There is no unanswered question from the Los Angeles Chargers’ offseason bigger than who will replace Keenan Allen and Mike Williams. The team has sifted through every (budget) question to find the answer to that question. They signed DJ Chark and used three draft picks to select wide receiver. They even brought in three undrafted free agents at the position to give themselves plenty of material to work with.
After two preseason games, that question is still open, as no receiver has been able to shine, largely due to the quarterback’s terrible performance.
Analyst argues that Chargers WRs are at the bottom of the NFL
Ian Valentino of the 33rd team is not impressed with what he has seen from the group so far. In his latest wide receiver rankings, he ranks the Chargers last in the league behind the Carolina Panthers and New England Patriots.
Valentino’s projected WR room: Ladd McConkey, DJ Chark, Josh Palmer, Quentin Johnston, Brenden Rice
“It’s hard to find much positive to say about the Los Angeles Chargers receiver corps,” Valentino writes. “Ladd McConkey is currently injured, but he should be a difference maker when he’s on the field.
Outside of him, DJ Chark beats out 2023 first-round pick Quentin Johnston, and Josh Palmer is a mediocre contributor who hasn’t broken out in year four. The Chargers will have to survive and make do with a group that lacks developmental potential and outstanding physical attributes.”
It’s hard to argue with that logic. The most productive receivers on the team are Chark and Palmer. Chark peaked at 1,008 yards, but that was in 2019. That was before a litany of injuries he’s suffered over the past five years. Over the past two years, he’s caught 65 passes for 1,027 yards. Since Palmer was drafted in 2021, his primary role has been to fill in for Allen or Williams when they’ve been injured, which has been often. As he got more playing time, his production increased, but he was never a threat to take over the top spot in the draft standings.
The rest is all potential energy. McConkey and Rice are both rookies, and Quentin Johnston, a former first-round pick, had a terrible rookie season. He remains as much of a mystery as the rookies, but he still has the stench of a draft flop about him.
Ultimately, the question is does it matter? Jim Harbaugh/Greg Roman offenses have never produced elite receivers. The last time Harbaugh was an NFL head coach, Michael Crabtree and the 33-year-old Anquan Bolden were Harbaugh’s best receivers.
