2024 UDFA Initial Signings And Discussion

[Bolt4Knob]

Pffft bullshit. A couple hits in a decade, highly overrated.

Agreed. Telesco was a terrible GM

[northerner]

The WRs were stacked in this draft. CJ provides a different type of WR that we currently don't have. Plus our WR room needed some serious depth. Harbaugh may have chipped in or they are just staying true to their draft board, Either way I think it was a good pick because we needed a jump ball type WR.

He does look like a good pick, my point is that Harbaugh might have had even more insight in some way to make the move and pick him.

[northerner]

In other to know whether the Chargers 'reached' on C.J., we'd have to know who else was in their cluster at the time the pick was made.

IMO, even if he doesn't develop into an NFL caliber receiver, Johnson should be a valuable special teamer in the meantime. He played for a successful (to say the least!) program against a high caliber of competition, and has size, speed, and is an outstanding athlete. I think this is exactly the kind of guy you take a 7th round flyer on.

i am not saying it was a reach - my point is that of all the people we could have drafted at the end of the 7th round - Harbaugh might have known there was something special about this guy. the topic i was replying to was a discussion on why we didn't have more Michigan UDFA's.

[21&500]

[Fleet 1]

Zach Heins looks a little like Dallas Goddert to me. Coincidentally both from the same school.

[Xenos]

[beachcomber]

Karsen Barnhart (Michigan)

Trying to keep his feet moving. Rounds the corner bad. Loose turning the corner. Not good that way. Moving the feet but not going anywhere and slow short area. Solid mirror. Better lateral when hips not involved.

[Xenos]

Popper’s breakdown. Feels like Barnhart has the best chance so far because of his versatility and Harbaugh connection.

https://theathletic.com/5465389/2024/05/02/chargers-2024-undrafted-free-agents/

The Los Angeles Chargers signed 20 undrafted free agents earlier this week. It will be an interesting class to monitor through the spring and summer.

General manager Joe Hortiz and coach Jim Harbaugh have turned over the roster pretty dramatically in their first offseason together. They moved on from eight starters, signed 10 external free agents and added nine players in the draft before finalizing their UDFAs.

Of the 87 players on the Chargers’ roster, only 48 were with the team in 2023.

This period of transition could create opportunities. These 20 undrafted free agents were hand-picked by Hortiz and Harbaugh. The same cannot be said about some of the returning players.

Let’s break it down player by player:

Karsen Barnhart, G, Michigan
The Chargers came away from draft weekend with three former Michigan players: linebacker Junior Colson (third-round pick); receiver Cornelius Johnson(seventh-round pick) and Barnhart. Harbaugh spent the past nine seasons coaching the Wolverines, who won the national championship in 2023. Barnhart was a key piece in that title run. He started 15 games on the offensive line for Michigan last season. That included eight starts at right tackle, four starts at left tackle and three starts at right guard. Barnhart kicked inside to right guard after Zak Zinter went down with a broken leg against Ohio State in November. Barnhart started the final three games at that position — the Big Ten title game, and both College Football Playoff games.

Our draft expert Dane Brugler described Barnhart as the “Swiss Army knife” of Harbaugh’s offensive line in 2023. Barnhart also started two games at left guard in 2021, meaning he has game experience at four of the five offensive line positions. “Barnhart doesn’t have any dominant traits that will help him stand out on an NFL field,” Brugler writes, “but he has a functional skill set and prefers to play a physical brand of football.”

Right guard is shaping up as one of the fiercest position battles of training camp. Jamaree Salyer, Trey Pipkins III and Jordan McFadden should all get looks there. Barnhart could also be in the mix.


Akeem Dent, S, Florida State
Dent started 40 games over four seasons at Florida State, seeing time at cornerback, safety and nickel. He is just under 6-foot and 203 pounds. He ran a 4.44 40-yard dash at his pro day. Brugler described Dent as an “explosive athlete” who could fit into a roster initially as a special teams coverage player. He could also provide competition at multiple positions, namely safety and nickel. “Dent must improve his eye discipline, but he plays with speed, versatility and physicality,” writes Brugler.

Thomas Harper, S, Notre Dame
Harper did not play at Michigan, but he still has familiarity with the Chargers’ coaching staff. Safeties coach Chris O’Leary spent the past six seasons coaching at Notre Dame. Harper transferred from Oklahoma State to Notre Dame for the 2023 season. Brugler called Harper a “versatile chess piece.” His best fit might be at nickel, where he would compete with Ja’Sir Taylor, a 2022 sixth-round pick, and Tarheeb Still, a 2024 fifth-round pick.


Zach Heins, TE, South Dakota State
Heins is over 6-foot-6 and 259 pounds. He could have a chance to make the 53-man because of his inline blocking traits. The Chargers signed Will Dissly in free agency to be their primary blocking tight end. Hayden Hurst, another free-agent acquisition, has been a better receiver than blocker in his career. Donald Parham Jr. and Stone Smartt, two returning tight ends, will also provide more as receivers than blockers. So there is an opening on the roster for a hand-in-the-dirt tight end, especially with the Chargers’ emphasis on the run game.

The Chargers also signed Ben Mason in free agency. He has blocking upside and tight end-fullback flexibility. Mason played for Harbaugh at Michigan and had two stints with the Baltimore Ravens when Hortiz was in their personnel department.

“Heins has capped potential as a pass catcher,” Brugler writes, “but he offers size and competitiveness to fit as a rotational Y for a team that runs heavy 12 and 13 personnel packages.”


Casey Bauman, QB, Augustana
Bauman transferred to D-II Augustana from Montana State. Over 21 games at Augustana, Bauman completed 61 percent of his passes and threw for 4,160 yards, 29 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He has good size at 6-6, 227 pounds. Likely just a camp body. All three of the other Chargers’ quarterbacks — Justin Herbert, Easton Stick and Max Duggan — were with the team in 2023. Harbaugh kept either two or three quarterbacks during his last stint in the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to ’14. The Ravens kept anywhere from two to four quarterbacks over the past five seasons.

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Luke Benson, TE, Georgia Tech
Benson (6-3, 241 pounds, 75.5-inch wingspan) is undersized and had limited production in college. He only caught 37 passes over five seasons at Syracuse and Georgia Tech. But he tested really well, posting well above average marks in the 40 (4.52), broad jump (10 feet, 4’ inches) and vertical (35 inches).


Jaelen Gill, WR, Fresno State
Gill began his college career at Ohio State in 2018. He transferred to Boston College in 2020 before transferring again to Fresno State in 2023. He is 5-11, 189 pounds and ran a 4.51 40-yard dash. He was Fresno State’s primary kick returner. He also caught 49 balls for 516 yards and six touchdowns.
Jaelin Gill was Fresno State’s primary kick returner last season while also delivering solid receiving numbers. (Cary Edmondson / USA Today)


Savion Jackson, edge, North Carolina State
Jackson has a below-average height, weight, length and speed for the position. But he was a relatively productive player in the ACC. Jackson had 40 tackles, including 5 1/2 for losses, in his senior season.


Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste, LB, Ole Miss
Including Jean-Baptiste, the Chargers have six rostered off-ball linebackers. They had agreed to terms with a seventh linebacker after the draft, Luquay Washington out of Central Connecticut State. But Washington backed out of that verbal agreement to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs instead.

The first five on the Chargers’ linebacker depth chart seem set: Denzel Perryman, Colson, Daiyan Henley, Troy Dye, Nick Niemann. The team could use some extra bodies at this spot to get through the preseason games. Jean-Baptiste started his college career at UCF before transferring to Ole Miss for his final season. He had 54 tackles for the Rebels. With 4.67 speed, he could be a fit on special teams coverage, though Dye, Niemann and Henley are more experienced in that phase.


Leon Johnson III, WR, Oklahoma State
Johnson provides an attractive size, weight, speed combo. He is over 6-4, 210 pounds and has a wingspan stretching to almost 6-8. Johnson also posted a 35-inch vert. He started his career at D-III George Fox before transferring to Oklahoma State. Johnson was supposed to redshirt in 2023. But he nixed that plan midway through the season because of injuries to the Cowboys’ receiver group. He finished with 33 catches for 539 yards in 10 games.


Jaylen Johnson, WR, East Carolina
Johnson walked onto Georgia in 2018. He spent four years there, including a redshirt season, before transferring to East Carolina. Over two seasons with East Carolina, Johnson caught 71 passes for 806 yards. He scored six total touchdowns. He is 6-foot, 200 pounds and ran a 4.53 40.


Robert Kennedy, CB, North Carolina State
Kennedy was a pure nickel at North Carolina State. At 5-9 with limited long speed, that is also where he projects with the Chargers. Kennedy started his college career in junior college before stops at East Carolina and Old Dominion. He had two interceptions, including a pick-six, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery in 2023. His nickname: Poogie.

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Micheal Mason, DL, Coastal Carolina
Mason is undersized for the interior at 6-2, 276 pounds. But he had a very productive season at Coastal after transferring from Wofford, leading the defensive line with seven sacks. Mason is the second Coastal Carolina alum in the Chargers’ defensive line room. Nose tackle Jerrod Clark, a 2023 undrafted free agent, spent last season on the Chargers’ practice squad and remains on the roster.


Tre’Mon Morris-Brash, edge, Central Florida
Morris-Brash had 57 1/2 tackles for loss, including 25 sacks, over five seasons at UCF. It’s worth betting on that production on the UDFA market.
UCF edge rusher Tre’Mon Morris-Brash has a productive college career. (Mike Watters / USA Today)


Tyler McLellan, OT, Campbell
Harbaugh likes big linemen. McLellan is over 6-7 and 321 pounds. He lacks desired length for tackle, however, with 32.25-inch arms. He is also quite tall to be playing guard. It will be interesting to see where McLellan fits. How about this for a college mascot: The Campbell Fighting Camels.


Willis Patrick, G, TCU
Patrick started 12 games at right guard for the Horned Frogs in 2023. He played three seasons at Angelo State and one year at Jackson State before transferring to TCU. He has good size at 6-3, 319 pounds with a 79.5-inch wingspan.


Jalyn Phillips, S, Clemson
Phillips has an NFL frame at over 6-foot, 204 pounds with a 77-inch wingspan. He lacks some speed and ran a 4.62 40. He played 60 games, including 29 starts, at Clemson and has experience on special teams coverage.


Tyler Smith, OT, Western Carolina
Smith is over 6-6 and 310 pounds with 33.25-inch arms. From 2019 to ’23, he started 54 consecutive games.


Zamari Walton, CB, Ole Miss
Walton played five seasons at Georgia Tech before transferring to Ole Miss for 2023. He’s a good size-speed prospect at over 6-1 with a 4.51 40 time. Walton had seven pass breakups in his lone season with Ole Miss.


Bucky Williams, IOL, Appalachian State
Williams started 34 games over three seasons at Austin Peay before transferring to App State. He played both guard spots and some tackle over his five college seasons. The Chargers listed Williams as a center/guard flex.

[Duck of Death]

Barnhart is better than Jaimes already, that much I can see just from those videos, my only gripe is his weight, he barely weighs over 300 pounds...

There’s some really good Mexican food in LA - almost as good as San Diego

[21&500]

Great story.
Lot's of talk about how Zach Heins is a limited pass catcher.
Well so long as he can hold on to Herbert's fastballs, he'll be just fine.
I just wish I could find blocking videos of him.
Funny how weve been looking for a blocking TE for so long and now have Dissly, the FB and possibly Heins too.

[Whydachargers?]

Great story.
Lot's of talk about how Zach Heins is a limited pass catcher.
Well so long as he can hold on to Herbert's fastballs, he'll be just fine.
I just wish I could find blocking videos of him.
Funny how weve been looking for a blocking TE for so long and now have Dissly, the FB and possibly Heins too.

AND Hayden Hurst.

[AK47]

Tried to google Willis Patrick highlights but keep getting Patrick Willis ones.

Then found this. Damn this kid thinks power driving defenders in the grass is mandatory

https://www.hudl.com/video/3/11314338/61b55076bd755f0b9076f739