Every season, there are players who break out onto the scene who may not have been dominant the season before, whether they were a backup, dealt with an injury or just improved as a player in the offseason.
There are a few candidates to break out in 2020 for the Chargers, and I take a look at them in no particular order.
RB Justin Jackson
Jackson, the seventh-round selection of 2018, has flashed each and every time that he is on the field. In 20 games played, Jackson averaged 5.1 yards per carry on 79 touches. In his rookie season, he was buried on the depth chart and didn’t get many opportunities because Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler carried the load. In the following season when he had the opportunity to break out, Jackson was held back by an injury, limiting him to just seven games. Entering his third campaign, the team is still “very high” on Jackson despite the durability concerns. After drafting RB Joshua Kelley in the fourth-round of this year’s draft, it’s evident that the backfield will likely be a committee. But with the team expected to run the ball more now that a mobile quarterback will be under center, Jackson will will have the chance to return back to his old ways, if he can stay healthy.
DT Jerry Tillery
Tillery had expectations like any other first rounder would. He did not live up to those, failing to make his presence known in his rookie season. He was drafted to give the interior part of the defensive line a boost in the pass rushing department. Even though he never put it all together, he still managed to do positive things that might have gone unnoticed since he didn’t fill up the stat sheet. Tillery didn’t have a full offseason heading into in Year 1 since he spent the majority of it rehabbing his torn labrum. Now healthy, Tillery has that to has full advantage to get bigger and stronger. I could see him taking a big leap in his second season, similar to how Justin Jones did a couple of years back. If he puts the pieces together, showing he can play with better leverage and out-power interior blockers, him, Jones and newly acquired Linval Joseph will present a solid interior defensive line trio.
FS Nasir Adderley
Like Tillery, Adderley had high expectations heading into the summer, but he was derailed by a lingering hamstring issue that had been ongoing even before he was drafted. Adderley’s injury forced him to miss mandatory minicamp and most of training camp. He made his NFL debut in the preseason finale, where he recorded an interception, giving fans a glimpse of the talented safety. Unfortunately, his hamstring continued to be an issue, which forced the team to place him on the injured reserve. While Adderley was out of the action, Rayshawn Jenkins started at free safety all 16 games, playing the most snaps by any player. Since Jenkins earned the trust of the coaching staff, it may seem like an uphill climb for Adderley earn snaps, but a systematical change might make it easier than originally expected. The Chargers are expected to show more two-deep looks and man coverage and less Cover 3. This will mean that both Adderley and Jenkins would be on the field. If Adderley can stay healthy, he could be a difference-maker on the backend of the defense.