Tag: Keenan Allen

John Hightower could become the Eagles’ most dynamic playmaker from the slot

John Hightower could become the Eagles version of Keenan Allen

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The Philadelphia Eagles passed on LSU star wide receiver Justin Jefferson in the NFL Draft, choosing to use their first-round pick on TCU star Jalen Reagor. Reagor is more an outside receiver than a slot guy, so some in the media proposed the idea that Howie Roseman made a mistake with the pick.

The Eagles still have Greg Ward in the slot, but a talented late-round rookie could emerge to become Philadelphia’s version of Keenan Island, just more explosive.

Hightower is a stud and truly could be the steal of the NFL Draft but the Eagles and most notably passing game coordinator Press Taylor will need to find the perfect role to utilize his attributes.

Hightower is fast, posting an unofficial time of 4.44 at the combine, but could his true calling with the Eagles come in the slot as Carson Wentz’s ultimate weapon. The Eagles can trot out DeSean Jackson, Alshon Jeffery, Reagor, Quez Watkins, and JJ Arcega-Whiteside on the outside, but the athletic and crafty Hightower could transition to into hybrid version of Keenan Allen with a mashup of Chris Godwin in between.

Hightower has the height, weight, and speed to flourish in space and could become a star once he finds his way as a route runner and learns the NFL game. The learning portion could take some time, but utilizing Hightower out of the slot could allow him to become the ultimate weapon for the Eagles who’ll have a bevy of options to choose from.

During his senior season, Hightower had 51 receptions for 943 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns to go along with 16 carries for 154 rushing yards in 14 total games. His ability as a ball-carrier should allow Hightower to see the field early on in the 2020 season.

His ability to dictate the matchups in space could allow Hightower these types of highlight-reel plays like the one below without a distinct knowledge of the Eagles playbook.

Hightower struggled against press coverage at times while at Boise State, so featuring him in the slot early-on could allow his transition to the NFL to be a bit smoother.

Hightower on most slot cornerbacks could become a mismatch, allowing the Eagles and Carson Wentz to dictate coverage and force opposing defenses to move their cornerbacks, safeties, and most athletic defensive players around based on formation.

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3 reasons for optimism as Chargers prepare for training camp

The Los Angeles Chargers may have a different look in 2020, but they are capable of making some noise.

Despite the ongoing worldwide outbreak that the coronavirus has caused, all signs are pointing to there being football this fall with the news that training camp will begin as originally planned.

With Chargers football near, there is plenty of excitement surrounding the team. But there is some concern as well, as Los Angeles is set to embark on a new era without the heart and soul of the team, Philip Rivers.

With that being said, I take a look at three reasons why fans should remain optimistic for L.A. in 2020.

New offensive identity

Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

“It’s going to be different,” coach Anthony Lynn said when asked about the offense. With Rivers gone, the offense will be led by a quarterback with a completely skillset – whether it’s Tyrod Taylor, rookie Justin Herbert or Easton Stick.

With the new system in place, there will be more pistol formation, more play-action and more run-pass option. The offense is going to look a lot more like the Ravens offense last season. Coach Anthony Lynn and Baltimore offensive coordinator Greg Roman coached together in Buffalo in 2015 and 2016.

Taylor and Herbert have the skill sets to run the concepts the Ravens do, like zone read and other quarterback option runs, which was hardly ever the case when Rivers was under center for Los Angeles.

We can expect to see more plays occur on the ground than in the past with Austin Ekeler, Justin Jackson and Joshua Kelley. But it will open things up to still involve Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Hunter Henry, Andre Patton, Joe Reed and K.J. Hill in the passing game.

The bottom line is that the offense will hardly be recognized from what it looked like over the past decade. But with the creative signal-callers and vigorous skill players on the field, it could be a threat for opposing defenses.

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Madden NFL 21 ratings for every Chargers player

The highly anticipated video game is almost here.

EA Sports unveiled its complete launch ratings on Friday for the upcoming Madden NFL 21.

Here are the initial rankings for all the Chargers players on the Madden 21 roster.

Quarterbacks

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PFF projects Chargers WR Keenan Allen goes over 1,000 yards in 2020

This would mark the fourth consecutive season.

Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen has posted three consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons, solidifying himself as one of the best players at his position.

Only three times in his career since 2013 has Allen failed to reach that mark. They came in 2014, 2015 and 2016, all years where he was unable to play a full 16-game slate due to injuries.

One of the reasons why Allen has had a lot of success throughout the years was because of the quarterbacks who distributed the wealth to him: Philip Rivers. Even with the change at the position, Pro Football Focus believes that the former Cal product will finish with 1,080 yards in 2020.

Allen is a beacon of consistency currently riding a three-year streak of 1,000 yards. He has 101 catches of 15-plus yards since 2017 (third-most), behind only Julio Jones and DeAndre Hopkins. His injury year notwithstanding, Allen has averaged over 2.0 yards per route run in every season since 2015. Widely regarded as one of the NFL’s best route-runners, Allen would be in the lock category if it were not for the departure of Philip Rivers.

There’s certainly a couple of reasons to believe that Allen could experience a downtick in production this upcoming season.

First, since Allen entered the league in 2013, Rivers ranks seventh in yards per attempt, 11th in touchdown rate and 12th in completion rate among quarterbacks with 500-plus attempts, per Athlon Sports.

Secondly, the Chargers are expected to shift to more of a run-heavy offense, which could take away some of his target share.

Despite, the uncertainty at the quarterback position with either Tyrod Taylor or Justin Herbert, Allen, one of the league’s best route-runners, should do what he does best by getting open consistently, leaving an underneath option for either signal-caller.

Entering the final year of his contract, Allen is hungry for an extension with Los Angeles or possibly a big check from another team (if he isn’t re-signed). Knowing that’s on the line, look for the 28-year old to flourish in 2020.

Chargers rank middle of the pack in offensive weapons in 2020

ESPN isn’t as high on the Chargers’ skill players as many other analysts.

The Chargers will start a new era at the quarterback position as Tyrod Taylor and Justin Herbert take over after Philip Rivers and the franchise mutually agreed to part ways earlier this offseason.

There are plenty of questions in regards to how the quarterback play will shape up in Los Angeles. But the team’s skill players should help elevate it, which is led by Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Austin Ekeler and Hunter Henry.

Even though the position players receive high praise by many analysts from various platforms, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell is not as high on them as the others. Barnwell ranked the Bolts’ offensive weapons as No. 16 in the NFL.

The backfield will have a slightly reconstructed look heading into the upcoming season. Returning is Ekeler and Justin Jackson. Not returning is Melvin Gordon. Coming in is fourth-round pick Joshua Kelley.

Melvin Gordon’s disastrous holdout and subsequent campaign opened up the door for Austin Ekeler, who averaged 122.5 yards from scrimmage over the first month of the season and earned an extension afterward. Ekeler was below-average as a runner as his workload increased and will need help from either Joshua Kelley or Justin Jackson between the tackles, but he was third in the NFL in yards per route run and fourth in targets per route run. He’s a valuable weapon.

The wide receiver group will feature Allen and Williams, but the depth behind them remains a mystery. The team brought in rookies K.J. Hill and Joe Reed as well as Darius Jennings. Returning is Andre Patton and Jason Moore.

Wide receiver Keenan Allen basically posted an identical line in 2018 and 2019, but Mike Williams suffered the indignity of touchdown regression past the mean. After scoring 10 times on just 43 receptions in 2018, he scored twice on 49 catches last season. Williams led the league by averaging 20.4 yards per grab, but while he jumped from 664 yards to 1,001 yards in his third season, he needed 24 more targets to get there. I’m not factoring quarterback play into this analysis, but it’s likely his numbers will drop in 2020 with the Chargers drafting Justin Herbert to replace Philip Rivers.

Henry returns as the No. 1 tight end. If he stays healthy, he could be due for a big season as he will be playing for a contract extension.

The guy who could push the Chargers up the rankings is Hunter Henry, who came back from a torn ACL, only to break a bone in his leg in the opener and miss a month. Henry was on the field for the final 11 games of the season and popped up with a 100-yard performance, but even over that time frame, he ranked eighth among tight ends in yards per game. Rob Gronkowski showed you can be really valuable despite injury woes if you’re great when healthy. I’m not sure pretty good and occasionally healthy is as compelling. Henry has a lot to play for on the franchise tag this upcoming season.

For reference, the team’s offensive weapons ranked No. 11 in 2019 and No. 10 in 2018.

Chargers’ Keenan Allen mentioned among NFL’s best wide receivers

Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen is finally getting the respect that he deserves.

For years now, Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen has been left out when discussing the best players at his position, despite putting up numbers that rank near the top.

However, a handful NFL executives, coaches, scouts and players beg to differ.

50 of them were polled, which was used to compile the best wideouts in the league, and Allen was tabbed as the eighth-best.

Allen has established himself as a seasoned route-runner with physical balls, which has aided in him amassing 1,100-plus yards receiving the past three consecutive seasons.

“We use examples of him in the film room running a bunch of routes,” one NFL head coach said.

Allen has been knocked because a lot of his work has been exclusively in the slot, but he has shown that he’s more than capable of still putting defensive backs on skates on the outside.

“It doesn’t get any better than him in the slot,” one NFL coordinator said. “He understands every release. He has a plan. Timing is flawless.”

Per Pro Football Focus, Allen has posted the fourth-best receiving grade in the NFL (91.2) since 2017.

Allen is entering the final year of his contract. He will have the opportunity to put together a big season even with Tyrod Taylor or Justin Herbert under center, as he is set to have favorable matchups throughout the 2020 season.

4 Chargers players worthy of a 10-year contract

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out four players who are worthy of signing to a 10-year deal.

The Chargers’ AFC West rival, the Kansas City Chiefs, locked up their star quarterback Patrick Mahomes to a whopping 10-year contract extension worth nearly half a billion dollars earlier this week.

Mahomes has established himself as one of the best players in the NFL in a short period of time, and the team knew that they could have success with him for a handful of years to come.

There probably isn’t another player in the league at the moment that will get a contract that looks like that because it’s a very rare occasion, as there’s been only five other players in NFL history to get a deal of 10 years or more.

Nonetheless, let’s have some fun and lay out four members of the Chargers who have solidified themselves worthy of keeping around for the next decade.

RB Austin Ekeler

Ekeler received a $5,000 signing bonus as an undrafted free agent and far outplayed his minimum contract. This offseason, the Chargers inked Ekeler to a well-deserved four-year extension.

Running backs are replaceable, right? Well, Ekeler is more than a running back. He is an offensive play-maker. Give him the ball on the ground, and he will produce. Distribute the wealth to him through the air, and he will produce.

Panthers’ Christian McCaffrey is the best pass-catching back, but Ekeler has shown that he might be the second best. In 2019, Ekeler finished with 92 catches for 993 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.

At age 25, the best has yet to come for the former Western Colorado product.

EDGE Joey Bosa

Bosa has already played his way into a monstrous contract, which could be the largest for a player at his position either before or after the 2020 season.

A dominant force at wreaking havoc in opposing backfields, Bosa has 40 sacks in 51 career games, which makes him the 10th player since 1982 to total 40 or more sacks in his first 50 games. He has recorded 10-plus sacks in three of his four pro seasons thus far.

The former Ohio State product has been a difference-maker on the defensive side of the ball for Los Angeles, and at age 24, he has yet to reach his prime. There aren’t many players that are on or will likely reach his level.

WR Keenan Allen

After being hampered by injuries near the beginning of his professional career, Allen has flourished against opposing secondaries, finishing this past season with his third consecutive 1,000-yard season en route to Pro Bowl honors.

There have been a handful of young receivers that have proven themselves throughout the years, but there aren’t many that have the skillset that Allen does. The 28-year old is king at route-running and getting separation, which doesn’t come around that often with players at his position.

Allen is heading into the final year of his contract, and he will be sure to be at the top of the Chargers’ priority list, as they look to lock up one of the key pieces to their offense.

S Derwin James

James is a rare breed.

Listed as the top safety from that draft, James has lived up to his expectations and much more in just two seasons. The do-it-all defender has thrived as a safety, slot corner, linebacker, and even as a pass rusher off the edge.

James played in the Pro Bowl and was voted first-team All-Pro in 2018. And while he didn’t see the field much in 2019 due to a foot injury sustained prior to the season, his impact was felt upon returning to the starting lineup.

In 21 games played and started, James has posted 139 tackles (98 solo), 14 passes defensed, seven tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and three interceptions.

These are the type of players that don’t come around that often.

Pair of Chargers tabbed as fantasy football busts

Will Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen and tight end Hunter Henry see a dip in production in 2020?

‘Tis the season to start preparing for fantasy football leagues as the 2020 regular season is right around the corner.

The Chargers have a few skill players that have helped fantasy owners in recent years. But is this the year where you should stay away from some of them? A few ESPN analysts believe so.

Four analysts, two for each, believe that wide receiver Keenan Allen and tight end Hunter Henry will fail to live up to their expectations in the upcoming season.

ESPN’s Mike Clay projected Allen to finish 2020 with 83 receptions for 978 yards and five touchdowns, which would be a regression in production from 2019.

Meanwhile, Henry is projected to finish with 54 receptions, 650 yards and four touchdowns. Those stats would slightly come up short from him surpassing last season’s numbers.

Studs in years prior, it’s easy to believe that Allen and Henry will see a dip in production. If Los Angeles adopts a run-heavy scheme, its unlikely that any of their pass-catchers will achieve numbers like they did when the pass was more emphasized.

There is a lot of uncertainty with the quarterback position, as Tyrod Taylor and Justin Herbert take over. Both Taylor and Herbert have questions as passers, which will have owners pause.

The bottom line is that both Allen and Henry will be fine options, but they might not offer the league-winning upside like they did in recent seasons.

ESPN’s Mike Clay projects Chargers’ 2020 offensive stats

ESPN’s Mike Clay revealed his offensive projections for the upcoming season.

Mike Clay is an NFL and fantasy football analyst at ESPN and spends a lot of time going through algorithms and formulas to project player and team stats prior to the regular season.

Clay revealed his offensive projections for the upcoming season.

Let’s take a look at how he believes the Chargers skill players will fare in 2020.

Quarterback

Player C/A Yards TDs INT Carries Yards TDs
Justin Herbert 265/420 3,068 16 11 40 157 1
Tyrod Taylor 69/110 814 5 2 16 84 1

Running back

Player Carries Yards Average TDs Receptions Yards TDs
Austin Ekeler 163 715 4.4 4 64 606 3
Justin Jackson 135 573 4.3 4 27 201 1
Joshua Kelley 78 318 4.1 2 11 86 0

Wide receiver

Player Targets Receptions Yards Average TDs Carries Yards
Keenan Allen 128 83 978 11.7 5 4 25
Mike Williams 92 48 824 17.0 4 0 0
Andre Patton 20 11 149 13.1 1 0 0
Joe Reed 15 9 108 12.1 1 0 0
K.J. Hill 10 6 72 12.1 0 0 0

Tight end

Player Targets Receptions Yards Average TDs
Hunter Henry 82 54 650 12.0 4
Virgil Green 20 13 137 10.2 1
Donald Parham 5 3 34 10.4 0

Chargers’ salary cap update as training camp approaches

The Chargers made a flurry moves to improve the roster in hopes of making another playoff push for the 2020 season.

The Chargers made a slew of acquisitions through free agency and the 2020 NFL Draft in hopes of putting together a roster that’s capable of making a run for the division.

Los Angeles agreed to terms with a few notables, which include Chris Harris Jr., Linval Joseph, Bryan Bulaga and Trai Turner. Most importantly, they didn’t break the bank to acquire them.

They all have six draft picks that have yet to sign their rookie deals.

With that being said, L.A. has $20,410,433 million in salary-cap space, per Over The Cap. That is good for the 11th-most in the NFL.

This number will drop quite a bit after the Chargers ink their rookies to deals. A common question is wondering if Los Angeles will sign anymore players. But it’s more likely that they use to agree to an extension with Hunter Henry or carry it over to the 2021 offseason.

L.A. has some high commitments after the 2020 season led by Joey Bosa, Keenan Allen, Melvin Ingram and Mike Pouncey.