The NFL calendar has reached some down time as players, coaches and staff get some well-deserved time off before training camps kick off next month.
Chargers 2026 Training Camp opens with practice on July 29 ahead of padded practices and three preseason games.
ESPN recently put together an AFC West roundtable looking at pressing questions surrounding each team, with Chargers reporter Kris Rhim tackling the ones pertaining to the Bolts.
Rhim was initially asked what the general outlook is for quarterback Justin Herbert.
He wrote:
Offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel is challenging quarterback Justin Herbert in ways he never has been in his career. It began with changing Herbert's footwork; he shifted his shotgun stance to moving his non-throwing side forward, which, in other words, means that his left foot is forward now instead of his right.
This shift is one McDaniel has coached in other stops such as the Miami Dolphins, Washington Commanders and Atlanta Falcons. He believes the shift will get Herbert to speed up his throwing process and get the ball to receivers quicker to create more yards after the catch opportunities.
McDaniel said earlier this month that he's "trying to find the margins" that can help elevate Herbert's game, which is already arguably near the top of the league for quarterbacks.
Elsewhere in the roundtable, Rhim was asked which offseason move will have the biggest impact on next season.
His answer? McDaniel.
The Chargers' offense has been its Achilles' heel the past two seasons, with both years ending in playoff losses, in large part because the offense sputtered. McDaniel is one of the NFL's most respected offensive minds, known for creating some of the league's most explosive offenses. If McDaniel can elevate this offense to be among the league's best, the Chargers can be a real contender.
Rhim was later asked about an under-the-radar rookie to watch in training camp and went with edge rusher Nadame Tucker.
Rhim wrote:
Tucker, who went undrafted out of Western Michigan, played for first-year defensive coordinator Chris O'Leary last season. Tucker was one of the most disruptive rushers in college; he was a third-team All-American, the MAC Defensive Player of the Year, led the FBS with 21 tackles for loss and tied for the lead with 14.5 sacks. Tucker could compete for the final edge rusher spot, a battle that could come down to him and 33-year-old veteran Bud Dupree.
Finally, Rhim noted that the Chargers starting left guard job will be one to watch closely in camp.
The battle, according to Harbaugh, is between Kayode Awosika, rookie Jake Slaughter, Trevor Penning and Trey Pipkins III. Realistically, because of Slaughter's selection in the second round, this job should be his to lose, but he'll have to earn that right in training camp.
