The Chargers were eager to get back work on Saturday, which was Day 17 of Chargers 2026 Training Camp.
Especially coming off a tough 41-17 preseason loss to the 49ers on Thursday night.
"The film did not lie," said Chargers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh. "We got beat and beat ourselves as a team in all three phases. Good things to work on."
The Chargers practiced for 90-minutes Saturday morning at The Bolt in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts.
Here is the Chargers Training Camp Report from Saturday's practice:
1. Slater & Slaughter highlight O-line
The Chargers saw a positive development Saturday when Rashawn Slater returned to practice.
The left tackle, who is working through a knee issue, went through individual drills and the first period of team drills before working off to the side and then watching the rest of practice.
When the Bolts started full-team drills, Trey Pipkins III was at left guard between Slater and center Jake Slaughter. Cole Strange and Joe Alt manned their usual spots on the right side of the line.
But with Slater limited Saturday, Pipkins then moved to left tackle, a spot later also filled by rookie Travis Burke in front of Justin Herbert.
When Pipkins went to tackle, Kayode Awosika came in at left guard. Awosika also took a single rep at right guard.
Harbaugh provided an update on the left guard battle before practice.
"I don't know how close we are. Kayode is right there, he's the leader right now," Harbaugh said.
Slaughter, meanwhile, spent the entire practice at center.
While Slaughter had been in the mix to start at left guard, Harbaugh said before practice that dynamics have changed since Tyler Biadasz suffered an ACL injury last Tuesday.
"Jake Slaughter is now our starting center, so that's a big change," Harbaugh said. "The center position, right guard, right tackle, left tackle … those four [are set].
"Whether we have nine offensive linemen, 10, 11, on the final roster, they're all in the mix for roles," Harbaugh continued. "Starting roles and backup role."
He later added: "I'm very confident in Jake Slaughter being our starting center."
As for the rest of the offensive lines, the next group featured Burke at left tackle, Trevor Penning at left guard, Jacob Spomer and Slaughter at center, Alex Harkey at right guard and Logan Taylor at right tackle.
The final group consisted of Laekin Vahalahi at left tackle, Logan Taylor and Penning at left guard, Josh Kaltenberger at center, Harkey and Awosika at right guard and Burke and Logan Taylor at right tackle.
With the NFL's 53-man roster cutdown date on the calendar for August 30, plenty of eyes are on the Bolts offensive line.
"It's like a deck of cards, trying to get your best hand," Harbaugh said about the entire roster ahead of next Sunday. "This organization is always trying to shuffle those cards and give ourselves the best hand just like every team is. There's many that are solidly in the deck, and others that are in the shuffle."
2. Defense wins the day
At this point in camp, both sides of the ball have come away victorious at times.
But Saturday clearly belonged to the defense as the unit set the tone from the beginning.
The Chargers opened practice with a 7-on-7 drill that saw Elijah Molden and Daiyan Henley record pass breakups within the first three pass attempts.
Del'Shawn Phillips later tallied a pass breakup in the drill before the defense kept wreaking havoc in 11-on-11 sessions.
The day was highlighted by a Khalil Mack interception off Herbert in the red zone, which then kicked off a torrid stretch for the future Hall of Fame pass rusher.
Mack later would have had a pair of sacks on his own and also shared one with Akheem Mesidor.
Defensive linemen Dalvin Tomlinson (a sack and a pressure), Justin Eboigbe and TeRah Edwards (two pressures each) and Terry Webb (a pressure) also stood out in Saturday's practice.
"I think we're right where we need to be," Henley said of the defense. "Every day, we've been building towards something.
"That consistency in our preparation is going to take us even further than we are now," Henley added. "I think we're where we need to be and we're on a path to where we want to go."
Offensively, Quentin Johnston had a nice day with a deep catch from Herbert where the wide receiver used a shifty move off the line of scrimmage.
Johnston also provided the lone highlight in a red-zone drill with a 5-yard touchdown catch, the only score of the day for the offense.
3. A look at Lance & Uiagalelei
Harbaugh was asked about the backup quarterback battle after Thursday's preseason game.
"I think it's tight," Harbaugh said. "I don't have a definitive status on it right now."
That competition between Trey Lance and DJ Uiagalelei is likely going to come down to the wire.
Lance and Uiagalelei each took reserve reps Saturday, but it was Lance who got the first crack at them, something that has been the case for the entirety of camp thus far.
Lance played 29 snaps Thursday night and went in after Herbert played the first three snaps.
He completed 10 of 16 passes for 73 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions, adding 42 rushing yards to his stat line.
Uiagalelei, meanwhile, was in for the final 27 plays, completing seven of 15 passes for 80 yards. He threw at 28-yard touchdown to Jerand Bradley with 63 seconds left.
For more info on camp, check out the Chargers Training Camp Hub.
