Tag: D.J. Chark

First injury report for Chargers ahead of matchup vs. Cardinals

The Chargers had five non-participants on the first injury report.

The Chargers had their first practice before Monday’s matchup with the Cardinals on Thursday.

Los Angeles had five non-participants: EDGE Joey Bosa (hip), CB Kristian Fulton (hamstring), TE Hayden Hurst (groin), WR Quentin Johnston (ankle) and CB Deane Leonard (hamstring).

WR D.J. Chark (groin), TE Will Dissly (shoulder), WR Simi Fehoko (shoulder/groin), OL Zion Johnson (ankle), WR Ladd McConkey (hip), OT Trey Pipkins (shoulder) and CB Ja’Sir Taylor (fibula) were limited.

Projecting the Chargers’ wide receiver depth chart in 2024

Taking a crack at projecting what the Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver room will look like entering the 2024 season.

Over the next few weeks ahead of training camp, I will continue to break down the depth chart for each Chargers position.

Quarterback

Running back

Next, I project what the wide receiver room will look like heading into the 2024 season.

Josh Palmer

Palmer, the 2021 third-round pick, has 143 career catches for 1,703 yards and nine touchdowns. He stepped up when Keenan Allen and Mike Williams dealt with injuries in 2022, tallying 72 receptions for 769 yards and three scores across 16 games. Last season, he had a career-high 58.1 yards per game but was sidelined six games by a knee injury. Palmer routinely creates separation for himself and makes big grabs down the field, something that he will need to continue this season as the offense looks to balance the pass and what is supposed to be a dominant run game. This is the final year of Palmer’s rookie deal, so it’s vital that he stays healthy and produces enough to get an extension next offseason.

Ladd McConkey

McConkey was the Chargers’ second-round pick in this year’s draft. Despite being a rookie, I think he will quickly work his way to becoming Justin Herbert’s top target. McConkey is arguably the best separator in the group. Like Keenan Allen, who was Herbert’s safety blanket, he got the ball a lot because he consistently made himself open. The chemistry has already begun being built as the two constantly linked up during OTAs this summer.

Quentin Johnston

After being selected in the first round in last year’s draft, Johnston struggled in his rookie season. Johnston finished with 38 catches on 67 targets for 431 yards and two touchdowns. His issues stemmed from struggling to create separation and catching the football, something he dealt with during his college career at TCU. Despite an uninspiring Year 1 from Johnston, he and others, including general manager Joe Hortiz, believe he is due for a breakout season.

D.J. Chark

Chark was a post-draft signing. He was signed because he offers elite speed to serve as a vertical threat, allowing Herbert to use his bazooka-like arm to push the football down the field to him. The 27-year-old has appeared in 69 career games and has 212 receptions for 3,069 yards and 23 touchdowns. His best season came in 2019 with the Jaguars, when he surpassed the 1,000-yard mark and earned a trip to the Pro Bowl.

Derius Davis

Drafted in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL draft, Davis finished his sensational rookie season as a special teams ace 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. Davis will still have to fight for a roster spot, but I believe his services for special teams coordinator Ryan Ficken will keep him in Los Angeles.

Brenden Rice

Now this is where it gets interesting. A few players will be fighting for what I think will be the last spot at this position (because I don’t think they roster seven). In what will likely be a tight battle between seventh-round picks Rice and Cornelius Johnson, I give the nod to the former USC product. No, this does not have to do with the fact that he is the son of a retired Hall of Famer, but he is more complete receiver than Johnson. Rice is a big receiver with strong hands and has a good sense of route running to be a complementary piece along the boundary. Furthermore, he is a willing as a blocker in space. It’s tough keeping Johnson off this projection, but I think they will be able to stash him on the practice squad.

Justin Herbert on Chargers’ new-look wide receiver room: ‘That receiver group is special’

Justin Herbert specifically highlighted Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston.

As Chargers mandatory minicamp concluded Thursday, Justin Herbert took the podium and fielded questions for about 25 minutes.

One of the things Herbert touched on was the wide receivers. That’s a new-look room that no longer has Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, who were Herbert’s two primary targets for his first few seasons in the league.

“They are two of the best to ever do it. Two great teammates, friends, competitors. It’s tough to replace guys like that because there’s not many like them,” Herbert said.

Even though the seasoned veterans are gone, Herbert is confident in the wideouts currently on the roster.

“But I feel comfortable with the group we have here that have stepped up and done a great job picking up this offense and going out there and competing.

“I know we don’t have pads on or anything, but I love the way they attack the day of practice, weights, tape, film,” Herbert added. “That receiver group is special, and I’m looking forward to throwing them the ball.”

One of Herbert’s newest targets is Ladd McConkey, who he’s already building a rapport with.

“He’s just picked up the offense so easily, it’s like he’s been a four- or five-year vet,” Herbert said. “He understands the game, understands leverages, a smart player.

“And he’s very athletic. He’s one of those guys who is able to beat man coverage and finds the soft spot in zones,” Herbert added. “I’m really looking forward to getting him the ball.”

Quentin Johnston was also asked about. While he had a rough rookie season, Herbert sees Johnston working hard to improve his game and take a step in Year 2.

“He’s been incredible,” Herbert said. “He’s one of those guys that I’m going to get the ball to as much as possible.”

Is Josh Palmer the Chargers’ most underappreciated player entering 2024?

A spotlight was put on Chargers WR Josh Palmer heading into his fourth year.

In a new NFL.com article, media members selected one “underappreciated” player from each of the league’s 32 teams. For the Chargers, a spotlight was put on wide receiver Josh Palmer heading into his fourth year.

His section of the article reads like this:

After taking over a cap-strapped roster this January, Jim Harbaugh and Joe Hortiz decided to create financial flexibility by gutting the receiver room. In the absence of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, who will emerge as Justin Herbert’s downfield target? Last year’s first-round pick, Quentin Johnston, left a lot to be desired in Year 1. This year’s second-round pick, Ladd McConkey, looks like he’ll do most of his work from the slot. So, when the Bolts’ cannon-arm quarterback wants to cut it loose, who’ll test the defense on the perimeter? It seems like a lot of people are forgetting about Palmer, possibly due to his injury-riddled 2023 campaign. The fourth-year pro already has a nice rapport with Herbert — as we saw in a handful of 100-yard outings over the past two seasons — and he possesses the most well-rounded, polished game in this receiving corps.

Palmer enters the final year of his rookie contract after racking up around 1,700 yards and nine touchdowns in his first three seasons. Injuries have been a concern for Palmer, particularly in 2023, as he dealt with a nagging knee sprain for most of the year.

However, the former Tennessee product has not always had a stable situation in the wide receiver room around him. Keenan Allen and Mike Williams missed significant time in Palmer’s 2022 season, where he was forced into a more prominent role early. The same could be said for 2023 when Williams tore his ACL in week 3. What has always been consistent is his connection with Justin Herbert, as mentioned in the article. Palmer was almost certainly headed for a career-high in receiving yards last year without the injuries.

With the Chargers lacking true prototypical X-receiver talent, Palmer will probably be the player asked to step up the most in that role after the Williams and Allen departures.

Joe Hortiz on Quentin Johnston heading into Year 2: ‘I believe he’s really going to launch’

Joe Hortiz talked about Quentin Johnston ahead of his sophomore season.

Joe Hortiz was asked by Kay Adams on the Up & Adams show about passing on a wide receiver with the fifth pick given the state of the class. While he specifically mentioned their enthusiasm to take Joe Alt, Adams asked Hortiz where he stands on Quentin Johnston specifically after Year 1:

Quentin was a player we liked in Baltimore as well last year. When he was coming out of college, he was an elite size/speed athlete. And you saw some rawness to his game, but as big as he is, 6’3″, you watch him drop his weight, getting in and out of breaks, come to balance at the top of the route, get out quickly. He can do some rare things for a player his size. Jim was on the other sideline in one of his better games and so we’ve all seen it. We believe in it. He’s a great kid, he’s a great worker. Everyone here has a high opinion of him. I believe he’s really gonna launch. I really do. His skillset is great, we’re gonna work with him, make him better and better.

Jim Harbaugh also mentioned the Michigan-TCU College Football Playoff semifinal in one of his first conversations with Johnston when he took the job. For 2024, it appears that he has some of the institutional backing of the franchise brain trust as long as he works to improve.

It’s interesting to hear Hortiz describe Johnston as having a degree of “rawness” coming out. He was pegged as a receiver with a lower floor but a higher ceiling relative to the red of his class. That prototypical “size/speed” was always going to get him drafted in the first round. But whether he can develop further past his college self will determine whether that draft slot was worth it.

After adding Ladd McConkey, D.J. Chark, Brenden Rice, and Cornelius Johnson, the motto for the wide receiver room is, as Harbaugh says: “Competitors welcome.” That goes for Johnston as well.

D.J. Chark excited to play with Justin Herbert: ‘He’s a top-five QB in this league any given year’

New Chargers WR D.J. Chark spoke to the media for the first time on Monday.

When D.J. Chark signed with the Chargers, the first player who reached out to him was the one who will be distributing the football to him this season.

At his media availability on Monday, Chark said that Justin Herbert reached out to him via text message. Chark expressed his excitement about playing with Herbert.

“Big time,” Chark said. “He’s a top-five QB in this league any given year? Being here and seeing the way that he works and catching passes from him, the timing has been great.

“I’ve played with many QBs in my career, so being able to play with an elite guy is definitely something I’m excited to do,” Chark added. “I feel like he can help me in a lot of different ways.”

Chark was signed because he offers elite speed to serve as a vertical threat, allowing Herbert to use his bazooka-like arm to push the football down the field to him.

“Having a quarterback like Justin, that’s something he excels at,” Chark added. “It’s only going to bring me up a notch. Justin is the type of quarterback that elevates the guys around him, so why be a part of something like that?”

Chark is also familiar with wide receivers coach Sanjay Lal, as they were both in Jacksonville in 2021.

Chark is looking forward to getting to work with his new team, one that he felt good about from the first meeting, citing it as a “great match” for both parties.

Jersey number revealed for newly-signed Chargers WR D.J. Chark

D.J. Chark is rocking the number formerly worn by a linebacker.

To add a veteran presence to the wide receiver room, the Chargers signed D.J. Chark to a one-year deal.

On Tuesday, it was revealed that Chark will don No. 9, which was formerly worn by now Titans linebacker Kenneth Murray.

Chark wore No. 17 while he was with the Panthers and Jaguars and sported No. 4 during his time with the Lions.

Highlights of new Chargers WR D.J. Chark

To get excited about what D.J. Chark is going to bring to the table, check out these highlights.

The Chargers continued building the wide receiver room by agreeing to terms with D.J. Chark.

To get excited about what Chark is going to bring to the table, check out these highlights:

 

 

Twitter reacts to Chargers’ signing of WR D.J. Chark

Here’s how social media reacted to the newest addition of the Chargers.

The Chargers agreed to terms with wide receiver D.J. Chark on Thursday.

Here’s how social media reacted to the newest addition:

 

 

 

 

Report: Chargers agree to terms with WR D.J. Chark

The Chargers wide receiver room got deeper after the addition of D.J. Chark.

The Chargers agreed to terms with veteran wide receiver D.J. Chark on Thursday, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.

The deal is for a year worth up to $5 million, Rapoport added.

Chark joins a wide receiver room that consists of Joshua Palmer, Quentin Johnston, Derius Davis, Simi Fehoko and recent draftees Ladd McConkey, Brenden Rice and Cornelius Johnson.

Chark spent the 2023 season with the Panthers after signing a one-year deal last offseason. He caught 35 passes for 524 yards and five touchdowns in 15 games.

A former second-round pick by the Jaguars, Chark’s best season came in 2019. That year, he amassed 73 receptions for 1,008 yards and eight scores en route to earning a Pro Bowl berth.

Chark played with the Lions in 2022, totaling 30 catches for 502 yards with three touchdowns.

The Chargers’ goal at wide receiver is to get younger and faster, and Chark has plenty of juice, having run a 4.34 40.