Tag: Chargers roster

Chargers 2024 offseason position preview: Running back

Evaluating the Chargers’ running back room entering the offseason.

After a brief offseason contract dispute with the team, Austin Ekeler remained with the team in 2023. His production, unfortunately, was not at the level of what he had produced in previous seasons. After a great performance against Miami in Week 1, Ekeler lost a step following an ankle injury that held him out until mid-October.

After returning against the Cowboys, Ekeler had just a hair over 500 yards on 163 carries for the rest of the season. He averaged 3.13 yards per rushing attempt in that span while simultaneously not having the same type of receiving production from previous seasons. In a contract year where Ekeler effectively bet on himself, it probably wasn’t what he wanted entering free agency.

The rest of the running back room didn’t carry their weight. Joshua Kelley had just 100 yards on 36 carries in the season’s last ten games. Isaiah Spiller had several healthy scratches and finished his second NFL season, averaging 2.6 yards per attempt.

Now, of course, the Chargers’ run scheme didn’t fail entirely because of the running backs themselves. The offensive line was pretty subpar at blocking, and Kellen Moore, unfortunately, couldn’t integrate his rushing attack like he did in Dallas. But Ekeler is approaching free agency as he will enter his age 29 season. And unlike when Melvin Gordon departed, the Chargers don’t have a solid answer or replacement on the roster.

In continuing our offseason position preview series, let’s turn to the running back room entering the offseason.

Chargers’ offseason needs: 6 positional groups L.A. must address

Here are six positional groups that the Los Angeles Chargers need to address to revamp their roster.

Under new head coach Jim Harbaugh, the Chargers are hard at work, identifying their strengths and weaknesses from this season as they head into the offseason in a little over a month.

That said, here are six positional groups that Los Angeles needs to address to revamp their roster.

Chargers’ most disappointing players in 2023

Here are a few Chargers players who disappointed the most in 2023.

The Chargers were supposed to make a name for themselves this season and cement their dominance in the AFC.

Instead, they had a nightmarish season, finishing with a 5-12 record. Here are the most disappointing players of 2023:

Austin Ekeler

Coming in at No. 1, Ekeler was by far the most disappointing player this season. 2023 was Ekeler’s opportunity to show the organization that he was worth a contract extension, especially since last offseason he requested a trade in March after he and the Chargers could not come to terms on a new contract. With the $2 million incentive Los Angeles gave him, there is no question whether he had the proper motivation to play at a high level this season. However, he had some of his most disenchanting performances this year. He ranked 38th in the league for rushing yards, totaling 628 on 179 carries (career-low 3.5 yards per carry), and he had just five rushing touchdowns. 

Derwin James 

James became the highest-paid safety in the league when the Chargers signed him to a four-year, $76 million extension in August 2022. In Brandon Staley’s scheme, James played five different positions. He had always played in dime packages when Staley was the team’s coach. But by the end of this season, he was playing limited snaps at safety. Against the Bills, James played slot defender for most of the game and was on the sideline at the end of the fourth quarter. He used to be fast. He used to be ferocious. But all of the playmaking that made him an All-Pro has since left, and it’s clear that he needs to revamp his caliber of play.  

Michael Davis 

The Chargers’ defense had some of its worst performances this season and one of the unit’s weakest points was the pass defense. A big contributor to their woes in the secondary was Davis, who gave up 55 completions on 84 targets. The defense allowed opposing teams to average over 260 passing yards per game. Like James, Davis was a ball magnet, but he only recorded one interception the entire season and had far too many lapses in coverage. 

Offensive Line

Along with several issues with the defense, the offense also had some performances that were disheartening for fans. The Chargers offensive line allowed 43 times this season. If a quarterback has no protection, he can’t do his job. There were several occasions where the offensive line added pressure on Herbert instead of giving him time to run deep plays.

Chargers sign 11 players to future contracts

The Chargers signed 11 players to reserve/future contracts. All spent all or part of the season on the practice squad.

With the 2023 season over, the Chargers have signed 11 players to future contracts, according to the NFL Transactions wire.

EDGE Brevin Allen

DT Jerrod Clark

RB Elijah Dotson

QB Max Duggan

WR Simi Fehoko

DB Matt Hankins

OL Brent Laing

DT Basil Okoye

DB Chris Wilcox

RB Jaret Patterson

DL Christopher Hinton

All 11 players spent time on either the team’s practice squad or active roster in 2023.

The players will be added to the 90-man active roster when the 2024 offseason officially begins.

Chargers’ Derius Davis named inaugural NFLPA first-team All-Pro

Derius Davis was recognized for his efforts in his rookie season.

The NFL Players Association (NFLPA) announced its second-ever Players’ All-Pro team on Wednesday, with those who made it selected strictly by NFL players themselves.

Players voted for those with the most impact during the season at their respective positions and those they lined up against.

Rookie Derius Davis was selected as a first-team Players’ All-Pro and deemed the best punt returner in the NFL.

Drafted in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL draft, Davis finished his sensational rookie season with 24 returned punts for 385 total yards, second-most in the NFL.

Davis’ punt return average of 16.0 ranked first in the league, and he was one of eight players to return a punt for a touchdown, which came in Week 9 against the Jets on Monday Night Football.

Chargers PFF grades: Best and worst performers from 2023 season

Here are the highest- and lowest-graded players, both on offense and defense. 

The Chargers concluded their 2023 season on Sunday, finishing with a 5-12 record.

Now that the season is in the rearview, we’re taking a look at the final Pro Football Focus grades for the Bolts (minimum 100 snaps).

Here are the highest- and lowest-graded players, both on offense and defense.

Top 5 offense

WR Keenan Allen — 86.3

QB Justin Herbert — 85.4

OT Rashawn Slater — 76.6

WR Mike Williams — 74.6

WR Joshua Palmer — 67.6

Bottom 5 offense

RB Joshua Kelley — 52.0

OL Brenden Jaimes — 49.8

WR Jalen Guyton — 49.6

TE Stone Smartt — 44.1

TE Nick Vannett — 42.9

Top 5 defense

EDGE Khalil Mack — 91.8

S Alohi Gilman — 86.1

EDGE Joey Bosa — 78.4

CB Asante Samuel Jr. — 73.9

LB Eric Kendricks — 72.3

Bottom 5 defense

LB Kenneth Murray — 52.9

DT Otito Ogbonnia — 50.4

EDGE Justin Hollins — 47.2

DT Austin Johnson — 45.7

DT Scott Matlock — 36.8

Chargers make roster moves ahead of Week 17 game vs. Broncos

The Chargers signed a wide receiver to the active roster.

The Chargers signed wide receiver Keelan Doss to the active roster ahead of the Week 17 matchup against the Broncos.

Additionally, they elevated defensive tackle Christopher Hinton and offensive lineman Austen Pleasants from the practice squad.

The signing of Doss comes after Keenan Allen and Joshua Palmer were ruled out. Doss joins a wide receiver room that consists of Quentin Johnston, Jalen Guyton, Alex Erickson and Derius Davis.

Doss has been promoted from the practice squad three times this season, logging 20 offensive snaps with zero targets.

Before joining the Bolts last season, Doss signed with the Raiders as an undrafted free agent in 2019. That year, he had 11 catches for 133 yards on 14 targets.

Doss was released in 2021 and then went on to join the practice squads of the Jaguars, Falcons, Jets and Giants across a four-year span.

Chargers’ Derrick Ansley on Derwin James being sidelined: ‘It was a coaching error’

There was a lot of confusion surrounding Derwin James’ lack of snaps against the Bills.

Much was made about Derwin James’ absence on a 3rd and 8 play in last Saturday’s loss to the Bills in which Stefon Diggs was able to ice the game.

Chargers defensive coordinator Derrick Ansley said it was an error rather than a benching.

We didn’t pull him. We went into the game playing different STARS in different packages, and the play call that came out did not have him in the game which, at that moment, I wish I would have called a better play and had him in the game.

On James specifically not being on the field on that play:

We went into the game wanting to move some people around, give us the best chance to matchup. In that situation, you’d love to have Derwin on the field. We should have had him on the field. That is totally on me, I mismanaged that. It was going fast, just mismanaged on my part. Nothing against Derwin. It had nothing to do with his ability. It was just a coaching error.

While it’s believable that the Chargers may have simply not called the rotations correctly at STAR in that moment, it’s hard to fully buy that play changing the macro of story of James’ night. Even if he had played that down, 42 snaps would’ve still been a career low for him, excluding injuries.

With James effectively being relegated to slot cornerback and box roles in the current defense, it’s still fair to wonder about his future. Is this the role James wants for himself long term? Is the former Florida State product’s current usage in the scheme something a new general manager or head coach will want to replicate?

James and Ansley will both try to finish out the season strong in the last two weeks against Denver and Kansas City.

20 Chargers players who will be pending free agents this offseason

The Chargers have 20 players set to hit the free agency market.

The Chargers will have some tough decisions in the next few months, with a handful of players slated to hit free agency.

It also doesn’t help that they will be strapped for cash, set to have the fourth-lowest salary cap totals among all 32 teams in the league.

Here are 20 Chargers players who will be pending free agents in 2024 (via Spotrac):

Chargers players heap praise on Giff Smith after first game as interim head coach

Players are rallying behind Giff Smith as they are set to finish the last two games of the season.

Amid the firings of Brandon Staley and Tom Telesco, Giff Smith relished the role of the Chargers’ interim head coach and kept the team focused during the nine days leading up to the game against the Bills on Saturday night.

Smith’s message was clear to the players.

Even while they were missing starting quarterback Justin Herbert and wide receiver Keenan Allen, Los Angeles went toe-to-toe with Buffalo. They held the lead at various points in the game, including a 10-0 start.

Los Angeles looked inspired in all three phases, especially on offense, led by running back Austin Ekeler, who rushed 15 times for 63 yards and caught three of four targets for 21 yards.

“It was great,” Ekeler said, per the team’s official website. “Giff’s done a great job keeping us together and making sure that he’s implemented his message which is the family aspect of bringing everyone together, play for each other … make sure you leave everything out there.

“When you do that, you’re going to be excited to go play again,” Ekeler added. “That’s what we saw there and looking forward to playing for him again next week.”

Making just his second NFL start, quarterback Easton Stick was sharp in some of the throws he made. Stick finished 23 of 33 passes for 215 yards. He also had 25 rushing yards and a one-yard touchdown.

“He was awesome all week,” Stick said of Smith. “He told us that was the plan going into it, let’s get this thing to the fourth quarter and find a way to win it. Obviously, came up a little bit short.

But, the way that he rallied the guys this week, and you saw how hard we played, that’s a credit to Giff and that’s a credit to the guys in the locker room. He did an unbelievable job this week.”

Despite being mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, one thing is clear. Players are rallying behind Smith as they are set to finish the last two games of the season under him.