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I know we’re all in draft mode right now….exciting time of year for NFL fans!!
I came across this article and decided to create a generic spot to drop it. Looking for big things from a healthy Henley this year….and hopefully positive contributions from Colston too.
Zion’s 5th year option declined. If he doesn’t show out at center (which I’m very doubtful of) then this is likely his last year as a Charger. Disappointing he hasn’t shown more.
@buck-melanoma Right there with you Buck. I’d really like them to bring in Will Hernandez for some competition at the LG spot. I’m assuming James gets the C job, and it’s just a weird situation to me for us to have a three-way competition between the proverbial “mis-fits” from last season… Pip, Johnson, and Bozeman.
As a starting spot is concerned, Zion should beat those three out, and we have seen him play much better with competent center play next to him. However, if a guy that I believe would beat him out in a competition were to be signed (Will Hernandez, Brandon Schreff, Dalton Risner), I would actually have Pipkins, Bozeman, and Salyer above Zion on my list of priorities. I love that all three of those guys have positional flex (questionable for Pipkins), whereas we’ve only seen Zion play guard thus far.
As we may have crapped out on the comp pick formula this year, trading away Zion and getting anything in return would be a nice wrap-up to the offseason.
@kylededi the one thing that does still give me some hope regarding Zion is what you said….he’s looked better with competent center play. Numbers might show different but the eyeball test indicated Linsley next to Zion elevated his play. That’s the one thing that would possibly make me consider Zion could succeed at center, that maybe he could recognize stunts and make assignment calls better himself. Maybe incorrect calls are more an issue with his failures than identified by us.
But that could also be me reaching to find a reason for his middling performance. I really want him to be a stud on this OL. That doesn’t appear to be where it’s headed. I think the tryout at center (while still bringing in James) combined with not picking up the 5th year is writing on the wall.
Thanks, Buck, for the article on Henley. It contains some bits of info I hadn’t seen before and it’s nice to hear from the player’s perspective what’s been going on.
Not that I’m adverse to trading QJ if good value can be found but I am rather tired of various pundits tossing the idea out as if they have a scoop. I call BS.
Maybe now that Pickens is headed to Dallas we can shut down the QJ to the Cowboys speculation.
Friggin’ dicks for clicks. lol
@buck-melanoma What do you think the value of QJ is? MAYBE a 5th?
Unless the dude learns how to catch the football, he’ll be a role player with designed touches on 1st and 2nd down. He will not be on the field on 3rd down unless he’s a decoy as you can’t depend on him.
Terrible pick by Telesco, especially with Flowers and Addison on the board.
@kevdiego yeah, I’d say 5th, maybe conditional 4th. I wish I was more optimistic but just not.
@buck-melanoma I think the Chargers would be lucky to get a 5th. I think QJ is one drop-infested season away from having a Jalen Reagor-isque zero value.
Johnston is going to be on the Chargers this year.
I respectfully disagree with you about what to expect from him.
The Chargers have upgraded ther passing game targets significantly for this season, which will reduce the pressure on Johnston and move him down in the target order.
They also acquired two guys in Williams and Harris who should dominate X WR snaps, meaning Johnston can play Z, which is a much better fit for his skill set.
These factors plus another offseason and continued good coaching lead me to expect Johnston to have his best season yet (quality of play, not quantity of receptions, yards, etc.).
@kevdiego I agree with Tau and to add another point. QJ has proven to be better than Reagor, despite his drops, which is indeed a major flaw.
Comparing numbers in their first two seasons (snaps from Pro Football Reference):
QJ: 38 rec / 431 yds / 2 TD / 748 snaps || 55 rec / 711 yds / 8 TD / 656 snaps
Reagor: 31 rec / 396 yds / 1 TD / 511 snaps || 33 rec / 299 yds / 2 TD / 750 snaps
If QJ has a season still littered with drops and with a 40 rec / 600 yds / 5 TD, which I think is fair as WR3-4, he will have more trade value than Reagor. Reagor was traded to the Vikings after his first 2 seasons with the Eagles for a 7th and a conditional 5th (could become a 4th if he had a 40/500/5 statline i ’22 or ’23).
@kevdiego Not to excuse all the bad draft picks by Telesco over the years but this one was the OC Kellen Moore who talked him and John Spanos into drafting QJ. I believe it was the latest leak on that fiasco. Could it be that Telesco and JS were on the fence between QJ and Flowers/Addison until Moore push them over with his pinky?
5th for QJ? I doubt a team would be willing to offer that much for him considering the value you can get at WR with a 5th round pick. Maybe a 6th, but I’m highly doubtful this team is going to part ways with a former 1st-round pick that soon, of which they haven’t done until he finishes up his rookie contract. Yes, it’s Hortiz-Harbaugh era now, but they could respect John Spanos enough to keep trying with QJ to prove JS wasn’t wrong about QJ.
@tui1hit Yea, I heard the Moore story as well. The Charges drafting 3 players from TCU in one season reeked of John Spanos scouting the Horned Frogs.
I agree that the most likely outcome is for QJ to remain on the Chargers, at least this year. Unless there’s a trade (which would yield very little in return), his $8.4M dead cap makes cutting him difficult this year. I think he has a reduced role in 2025, and looks better doing less.
Getting ’em signed. Welcome aboard, rooks!!!
https://www.chargers.com/news/bolts-sign-seven-members-of-2025-draft-class-18-undrafted-free-agents
If Hampton wins OROY, great for him! I’m much more interested in what he can do to take pressure off Herbert and unleash the entire offense.
@buck-melanoma I’m not super concerned (yet) about Slater missing from OTAs. It would be nice to get the o-line all together as often as possible, but I know he’ll come to the season ready. That said, the longer the negotiations drag out, the greater the chance for bad feelings to grow. I don’t know what the hold-up is, but I can’t imagine the sides are worlds apart right now. It’s time for both sides to sit in the same room and not come out without handshakes and a signed contract.
@smith Popper’s article doesn’t refer to this (because why would it), but there are a number of breadcrumbs available online (X, Insta) suggesting Rashawn Slater is going through a recent and potentially messy separation/divorce with his wife. They were married in 2022.
It would be mere speculation to say that this was affecting the contract negotiations, but in this smaller group I’m sharing that missing info from Popper’s article.
@alisterlloyd I hadn’t heard that. That’s too bad on a personal level for him. (I know you’re a newlywed, Al, and I know it’s unthinkable, but I can tell you that a divorce sucks for a number of reasons, even if, as in my case, it’s for the best.) To speculate even further—adding rumor upon rumor—but I wonder if he’s holding out on signing a contract until the divorce is final so he doesn’t owe the ex half or more of his fat contract. In any event, a lot of that money is going to go (and here you might already know this) to the lawyers. Sigh. What would Aurelius think!
@smith I think this is completely plausible and probably a big factor. Seems like the team would agree to do him a solid and table the discussions until after the legalities are worked out with his wife, especially if it’s a messy situation.
@alisterlloyd wow, that sucks even if it needs to happen. That throws a whole new wrinkle into the mix.
I’m not overly concerned about the deal getting done. I’d just prefer the pundits didn’t have anything to spin.
@alisterlloyd I don’t think this aspect of Slater’s personal life warrants any real discussion here. He is going to be signed to a top of market extension before the season, period. It doesn’t matter if he is getting divorced, how his contract affects the divorce settlement, etc. The GAC guys are refusing to talk about it on their podcast, and I think that is a good approach. It is probably out of similar sentiment that Popper chose not to mention it.
It is the Chargers’ regular practice to extend their star players in July or later. Here are some examples:
- Herbert – July 2023
- James – August 2022
- Bosa – July 2020
- Allen – September 2020 (and June 2016)
- Rivers – August 2015 (and August 2009)
There is no reason to be concerned about this.
The deal doesn’t need to involve his attention much, it is being hashed out by his agents and the team representatives.
@kathmandusteve that doesn’t mean that the financial implications of a divorce aren’t playing a role in the negotiations.
I’m certainly not intending to drag Slater’s personal life through the ringer nor do I think Alister is. It’s simply a consideration into why he’s missing OTA’s.
I feel comfortable he’ll get a deal. It’s likely he becomes the highest paid OT in the NFL. That sort of benchmark contract takes time. But when one of the most important players on a team is missing OTA’s, it’s discussion worthy.
Long article for chargers.com but interesting. I was (am?) admittedly skeptical of RB in the first round.
This article has me pretty excited about Hampton.
On a side note, left Richmond VA yesterday beginning a 4 month motorcycle trip around the US and a portion of Canada.
https://www.chargers.com/news/omarion-hampton-2025-nfl-draft-stats
@buck-melanoma Happy travels, Buck! Keep us posted when you can. I’m happy for you—and a little jealous. Perhaps you can stretch things long enough to visit SoFi in week 3.
@smith thx man. I won’t make that game but possibly later in the season.
Trip update: Waking to the 3rd day. I’m in Cherokee NC for a couple of days. Going to see the outdoor play “Unto These Hills” tonight with a friend. Saw it when I was 12 on a family vacation. It’s the story of the Trail of Tears.
@buck-melanoma I just looked up that show. I’d love to see it. I wish I had any excuse to spend more time in the Smokies. Beautiful and otherworldly. Are you camping on this trip, or is it motel city for you?
@smith motels. Too much shit to lug around for 4 months plus I need electricity. I use a cpap for sleep apnea.
Parham with a torn ACL in Pittsburgh’s OTAs. That dude can’t catch a break. I really like him and hope for the best. Maybe 2026 will be the year he turns it all on. Best of luck to the big guy.
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