The Chargers have seen a handful of great players walk through the doors throughout the years. While there have been steady contributors, there have been some that showed a glimpse of dominance and quickly fell off after that.
Pro Football Focus’ Ben Linsey compiled a “one-year wonder” team with players who flashed one season of good-to-elite play since 2006 but were unable to replicate that performance over the remainder of their careers.
Among the crop were two former members of the Chargers. The first was cornerback Jason Verrett, who had a lights out season in 2015. But was unable to show that same level of production after that.
Injury after injury has derailed what looked to be a promising career for Verrett in San Diego as a first-round pick out of TCU. He showed flashes on just over 200 snaps as a rookie before a shoulder injury cut his season short. The 2015 season is the only “full” season of NFL action we have on tape for Verrett. That year, he posted a 90.9 coverage grade (tied highest among qualifying cornerbacks). Unfortunately, the 720 snaps he played that season are more than the other five seasons of his NFL career combined. At this point, it’s fair to question if he’ll ever see the field in a significant capacity again.
The start of Verrett’s career was all sunshine and rainbows. He broke out in his second season with 12 passes defensed and three interceptions. He was named to the 2015 Pro Bowl for his efforts.
Since that, lower-body injuries stopped him from seeing the field for more than four games in a season. Verrett’s tenure with the team came to an end in March of 2019.
The second player listed was center Scott Mruczkowski, who had a stellar season in 2009.
Mruczkowski may be the best example of a true one-year wonder on this team. Drafted in 2005, Mruczkowski started more than one game in only one season — the 2009 campaign, when he started 13 games for the Chargers. His 81.9 overall grade that year ranked 10th among 33 qualifying centers, and he allowed just one quarterback hit and one sack on 463 pass-blocking snaps. Despite that showing, 2009 remained the only season in Mruczkowski’s career where he played more than 150 snaps.
Mruczkwoski started a total of 16 games for the Chargers in seven years, 13 of which came in 2009. He was primarily a depth player throughout his stint with the team, but he filled in for injured Chargers legend Nick Hardwick that year, where he showed promise in the starting role.