left wondering: "This is what starting is about?"

After being patient in a backup role and toiling on special teams for four years, Wilhelm was anointed a first teamer last year. But a bum calf derailed his season's opening month, forcing him to miss nearly three games ---- all Chargers losses.

"With my injury and the team being down, I was down,'' Wilhelm said. "I felt I could help, but I couldn't come back. That wasn't fun.''

The laughs arrived later ---- outside of a chuckle-free Minnesota afternoon when Adrian Peterson set the NFL rushing record. But Wilhelm righted himself, as did the Chargers, who won eight straight games before falling short in the AFC title game.

"After that hiccup in Minnesota, from there on we were on a roll, myself included,'' the 6-foot-4, 245-pound Wilhelm said. "We started to zone in and understand each other as a defense, and that was what gave us great success.''

The Chargers expect a similar number of backslaps this year, as they're primed to make a run at Tampa, Fla., and the Super Bowl.

If so, Wilhelm will be among the keys.

"He is a tremendous athlete,'' said veteran Carlos Polk, Wilhelm's backup. "And he's more comfortable in there. That first year starting, he was thinking and learning what he should do. Now he knows what he is doing and learning what offenses throw at him. He's a very smart player, as well as being a good athlete."

Despite the time he missed, Wilhelm was good enough to rank second among the Chargers with 144 tackles, adding three interceptions and a sack.

But what Wilhelm, a six-year pro, holds dear is the experience ---- the knowledge that comes with being a starter and what is expected over a demanding season that tests a man's body and soul.

"I understand now what it takes to be a professional,'' he said. "I thought I knew, but it's the week-in, week-out rigors you deal with mentally and physically that are ever changing. And it's something you need to quickly adapt to.''

Change this year is between Wilhelm's ears. He'll wear a helmet tuned into defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell, getting the defensive call and then barking out which linebacker goes where.

"It's an open frequency, so Ted can give me as much or as little as he wants to up to 15 seconds left on the play clock," Wilhelm said. "But sometimes in practice it clicks in with the offensive frequency. Hopefully, that won't happen in the games."

Ah yes, games. After pummeling each other since July 25, the Chargers get a chance to hit players in different jerseys Saturday night. Wilhelm is ready and eager to pop someone besides a teammate.

With the opponent being the visiting Dallas Cowboys, it's all the better.

"Obviously, the whole organization thinks this is a nice test for us against a high-quality opponent coming off similar success that we had," said Wilhelm, who expects to play into the second quarter. "They went deep in playoffs, going 13-3, and top to bottom we kind of mirror each other. It's going to be exciting."

Exciting? An exhibition yawner? The real buzz will be if Jessica Simpson accompanies her boyfriend, Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.

"Yeah, what loge number suite is she in?" Wilhelm said, not very convincingly. "She is the least of my worries. I just want to make sure my wife gets there all right.''

With Mason, of course.

"He's been great, and he really gives you a new outlook on life and a whole new reason to go out and play your butt off," Wilhelm said. "It's not just for you and your wife anymore.''

Sure enough, the phone rings again ---- here comes another e-mail, proving Wilhelm's point.

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

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