2022 Official Chargers Season Discussion

[CivilBolt]

A bit over 5lbs of muscle gained. Nice.
hope it doesn't affect his flexibility.

I think he said he didn’t want to get too jacked to affect him throwing the football. 245 probably is the sweet spot. We may see him trucking another LB this season

[sonorajim]

This team isn't making the playoffs if either of those guys start more than 2 games. I'm not sure I see much of a difference between the two on the field, but stick may be better. That being said, I'd prefer Daniel for what he brings off the field. I don't have confidence in this team to win games without Herbert and I think Daniel is still a good mentor to Herbert when it comes to the offense. I know it's year 2 for Herbie in the system, but it's not like he's been in the system for 5 seasons at this point.

I do think both of these guys are below average backups, though. I wouldn't mind the Chargers drafting a backup QB next year.

I'd guess that the average for backup QBs is a low bar. It's hard to find quality starters.
For 1 or 2 plays, Chase. If we have to play a few games sans Herbert, Stick.
Stick was a better than avg college athlete and is entering his 4th NFL year. Let's see what ya got Chargers!
Making that change is as much on the coaches as the QB. Don't ask him to be Herbert.

[Boltjolt]

I think I trust Daniel more than Stick, at least to win a game.
he knows the system as well as anyone and they can come up with a limited offense for him to run.

I'd love to know what Lombardi and Day think of Stick since they came on after. But I wonder how well Stick is catching on mentally.

I think they both suck. We need to draft a development QB next year or sign another more capable vet....or both.

[Xenos]

I love that we have depth and competition at almost every position.

https://theathletic.com/3329915/2022/05/23/chargers-khalil-mack-otas/

COSTA MESA, Calif. — The Chargers held their first organized team activity of the spring Monday at the team facility.

Here are my notes, takeaways and observations.

1. The Chargers will hold nine more voluntary OTAs in May and June before a two-day mandatory veteran minicamp on June 14 and 15. The team will then break for a month and a half before training camp kicks off in late July. As these practices are voluntary, some players were absent Monday. Edge rusher Joey Bosa, running back Austin Ekeler, wide receiver Mike Williams, cornerback J.C. Jackson, defensive lineman Jerry Tillery and linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. were not on the field during the portion of practice open to the media.

Bosa and Ekeler never show up until minicamp. They prefer to work out on their own. Williams and Jackson have been at the facility this offseason but did not attend Monday. Brandon Staley said Jackson, the Chargers’ prized new corner, had some plane issues coming back from Boston but should be back on the field sometime this week. The Chargers have two more OTAs this week on Tuesday and Thursday. Murray has been at the facility rehabbing from his April ankle surgery, so no surprise he was not on the field.

2. The one head-scratcher of the absentees is Tillery. The Chargers declined his fifth-year option for 2023 earlier this month, meaning he is now set to hit free agency after this season. They have also completely revamped their defensive line room through the draft and free agency, bringing in four new pieces — Sebastian Joseph-Day, Austin Johnson, Morgan Fox and rookie Otito Ogbonnia. With the Chargers also re-signing Christian Covington, Tillery’s role on the team is now a bit murky. Fox’s best attribute is his pass rushing from the interior. He had six sacks playing for Staley with the Rams in 2020 and was a starter in known-pass situations on the inside next to Aaron Donald. The only value Tillery brings is as an interior pass rusher. He is a liability against the run. The Chargers signed Fox to fill that interior pass-rushing role. So where does that leave Tillery?

“He’s going to fit into that competition of guys that’s going to have to earn a role,” Staley said of Tillery and the defensive linemen. “I think that during this springtime and during training camp, all those guys are going to have to really duke it out to establish themselves. Sebastian and Austin are proven NFL players. They’re proven NFL players. Khalil Mack’s a proven NFL player. Derwin James is a proven NFL player. Then there’s a bunch of guys that are trying to prove themselves, to earn their way in the league. And I would put him in that category.”

Not exactly a ringing endorsement. The Chargers kept five defensive linemen on their 53-man roster last season. At times, that number grew to six as the Chargers dealt with injuries up front. Right now, the Chargers have five defensive linemen who are virtual locks to make the 53-man: Joseph-Day, Johnson, Ogbonnia, Fox and Covington. Then they also have Breiden Fehoko, Joe Gaziano and Forrest Merrill on the roster.

The evidence is pretty convincing: Tillery is in a battle to make this roster. We will see if he shows up to OTAs over the next three weeks.

3. Fox was one of the Chargers’ three post-draft free-agent acquisitions. The other two also came on defense in cornerback Bryce Callahan and Kyle Van Noy. We had not talked to Staley since the draft, so we got his thoughts on those two additions.

The overarching themes with Callahan and Van Noy are experience and versatility.

Callahan has played all six of his seasons under Vic Fangio in Chicago and Denver and crossed paths with Staley on both stops, with the Bearsin 2017-18 and Broncos in 2019. Staley came up under Fangio and runs effectively the same scheme. So Callahan’s familiarity with the system is important. There is the experience. Callahan also has the flexibility to play inside defending the slot and outside. He has played more inside than outside in his career, but Staley said the Broncos signed Callahan in 2019 to play outside because they had Chris Harris Jr. as their slot corner at the time. There is your versatility.

Van Noy has played nine seasons in the league and won two Super Bowls with the Patriots. Staley has talked often this offseason about adding players with championship pedigree, and Van Noy certainly has that. There is your experience. Van Noy can also play multiple positions in the defense. He has produced as an edge rusher and an off-ball linebacker, so he can provide depth at two spots. He even wore the green dot as the defensive signal-caller during his time in New England. There is your versatility.

Here is Staley on Callahan: “He’s one of the top slot cover players in the league, and he has been really since he started in Chicago. So he really gives us a lift there in the slot because of his experience, especially in our system. But he’s played outside too. … So the reason why I think Bryce is such a good player is because he can play effectively at both spots. But the experience and the playmaking ability that he has within our defense, he’s been a part of some of the top defenses in the NFL throughout his entire career. He’s been a playmaker, a ball-producer. And we think that he’s got real toughness.”

And on Van Noy, speaking about his edge and off-ball flex: “His trademark has been that he can do either. He can play on the edge. He can play behind the ball. He’s a very versatile player, but what he does better than anything is he’s extremely instinctive. He’s a playmaker. He can make plays at both of those positions, and he can run the show. … We just feel like that versatility is really going to help us, and that championship experience. He’s a Super Bowl champion. He’s been a part of top-five defenses really wherever he’s been.”

4. The Callahan signing is going to have a trickle-down effect in the secondary. With the way the roster was constructed coming out of the draft, Asante Samuel Jr. was in line to start at nickel corner. Samuel played exclusively on the outside last season, but the Chargers always felt like he had the skill set to play inside from the moment they drafted him in the second round last year. At the same time, Samuel excelled on the outside last season. Callahan provides depth in the slot, and that will free up the Chargers to play Samuel on the outside more when they go to nickel packages without moving James or another safety into the slot.

“It doesn’t force you to play Asante inside,” Staley said. “We certainly want Asante to train in there because he has a lot of good skills to play in the slot. But we don’t have to do that, and I think that what we were hoping for is to make sure that we get our best combination of secondary players out on the field, and I think through some of the acquisitions we were able to make in free agency, the draft, now we’re able to truly put that best combination of secondary players out there.”

5. Like with Tillery, the moves the Chargers made in the secondary this offseason have raised some questions about Michael Davis’ role in 2022. Davis signed a three-year, $25.2 million deal last offseason and has a cap hit of close to $10 million for this season. However, he does not have a starting job locked down. The Chargers could end up going with a combination of Jackson, Samuel and Callahan as their starting corner trio in nickel packages, with Davis on the bench as the fourth corner. They also drafted two corners on Day 3 in Ja’Sir Taylor and Deane Leonard.

I do not think Davis’ situation is as dire as Tillery’s. He should have a roster spot. But his path to playing time is a little more clouded now than it was at this time last year. Davis did not take to Staley’s scheme in 2021 as quickly or as effectively as the team was expecting. He has something left to prove.

“Vato’s gonna be right in the mix there,” Staley said of Davis. “It’s going to be very competitive in the secondary. I think what we’ve done is we’ve acquired a lot of depth in order to make it a competition. And I think that is what we were after, really in all phases of our team, but I think specifically on defense and in the kicking game. We really wanted to make sure that we get the best of the best out there so we can find out who those guys are going into next season that are going to compete, start, play for us, earn a role. And Mike is going to be right in the middle of that competition for us.”

6. Murray had ankle surgery in early April. Staley said the hope is the former first-round pick will be ready for training camp.

“The timeline is for him to be full speed for training camp, and I think that from now until the summertime, until training camp starts, just the rehabilitation process,” Staley said. “I know that he’s going to be able to be weight-bearing here soon. And then once that starts, it’s really, hey, a sprint to get to training camp. But we expect him to participate in training camp.”

7. Mack missed the final 10 games last season with a foot injury. The Chargers are easing him back into action in the early stages of this offseason, as has been commonplace with other injured players in Staley’s tenure as head coach. Mack was working with the trainers off to the side during individual drills Monday. We got to watch only the first 30 minutes of practice, so we did not see any of the full-team periods. Staley said Mack did participate in the 11-on-11 walkthrough and jog-through portions of practice.

“He’s in really good shape,” Staley said of Mack. “He’s got a lot of confidence in where he’s at right now. We just want to make sure we phase him in the right way. He’s going to be in all the walkthrough stuff, jog-through stuff, but we want to make sure in individual (drills) that he just comes back the right way. He could probably go full speed right now, as you guys probably saw. He looks good. But we just want to make sure we phase him in properly.”

[21&500]

I think he said he didn’t want to get too jacked to affect him throwing the football. 245 probably is the sweet spot. We may see him trucking another LB this season

I was there live watching Herbert use his left hand to toss aside KCs awesome rookie LB Bolton and throw a TD.
You just don't see that type of Paul Bunyon sh*t

[21&500]

I think they both suck. We need to draft a development QB next year or sign another more capable vet....or both.

Agreed.
I prefer a vet.

[Bolt Dude]

I think they both suck. We need to draft a development QB next year or sign another more capable vet....or both.

I agree with that. I wouldn’t mind drafting a day 3 guy with similar traits (tall and mobile with a good arm). Grayson McCall is the guy I’ve got my eye on. But he might go earlier.

[Leslie Grossman]

A bit over 5lbs of muscle gained. Nice.
hope it doesn't affect his flexibility.

should come in handy on those 4th and half a yd QB sneaks

[Formula 21]

I'd guess that the average for backup QBs is a low bar. It's hard to find quality starters.
For 1 or 2 plays, Chase. If we have to play a few games sans Herbert, Stick.
Stick was a better than avg college athlete and is entering his 4th NFL year. Let's see what ya got Chargers!
Making that change is as much on the coaches as the QB. Don't ask him to be Herbert.

Doesn’t count for everything if you can run the ball. And Stick can probably run some RPO stuff too. Quality O Line play hides a lot of deficiencies.

[blueman]

Gonna be mighty surprised if Tillery makes the 53. Actually the only way he can is if there’s an injury to the five guys ahead of him.

[Formula 21]

I love that we have depth and competition at almost every position.
https://theathletic.com/3329915/2022...lil-mack-otas/

Tillery’s best position is Left Out. Hopefully the team can get a conditional 7th for him before he is cut. Maybe the team even told him to stay away so he doesn’t get hurt.

Either way, Tillery is gone. Let him take that butt hurt elsewhere.

[Xenos]

Tillery’s best position is Left Out. Hopefully the team can get a conditional 7th for him before he is cut. Maybe the team even told him to stay away so he doesn’t get hurt.

Either way, Tillery is gone. Let him take that butt hurt elsewhere.

Like I said, it’s not mandatory yet and we can’t presume the worst since he may have had a legitimate reason to not be there. He was bad as a player but never showed signs of anything else before this.