COSTA MESA, Calif. — The Los Angeles Chargers held their opening organized team activity of the Jim Harbaugh era Monday. It was the first of 10 OTAs the team will have over the next three weeks. The Chargers will then cap the offseason program with a mandatory veteran minicamp June 11-13 before departing for summer break.
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Here are my observations from Monday’s practice.
1. Attendance was nearly perfect. Only two players were not on the field: running back Gus Edwards and edge rusher Bud Dupree, both free-agent additions. Edwards signed with the Chargers in March. Dupree signed with the team earlier this month. The group of 87 players practicing included edge rushers Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack. Bosa was in attendance for the first OTA last season, so this is not necessarily a new development. In 2022, he joined the Chargers in the second week of OTAs. In 2021, he did not report until mandatory minicamp. Bosa typically spends his offseasons training in Florida with his brother Nick.
2. Three players who were on the field but not participating: edge rusher Chris Rumph II, tight end Donald Parham Jr. and tight end/fullback Ben Mason. Rumph and Parham were working off to the side with trainers to begin practice. Mason was watching individual drills without his helmet. Rumph suffered a season-ending broken foot during warmups ahead of a Week 10 game against the Detroit Lions last season.
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3. One other injury note: Rookie linebacker Junior Colson walked off with trainers about 40 minutes into practice. He left the practice just before the Chargers began 11-on-11 team drills. As a result, Denzel Perryman and Daiyan Henley got the bulk of the first-team work at inside linebacker.
4. Under previous coach Brandon Staley, the Chargers did not conduct 11-on-11 drills during OTAs. The team drills were limited to seven-on-seven. That is already changing under Harbaugh. The Chargers held five periods of 11-on-11 drills Monday, including a third-down period. Justin Herbert and the first-team offense got 26 reps. During the first period, the first-team offense faced the second-team defense, and the second-team offense faced the first-team defense. The starters went up against the starters for the final four periods.
it’s a good day when 10 is out there slingin’ it pic.twitter.com/AxNYIPkmid
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) May 20, 2024
5. The Chargers were rotating the right side of their first-team offensive line. The grouping to start: left tackle Rashawn Slater, left guard Zion Johnson, center Bradley Bozeman, right guard Jamaree Salyer and right tackle Trey Pipkins III. After the first three reps, No. 5 pick Joe Alt entered at right tackle, and Pipkins slid inside to guard, replacing Salyer. That rotation continued for most of the practice.
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Alt also got reps at right tackle with the second-team offensive line. That group: Alt at right tackle, rookie Karsen Barnhart at right guard, Brenden Jaimes at center, Jordan McFadden at left guard and Foster Sarell at left tackle. For the second to last period, Alt began with the first-team offensive line at right tackle. Pipkins was at guard. In that period, Salyer was at right tackle with the second team. The rest of the second-team offensive line remained the same.
So Pipkins and Salyer will be getting looks at right guard and right tackle. For now, it appears those two will be competing for the starting spot at right guard, as Alt will presumably take hold of the starting right tackle spot as the Chargers move through the spring and into training camp.
GO DEEPER
Chargers stick to their blueprint by drafting OL Joe Alt
6. Herbert is already developing a connection with rookie second-round pick Ladd McConkey. McConkey played both inside and outside Monday, but the majority of his snaps with the first-team offense came in the slot. On the second play of the first 11-on-11 period, McConkey beat rookie cornerback Tarheeb Still down the seam, and Herbert hit him for an explosive gain. Later in practice, Herbert connected with McConkey on back-to-back competitions — one on an over route and another on an out route from the slot. McConkey also beat cornerback Ja’Sir Taylor on a slant out of the slot in the second-to-last period for a third-down conversion.
herbo 🎯 ladd pic.twitter.com/dX141l9BBt
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) May 20, 2024
7. The starting defense set up with Derwin James Jr. and Alohi Gilman at safety, Kristian Fulton and Asante Samuel Jr. on the outside, Ja’Sir Taylor in the slot, Perryman and Henley at inside linebacker, Bosa and Mack at edge rusher, and a rotation on the interior including Poona Ford, Morgan Fox and Otito Ogbonnia, among others.
8. James was moving around some. When James aligned closer to the line of scrimmage, both JT Woods and AJ Finley got reps replacing him at safety. That third safety spot is shaping up as a potential heated position battle in camp.
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9. Rookie Cam Hart and third-year cornerback Deane Leonard both got first-team reps on the outside.
10. The first-team defense had a pretty dominant showing against Easton Stick in the opening 11-on-11 period. Samuel picked off Stick’s first pass attempt. On the next rep, Fulton jumped a route for another pick. In a later series, a Stick throw bounced off the hands of rookie tight end Luke Benson, and Finley intercepted the tipped ball. Stick threw a fourth interception in the final 11-on-11 periods, which focused on third downs. He forced a ball over the middle intended for rookie receiver Jaylen Johnson, who was running a dig. Stick did not see linebacker Troy Dye underneath, and Dye leaped for the pick.
11. Herbert completed his first 11 throws of the practice. His 12th throw was nearly intercepted by Dye. Herbert completed his next six passes. On his 19th attempt, Herbert tried to hit receiver Quentin Johnston on a comeback route. Samuel was in coverage and played it aggressively to the inside. He jumped the throw and should have come down with his second pick of the day. The ball went off his hands.
12. Harbaugh, wearing a navy blue long-sleeve shirt and powder blue hat, huddled the team up after the final 11-on-11 period. He delivered a quick speech. The team then broke into groups for the fourth-quarter finishing period, led by executive director of player performance Ben Herbert. Players rotated between several stations, including sled pulls and medicine ball carries. This lasted about 10 to 15 minutes before practice officially ended. It was a rather spirited final period considering the players had already been practicing for close to two hours.
(Photo: Harry How / Getty Images)
