Los Angeles Chargers Trim Roster Down to 53

The Los Angeles Chargers have made the roster moves necessary to get down to the league maximum of 53 players on the active roster.

Quarterbacks - 2

Philip Rivers

Cardale Jones

Chargers decide to release Kellen Clemens after all and go in to the season with two QB’s. Cardale Jones seemed to get better the longer he was in LA so hopefully this continues going forward.

Running Backs/Fullback - 4

Melvin Gordon

Branden Oliver

Austin Ekeler

Derek Watt

The small surprise here is getting rid of the veterans they brought in with Andre Williams and Kenjon Barner. Austin Ekeler played his way on the roster in the last two preseason games and seems to be that change of pace guy now that Woodhead is gone.

Wide Receivers - 6

Keenan Allen

Tyrell Williams

Travis Benjamin

Mike Williams

Dontrelle Inman

Geremy Davis

The surprise here is Mike Williams being on the active roster and not staying on the PUP to start the season. Unlikely to contribute until October at the earliest, he will be inactive until he is ready. Some reports had the Chargers trying to deal Inman, but he stays on the roster for now.

Tight Ends - 4

Antonio Gates

Hunter Henry

Sean McGrath

Sean Culkin

The Chargers decide to cut ties with Jeff Cumberland after keeping him around in the offseason and having him make numerous appearances in LA when the move was announced. Sean Culkin clearly earned this roster spot as the team lined him up in a number of positions and he was able to be effective in both blocking and receiving.

Offensive Line - 8

Russell Okung

Matt Slauson

Spencer Pulley

Kenny Wiggins

Joe Barksdale

Chris Hairston

Dan Feeney

Sam Tevi

The starting line has been the same since the start of camp (even though Lamp probably would have changed things) so none of them are surprises. Worth noting that Max Tuerk is suspended for the first four games and will not count against the roster until that has been served. They decided to keep Sam Tevi around over Tyreek Burwell and the only backup interior player is Dan Feeney. Surprised they only kept eight offensive lineman, this is a position I expect them to comb the waiver wire for.

Defensive Line - 9

Melvin Ingram

Corey Liuget

Brandon Mebane

Joey Bosa

Damion Square

Darius Philon

Jerry Attaochu

Chris McCain

Isaac Rochell

Don’t think there is anything shocking here. Chris McCain was wonderful in the preseason and has earned playing time during the season in my opinion. Tenny Palepoi is suspended for the first game of the year and will not count against the roster until that has been served.

Linebackers - 7

Jatavis Brown

Korey Toomer

Kyle Emanuel

Nick Dzubnar

James Onwualu

Nigel Harris

Denzel Perryman

This was a position that was one to watch. After Perryman went down with his injury that will keep him out for the first month or two of the season the depth was left pretty wide open. Perryman is expected to be placed on injured reserve-designated to return.

Cornerbacks - 5

Jason Verrett

Casey Hayward

Desmond King

Craig Mager

Trevor Williams

The surprise here is Michael Davis not making the team and Craig Mager sticking around. Mager seemed to be on the fast track out of LA but the team has decided to keep him on the roster. Trevor Williams was here last year and made some plays, someone the team clearly has some faith in.

Safeties - 5

Jahleel Addae

Tre Boston

Adrian Phillips

Rayshawn Jenkins

Dexter McCoil

The surprise cut came earlier today with Dwight Lowery not being retained after most considered him the projected starter just a couple of months ago. Adrian Phillips and Dexter McCoil are both guys the team seems to love and will see plenty of playing time come the regular season.

Special Teams - 3

K Younghoe Koo

P Drew Kaser

LS Mike Windt

And there it is. Younghoe Koo won the kicking battle with incumbent Josh Lambo. A bit of a shock being that Koo was only allowed to attempt one kick during the preseason by the coaching staff and seemed a little inconsistent on kickoffs. This reminds me a bit of when Lambo won the job previously because he too didn’t look too impressive in Training Camp or preseason.

As with most teams, I wouldn’t imagine that this is anything close to final. I’d look for the Chargers to add some guys that were let go from their teams during final cuts as well in some key positions of need.

What do you think of this initial 53 man roster? What would you have done differently?