LA JOLLA, Calif. -- More than a dozen scouts assembled in the Qualcomm Stadium press box, and their observations were almost the same. Their tickets were free, but they all quietly muttered they would pay good money to see Doug Flutie, who was making his San Diego Chargers debut. Short or not, Flutie is entertainment.

"You hear it from scouts that they love to watch me play, but they don't want to take the chance on you because it's their necks on the line," the 5-foot-10 Flutie said. "They look at it as a risk. They always have for 20 years because I don't fit the mold. If they take some 6-4, 220-pound guy who throws the ball through a brick wall and he doesn't make it, it's not their fault because they feel they brought in a guy with skills."

	Doug Flutie is one of nine ex-Bills employees who've made the move to San Diego.

Finally, life as a full-time NFL starter begins at 38 for Flutie. The Chargers are the first NFL team to hand him their offense and say "go for it."

See Flutie run. See Flutie pass. See Flutie scramble to his left, stop, look right and then throw a completion to his left.

"He's something special," linebacker John Holecek said. "This stadium has got to be filled. That's professional sports entertainment."

New offensive coordinator Norv Turner scripted 15 plays for Flutie in their exhibition opener against the 49ers. Flutie completed eight of 10 passes for 70 yards and one touchdown pass. Exciting third receiver Tim Dwight caught a 21-yarder along the sidelines and broke a 27-yard reverse in which Flutie led the blocking. Fourth-string halfback Ronny Jenkins cut back a 29-yard touchdown run to his left. Flutie darted downfield ahead of the play to make downfield blocks.

"I did pick out a defensive back," said Flutie, knowing that he might be a little too valuable for quarterback and block. "I've been playing football for 30 years. I'm going to play the game. I'm not going to put a skirt on."

Chargers fans have to be concerned if too much Flutie will mean too less of him once the regular season begins. The offensive line is thin and may not have center Roman Fortin and left tackle Vaughn Parker for any preseason games because of leg injuries. First-round choice LaDainian Tomlinson is a holdout with limited hopes of a quick solution, and backups Terrell Fletcher (hernia) and Jermaine Fazande (ankle) are hurt.

The Tomlinson negotiations are in the ugly stage. Naturally, Tomlinson, the fifth overall pick in the draft, wants a deal comparable to the selections around him. Cardinals guard Leonard Davis and Browns defensive tackle Gerard Warren -- the second and third picks, respectively -- signed six-year deals that pencil out between $34 million and $35 million a year. Defensive tackle Richard Seymour, the sixth pick, signed a six-year deal that could be worth as much as $24.5 million and has the first three years guaranteed at $11 million.

"It's getting to the point where it's really jerking me off," general manager John Butler said of the negotiations. "We're in the process of offering somebody $10 million just to sign a contract, somebody who hasn't played a snap. To me, that's a tremendous thing. But everybody wants all these backend incentives and pretty soon, if they achieve these things, it starts to eat up the club."

So Butler and the Chargers are taking a stand. They may go $8 million or so on the incentives and escalators, but that's less than half of the value Tomlinson's agent, Tom Condon, believes is the market value. It's a stalemate.

"You've got a package that nobody sees the end of, so you've got to redo that contract just to work the cap, which ends up costing you a ton of money," Butler said. "Something is not right about the system to me. It's time to come to work or see what his other occupation is. We're going to play football. If I got to trade for somebody to have the depth here, we'll move on. If anybody wants to talk trade to us about a good running back, call me. We will be more than happy to listen."

The sad part of the Tomlinson situation is that the Chargers, a team divided last season because of the presence of Ryan Leaf, have come together as a team. They like each other. Cornerback Ryan McNeil says players hang out together. Practices are sharp. Including Butler and Flutie, nine former employees of the Buffalo Bills have formed Bills West. All have fit in and created a better working environment.

	“	When Ryan (Leaf) was here, there was nothing but negativity. I'm glad he's gone and he's forgotten. He's not committed. He kept bringing the team down. ”
		— Rodney Harrison, Chargers safety

"It all starts from not having the negativity surrounding the team," safety Rodney Harrison said. "Get rid of Ryan, and there is no more negativity. When Ryan was here, there was nothing but negativity. I'm glad he's gone and he's forgotten. He's not committed. He kept bringing the team down."

As for talent, the Chargers were better than last year's 1-15. Butler figured them to be a five-, six- or seven-win team. Through free agency, he's made them significantly better. Alex Molden and McNeil are cornerbacks who make tackles on the short plays and shouldn't give up the deep plays. Former Bills defensive end Marcellus Wiley will team up with Raylee Johnson to give the Chargers a pass rush.

But Flutie is the change that adds the most excitement in the locker room. How different is Flutie from Leaf, who didn't seem to like football and definitely shied away from work? Three times a week, after practice, Flutie jogs three nine-minute miles. He does 150 situps and push ups a day. If he gets a free minute, he'll go play pickup basketball. He loves athletic competition.

"I know when we played the Bills, we didn't want to see Flutie," Harrison said. "His presence is overwhelming. He feels like he's 22."

Flutie's mind is so fresh because he doesn't have to look over his shoulder. The starting job is his. Second-round choice Drew Brees is no threat to his job at this time, so he doesn't mind giving him pointers along the sidelines of games. Brees is the quarterback of the future. Flutie senses a different tone in meetings nowadays.

"I don't have to try to prove myself on the practice field every day," Flutie said. "I was always trying to make sure they aren't remembering I was 5-10. It seemed like every offseason, teams had doubts going into camp. Once the season started, all that gets erased. As the starting quarterback now, we talk about things to get ready for the season."

And the Chargers have the possibility of a great start. In the first six weeks, they play Washington, Dallas, Cincinnati, Cleveland and New England. If they are improved, it's not unreasonable to think they will be 4-1 or maybe even 5-0.

To a man, all the former Bills players who moved from Buffalo won't go back into the Flutie-Rob Johnson debates that tore apart the Bills last year. Still, they express pleasure that Flutie is on their side for this venture as a Charger.

"It was weird being on the sidelines and listening," Wiley said. "We heard the same things three years ago in Buffalo. Players would be saying, 'Man, did you see Flutie throw that ball, did you see him do that?' You see the Flutie Flakes on the Jumbotron. You just know how special he is."

John Clayton is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.