With preseason not set to start until Aug. 13th, Sunday’s intrasquad scrimmage was the best chance for Chargers fans to see how the team is coming together. And according to head coach Brandon Staley, it went about as well as possible.
“I felt like it was a clean operation. I think everybody around the Chargers did a really good job making this clean for our fans. I love the transitions and the flow of the scrimmage. We came out of it really healthy, and we came out of it a better football team, for sure.”
The key word there is healthy. Despite missing ten players for the scrimmage, none appear to be out for extended periods. Among those, we know Derwin James is healthy but waiting for a contract extension. Kyle Van Noy and Drue Tranquill have been participating in individual work off to the side and seem ready to return soon. Donald Parham is out for about a week with a hamstring injury. Kenneth Murray remains on the PUP list but should return at some point in camp.
For a Chargers squad that seems to always be snakebitten by injuries at the worst possible times, it’s refreshing to hear that the team is coming out of the scrimmage with no major injuries. Staley alluded to as much when asked about pass rushers Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack, saying that “with both guys, you’re trying to build for a long season…We’re really trying to be purposeful in how we build both of those guys up this training camp.”
Purposefulness has been a theme under Staley, with extra emphasis on preventing as many injuries as possible. The team stretching routine has expanded, and veterans get more days off from practice to heal up. LA has followed the rest of the league in sitting their key players for the preseason, with Staley saying that if “we don’t need to evaluate you, then you’re probably not going to play in the preseason.”
Keeping the operation clean all season will be a tough task. Injuries do happen, no matter how much stretching you do or the rest you give veterans. Overcoming those obstacles is what separates a talented team from a good one. On Sunday, with a glimpse of what a fully loaded Chargers roster will look like, we saw that the team is plenty talented. How they handle the inevitable muddying of their operation as the season churns on will show us whether they’re built to last.