Category: Latest Chargers news

Chargers signing RB JK Dobbins to one-year deal

Former Ravens running back JK Dobbins signed a one-year deal with the Chargers Wednesday, reuniting with offensive coordinator Greg Roman.

Los Angeles now has a monopoly on NFL players named JK.

Already with punter JK Scott on the roster, the Chargers reportedly signed running back JK Dobbins on Wednesday, adding another piece to a running back room that has been nearly completely made over this offseason. Dobbins will reportedly sign a one-year deal, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

He joins fellow former Raven Gus Edwards, reuniting with his Baltimore teammate under new Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman, who was the offensive coordinator for the Ravens during his rookie season in 2020.

Dobbins has been an explosive player when healthy, averaging 5.8 yards a carry in his career, highlighted by an 800 yard season as a rookie under Roman. But injuries have severely limited him since then: he tore his ACL and LCL and damaged his meniscus in 2021, knocking him out of the entire season, and tore his Achilles in Week 1 this season. In total, he’s played in just nine games in the last three seasons.

Because of this, despite the timing of the signing, it’s much more likely that Dobbins is coming in to compete for a roster spot than the starting job. It likely won’t prevent the Chargers from adding a running back in next week’s draft, whether that’s Michigan’s Blake Corum, USC’s MarShawn Lloyd, or another player in the middle or later rounds.

But, with both JKs now in powder blue, maybe actor JK Simmons will become a Chargers fan.

2024 NFL draft: Chargers hosted CB Nate Wiggins on visit

Nate Wiggins is one of the better cornerbacks in this year’s class.

The Chargers hosted Clemson cornerback Nate Wiggins on a pre-draft visit, per his Instagram story.

Wiggins was a productive college player. He registered 14 pass deflections in 2022 and eight breakups with two interceptions in 2023. He returned an interception for a touchdown in each of his final two seasons.

Wiggins is a tall and long corner who possesses great athletic traits, having the speed and quickness to run with anyone, as well as great instincts. Additionally, he is versatile to play in different schemes.

The Chargers will be looking for more playmakers in the secondary for defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, and Wiggins fits what he covets at the position.

Wiggins projects as a late Round 1 selection, making him a target if the Bolts trade down and add more picks.

2024 NFL draft: Chargers hosted LB Junior Colson on top 30 visit

Junior Colson reunited with some of his former coaches from Michigan.

According to The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, Michigan linebacker Junior Colson is meeting with “friendly faces” in Los Angeles for a top-30 visit with the Chargers.

Presumably, Colson would be reunited with former Michigan coaches Jim Harbaugh and Jesse Minter at the Chargers’ Costa Mesa facility. It would mark the team’s second official top-30 visit for a Wolverine player in this cycle. Blake Corum had a meeting with the Bolts about two weeks ago.

Colson is arguably the headliner of this linebacker class, along with names like Payton Wilson and Edgerrin Cooper. The Chargers also met with Cooper on April 4th. It looks like LA is at least doing its research on a linebacker class that is viewed as top-heavy by many.

The former Michigan national championship linebacker is considered to be one of the best in coverage in the class. Colson registered an 83.4 PFF grade in coverage in 2023 and run defense grades of 80+ in each of the last two seasons.

The Chargers need more true starting-caliber linebackers even after the signing of Denzel Perryman. Colson, and presumably Daiyan Henley, would go a long way in nullifying some of Perryman’s known coverage deficiencies at his age.

Given Colson’s relationship with Minter, one has to wonder if he’s a potential dark horse candidate to take up green-dot play-calling responsibilities if drafted by the team.

When first hired, Minter stressed the importance of not overwhelming star safety Derwin James with responsibilities. While James could theoretically take over the green dot role post-Brandon Staley, it would be interesting to see if the new Chargers’ defensive coordinator looks towards another name on the defensive side of the ball instead. Colson would undoubtedly be a contender for that responsibility if drafted by LA.

Chargers make multiple trades in Mel Kiper’s latest two-round mock draft

The Chargers stock up on picks in Mel Kiper’s latest mock draft.

The Chargers are a prime candidate to trade down in the first round of this year’s draft, which is what ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. sees them doing in his latest two-round projections.

Los Angeles moves back six spots with the Vikings, who come up to select quarterback J.J. McCarthy. The Bolts add pick No. 23 and a 2025 first-rounder.

With pick No. 11, the Chargers select offensive tackle J.C. Latham.

The Chargers want to run the ball more efficiently, which Latham could aid.

Hulking at 6-foot-6 and 360 pounds, Latham is a force in pass protection and the run game with a great combination of size, strength, physicality and agility, projecting as a starter from Day 1.

Latham would likely replace Trey Pipkins at right tackle, but he possesses the versatility to play guard.

Later in the first round, Los Angeles takes Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy.

The Chargers need to get younger and faster at the positional, and Worthy, who ran the fastest 40 time (4.21) in combine history, would bring that.

Los Angeles trading down doesn’t end there, as the Rams move up 15 spots to take QB Michael Penix Jr. The Bolts acquire Nos. 52, 83 and 196.

With their second-round pick, the Chargers draft defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro.

Orhorhoro is a versatile player capable of playing different spots along the defensive line, and he plays with great size, strength and athleticism.

Report: Chargers hosted DL Savion Jackson on pre-draft visit

Savion Jackson was stout against the run at North Carolina State.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Chargers hosted North Carolina State defensive lineman Savion Jackson on a pre-draft visit last week.

Jackson had both his 2021 and 2022 seasons cut short due to injury, but he managed to stay healthy for most of this past season, logging personal bests in tackles (40), tackles for loss (5.5) and sacks (2.5).

A former big-time recruit, Jackson is a strong run defender, finishing with an 80.6 overall grade in that department.

The Chargers signed Poona Ford in free agency, but they still need to find players to fill out the depth chart.

Jackson projects as a Day 3 selection/priority free agent.

2024 NFL draft: Dallas Turner set to visit with Chargers

The Chargers have one of the top edge defenders in this year’s draft class on their radar.

The Chargers have one of the top edge defenders in this year’s draft class on their radar, as they are set to host Alabama’s Dallas Turner on a visit, according to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero.

Turner had a successful career with the Crimson Tide, recording 117 tackles, 21.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles in three seasons.

It’s rare for a player to possess the combination of explosiveness, bend, pursuit speed, and length that Turner has.

Los Angeles doesn’t have a glaring need at the position after keeping Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa, but in a pass-happy league, you can never have too many pass rushers.

Turner, who projects as a top-15 selection, could be a potential option in a trade-down scenario.

Former Pro Bowl safety has lofty expectations for Jim Harbaugh in Year 1 with Chargers

Jim Harbaugh has proven to be a winner everywhere he has coached, and one of his former players sees it being no different with the Chargers.

Jim Harbaugh has proven to be a winner everywhere he has coached. Now, as the Chargers’ head coach, one of Harbaugh’s former players believes it will be no different.

Former Pro Bowl safety Donte Whitner, who played under Harbaugh when he was the 49ers’ head coach, heaped high praise on him, foreseeing a lot of success for Los Angeles with Harbaugh as the leader.

“I believe that Jim Harbaugh and the LA Chargers are going to be in the AFC Championship Game this year,” Whitner said on a recent episode of Kay Adams’ show Up & Adams.

Whitner backed up his claim by mentioning Justin Herbert and calling Harbaugh the “quarterback Whisperer,” highlighting the success he had with former Niner Colin Kaepernick and Michigan’s JJ McCarthy.

“Any of the quarterbacks that were under the tutelage of Jim Harbaugh, he figures out what your strengths are, and he tailors his offense around that in the running game,” Whitner added.

Whitner then brought up the defensive side of the ball and how physical and fundamentally sound Harbaugh requires his players to play.

“And then his defense they have you know [Joey] Bosa on one side and then um of the guy Mack, Khalil Mack on the other side along with the secondary and how fundamental and physical he demands his teams to be.”

Harbaugh will have a lot of top-end talent to work with, but the depth of the roster still leaves a lot to be desired. If they can nail the draft, then we could start forecasting a successful 2024 season for the Bolts.

Andy Bischoff speaks on the state of the Chargers’ tight end room

Chargers tight ends coach Andy Bischoff had his first media availability on Monday.

Chargers tight ends coach Andy Bischoff had his first media availability on Monday, during which he spoke on the team’s tight ends and their current status.

First, he mentioned the signings of Will Dissly and Hayden Hurst.

When you start with [TE] Will [Dissly], you’re talking about one of the three guys in the league that can own the C-gap, period. There’s not many of them. This is a different kind of football league that we live in now. To have a tight end that can own the C-gap is rare. He’s one of those guys. You start with him and his ability to get that done for you and then, let’s not lose sight on what he can provide you in the passing game. This is a guy who catches the ball at a high percentage, in terms of his target-to-catch ratio, a guy that doesn’t drop the football and who protects the football, doesn’t fumble it.

Then, you have a guy in [TE] Hayden [Hurst] — to me, you have six guys in the league who everybody wants. You name the six, you go with [49ers TE George] Kittle, you say [Giants TE Darren] Waller. Name whoever you want. Everybody wants those six guys. There’s no reason that Hayden can’t be that next guy. There’s no reason. He has all the speed, all the hands, all the ability. Hayden just needs to find the right situation. We knew when we had him in 2019 that was the right situation for us. We couldn’t control where it went from there, but we love the guy. We’re nothing but happy to have this guy here. He will provide that athletic element to this offense that gives us an opportunity.

The Chargers made Dissly’s signing a priority on day one when the tampering period opened. Hurst followed very soon after that. Both will be critical blockers in Greg Roman’s scheme and LA expects Hurst to match his receiving output from earlier in his career. On the 2020 Falcons, Hurst had career highs in yards and touchdowns with 571 and six respectively.

Combining Bischoff’s comments with Hurst’s mention of the opportunity last week, it does seem that both sides think this is the right opportunity for a bounce-back season.

Bischoff also mentioned Donald Parham, Stone Smartt, and newly signed Ben Mason competing for spots. He mentioned Parham as still a “developing” player whose size they can use to their advantage. For Mason, it seems they view his usage in a tight end/fullback hybrid-type way adjacent to previous players’ usage in the past.

The way we’ve always done it in this system is that Ben is an ‘F’. In our offense, some will call him a fullback only. We don’t want to limit that. When we started with [Ravens FB Patrick] Pat [Ricard], he was an ‘F’. He turned into what he turned into. He actually started as a d-lineman and he turned into what he turned into. I was also fortunate enough to coach [49ers FB] Kyle Juszczyk, and he turned into what he turned into. You have this balance of guys. We’ll bring out the greatest strengths that Ben has to offer. We’ll also give other guys in the room the ability to compete for those spots. Not just limit to this is a fullback. They’re an ‘F’ in our room. They’ll function in every way they can to help us.

Breaking down picks for Chargers in The Draft Network’s 4-round mock draft

The Chargers kick off the draft by selecting Rome Odunze.

As the 2024 NFL draft inches closer, The Draft Network’s Damian Parson released his latest four-round projections.

To kick things off, the Chargers stand pat at No. 5 overall after the Cardinals select wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and take WR Rome Odunze.

At 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds, Odunze is a talented receiver with great size, good route running and savvy, strong hands and contested catch ability.

Odunze set a school record this past season with 1,640 receiving yards, the most in the NCAA. His 92 receptions were just two shy of a single-season program record, and he was named a first-team all-American.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh has already had a good look at Odunze when Washington faced Michigan in the National Championship game. Odunze finished with five catches for 87 yards.

In Round 2, Los Angeles beefs up the offensive line with the selection of Oklahoma offensive tackle Tyler Guyton.

Guyton is a raw player at the position, having only started playing tackle in college after being a defensive end. However, he is a great athlete with the physical ability to mold into a good NFL starter.

Guyton could sit behind Trey Pipkins and continue to develop his game before taking over at right tackle.

In Round 3, the Bolts get a familiar face for Harbaugh by picking running back Blake Corum.

After signing Gus Edwards, Los Angeles is still building their backfield, and they see Corum as a complement.

Corum was productive for the Wolverines this past season, rushing for 1,245 yards and a program-record 27 touchdowns en route to the school’s national title. He finished his collegiate career with a whopping 58 rushing scores.

Corum isn’t the youngest player—he will be 24 this upcoming season—but he has already put in plenty of mileage. He has the patience, vision, and quickness to be an effective back in the NFL.

With their first selection in Round 4, L.A. addresses the secondary with cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett. Pritchett is well-built for the position, with the speed and foot quickness to stay in phase with receivers and the versatility to play inside/outside and in different coverages.

Five picks later, Harbaugh takes another Michigan player in wide receiver Cornelius Johnson. Johnson is a big-bodied deep threat with raw athleticism and good playmaking ability to make contested catches. He is also physical in the run-blocking department.

Marcus Brady on Chargers’ wide receivers: ‘We know we have to fill the room’

The Chargers are thin at the wide receiver position.

Chargers pass game coordinator Marcus Brady gave his assessment of the wide receiver room on Monday when asked about it in his media availability:

Right now, we have a small group, as it is [laughter]. They know that, we know that. It’s still early right now. Obviously, we have the Draft coming up. We’ll see where that goes. Then, talking to [General Manager] Joe [Hortiz] and Jim [Harbaugh], obviously, we know that we have to fill the room. We’ll get to that point when the time’s right.

As Brady mentions, the draft is rapidly approaching for the team and there should be an expectation that multiple wide receivers will be added between now and OTAs. If not numerous wideouts in the draft, specifically, the Chargers have also been linked to free agents like Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Tyler Boyd.

On the departures of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, Brady said they’re trying to ultimately replace the production of two players that have had “elite success” in the league.

Brady also said that the No. 1 thing they’re looking for in wide receivers is the ability to get open.

The number one thing is being able to get open, create space and give a throw for the quarterback. Guys that are great off of the line of scrimmage on their releases, if they’re getting pressed, guys that are great at top of the route, and then guys that can make those tough catches. It’s a combination of all three of those. Then, kind of go from there.

Sitting a little over two weeks from the draft, we’ll see how the Chargers evaluate some of the current class based on ability. Brady also mentioned that he “loves” working hand in hand with wide receivers coach Sanjay Lal right now in getting guys to learn the terminology early on. Surely, both coaches’ player evaluation and development skill sets could become important soon.