Jim Harbaugh's squad is a day away from reporting for 2026 Chargers Training Camp.

That means crucial practices are on the way as the Bolts prepare for preseason and the regular season.

We'll also soon get a glimpse at key battles as players vie for roles and a place on the 53-man roster.

With that in mind, here are five Chargers position battles to watch during camp.

1. Left guard

We'll start with the most obvious one here, and the Bolts left guard job is perhaps the only true starting spot up for grabs in the coming weeks.

And although multiple players worked between Rashawn Slater and Tyler Biadasz this spring, Chargers Offensive Coordinator Mike McDaniel made it clear that he'll really start looking at left guard once the pads come on.

"I think you're very, very hesitant to start creating job competition scenarios before guys have actually blocked people," McDaniel said. "In the offseason, by and large, guys learn how to fit and where to apply pressure, where to target, but the idea of blocking people for three or four seconds, that's more of a pad, training camp thing."

McDaniel later added: "It would probably be good to assess a receiver after a pass was thrown to him, not before that. It's probably good to assess the lineman after we block people, not before that. That's where I'm at."

The candidates up front? Kayode Awosika and rookie Jake Slaughter rotated up front in spring practices, with Harbaugh noting that Trevor Penning is also in the mix there, too.

Awosika, an offseason free-agent signing, played in 50 career games with 11 starts with the Lions.

Slaughter was a 2026 second-round pick who is transitioning to guard after starring at center at Florida, while Penning re-signed with the Bolts in free agency after being acquired at the 2025 trade deadline.

Harbaugh said in mid-June that the competition at left guard is "raging on," something that will certainly continue in camp.

"Left guard specifically, very good competition at that position for a starting job," Harbaugh said. "We are talking about left guard so when the pads come on, that will be decided."

2. Edge rusher

The Chargers are set at the top of this group with Khalil Mack and Tuli Tuipulotu, a pairing of a veteran and rising star that each have something to prove in 2026.

Add in recent first-round pick Akheem Mesidor to the fold and the Bolts could employ a three-headed attack against opposing quarterbacks.

Chargers outside linebackers coach Dylan Roney said he began envisioning those three together since the draft.

"My mind just started going immediately to all the ways we can use him, all the things it opens up for us as a defense, having more edge rushers that are great pass rushers," Roney said. "Just gives us more opportunities to put them in different positions. My mind immediately went to scheme and all the fun ways we'll be able to use these guys."

But what about the fourth guy in this room?

The Bolts will need a fourth player here to occasionally spell the others on defense and potentially contribute on special teams, too.

With camp on the horizon, Bud Dupree, Kyle Kennard and undrafted rookie Nadame Tucker are all in the running for this spot.

Dupree is the veteran of the group with 152 career games while Kennard is entering Year 2 after playing just 80 defensive snaps.

Tucker, meanwhile, tied for the Division I lead with 14.5 sacks in 2025 at Western Michigan in 2025.

Chargers Defensive Coordinator Chris O'Leary said all eyes will be on this group over the next few weeks.

"I get excited about competition," O'Leary said. "It's going to be fun ... may the best man win."

3. Linebacker

The Chargers have plenty of talent and depth with this group.

Daiyan Henley paces the group as a key leader within the locker room, with a handful of veterans also ready to chip in behind him.

Denzel Perryman is a veteran who provides a physical style of play while Troy Dye is a versatile player and Del'Shawn Phillips is among the NFL's best special teams players.

And while Emany Johnson and Lander Barton are also on the roster, the real focus in camp will be on Junior Colson and Marlowe Wax.

Colson was a 2024 third-round pick whose career has been hampered by injuries to this point. He missed the entire 2025 season with a shoulder injury.

"I think he has the potential to be a linebacker in this league," Chragers linebacker coach Sean Spence said of Colson this offseason. "He's big, he's fast, he can run, he can get off blocks, he's smart, he's passionate about the game, he's passionate about learning and getting better.

"The biggest thing with Junior is just staying healthy," Spence added. "I think that's probably his biggest thing, but he's a player who can play in this league, for sure."

Wax, meanwhile, was an undrafted free agent last year who blossomed into a key piece on special teams.

Depending on how many linebackers the Chargers decide to keep, there may only be room for one of either Colson or Wax in late August.

4. Defensive back

We'll lump both cornerback and safety together here.

The Chargers top three cornerbacks will be Donte Jackson, Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart, with Deane Leonard serving as a depth piece and in a vital special teams role.

Beyond them? Look for Nikko Reed and Eric Rogers — two camp and preseason standouts from last year — to compete for a spot on the roster.

It's a similar situation at safety, where Derwin James, Jr. is the alpha in this room with Elijah Molden.

But there's a host of players competing for safety spots, too, whether it's Tony Jefferson, RJ Mickens, Kendall Williamson or rookie Genesis Smith, the latter of which looked strong in spring practices.

This may be a case where only two or three players from that group make it to the regular season.

"Competition brings the best out of everybody, brings the best out of me," Jefferson said. "I love that aspect of the game, being able to compete."

5. Tight end

The Chargers have vastly improved their tight end room from a season ago.

While Oronde Gadsden is still on the roster after a promising rookie debut, General Manager Joe Hortiz fortified the position by adding Charlie Kolar and David Njoku in free agency.

Kolar should provide some grit as he ranked sixth in Pro Football Focus' run-block grade (71.5) and ninth in total offense grade (78.7) in 2025 among tight ends that logged at least 400 snaps.

And Njoku is a veteran who could thrive with the Bolts as 26 of his 34 career touchdown catches have come in the red zone.

With Gadsden (49 catches for 664 yards and three touchdowns) ready to make a leap in Year 2, McDaniel has multiple options at his disposal.

With camp here, this one is less about who will be the starter, as each tight end is expected to play a role this season.

Instead, we're curious about how McDaniel mixes and matches this group when more than one tight end is on the field at the same time.