Chargers on the Offensive Bubble: The Staff, Front Office Debate Before Cutdown Day

The Los Angeles Chargers wrapped up their preseason Thursday night with a tightly contested loss to their neighbor Rams. Unlike the Rams, the Chargers had their starters play a few snaps on both sides of the ball in a ramp-up to the season opener. The rest of the contest featured young and roster bubble players being given a chance to prove themselves to the front office and coaching staff with their final opportunity.

Offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel had said during his post- practice press conference last Monday that they had one practice and four quarters left to evaluate the players. The sentiment appeared clear against the Rams as the players with roster spots seemingly secured, they exited the game to make way for many players to put more reps on film to build their last-minute resume.

Let's examine who the coaching staff and front office were likely evaluating, backed up by the overall snap counts and their roster groups.

Offense

Trevor Penning

The veteran offensive lineman was fighting for a roster spot against the Rams. He played the most snaps of any offensive player with 52 snaps on the night, matched by only one other Chargers offensive player. Penning was originally brought back onto the roster and expected to compete for the starting left guard job.

Unfortunately, Penning seemed to fall behind in the battle for left guard and has been exclusively running with the second and third teams to wrap up preseason. The Chargers front office and coaching staff are likely debating Penning as the tenth offensive lineman in a battle against rookie Logan Taylor.

Logan Taylor

Logan Taylor tied Trevor Penning with the most offensive snaps of the night against the Rams with 52. Taylor was the Chargers' first sixth-round pick in the 2026 draft. He surprisingly played more tackle in preseason than guard but has plenty of flexibility to play both but is better suited for guard.

The Chargers are likely debating Taylor against Penning for the tenth offensive line slot. Taylor would be the fourth rookie in the room should he win the battle for the last spot.

Gregory Desrosiers Jr

Chargers running back Greg Desrosiers Jr. (31) runs the ball against the Rams. — Aug 27, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Chargers running back Greg Desrosiers Jr. (31) runs the ball against the Los Angeles Rams during the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Did undrafted running back Gregory Desrosiers Jr. have an undeniable Austin Ekeler-type performance against the Rams? Back in 2017, Austin Ekeler essentially made the Chargers roster with his performance in the preseason finale against the San Francisco 49ers. Desrosiers rushed for 118 yards and a touchdown while forcing eight missed tackles on nine attempts and had 91 yards after contact. He added a reception for and a 29-yard kick return as well.

The reasons the Chargers could be debating Desrosiers as a potential to keep on the 53-man roster would be simple. If Keaton Mitchell will start the season on IR, they will need a third running back. If they need a third running back, why Desrosiers over Amar Johnson? Desrosiers flashed his abilities on special teams with two tackles on top of a 29-yard kick return.

Every team in the NFL needs their third running back to play on special teams and Desrosiers could be in danger if another Shanahan-based scheme needs a running back to start the season. Could the Chargers see one of their running backs swiped off waivers for the second year in a row? That is part of the debate.

DJ Uiagalelei

Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei put together a great overall preseason and showed significant steps in development in his second season with the Chargers. It is easy to forget, based on how his final season went in college, that Uiagalelei has always had immense talent and has the experience as a starting quarterback to go with it.

Uiagalelei has 45 starts under his belt at the collegiate level and elite arm talent. The Chargers sent him out for 39 snaps against the Rams and gave him the chance to build his NFL resume. Unfortunately, Uiagalelei just missed sticking the landing against the Rams with a strip sack to end the game.

His counterpart in the the quarterback room is Trey Lance who had a less than stellar preseason. There is a low chance that this is the year the Uiagalelei takes the reigns as the fulltime backup, but they Chargers gave him the opportunity to get reps and build his resume.

Add us as a preferred source on Google