Chargers Training Camp Notes: Jatavis Brown Looks Fantastic

First I would like to preface this by saying these are my observations based on ONE practice scrimmage. As the great philosopher Allen Iverson once said: “Practice, we’re talking about practice here!”.

Here are my Los Angeles Chargers Blue/White scrimmage observations:

The Mike Williams that we saw in college is about to make his debut in the NFL. It’s time for Chargers fans to finally embrace Williams and root for him to be the player worthy of such a high draft selection. He is a different kind of player. On Saturday, he was brought in on the 2nd team O when they moved the ball into the red zone. And the first play, he was wide open in the middle of the endzone for the touchdown. Then later, when the 1st team O was back inside the 10, Rivers practiced the back shoulder pass to him, which he brought in for his second score. Confidence is gonna be essential for him too. Probably why they tried to get him the ball both times.

Don’t forget about Tyrell! The dude looks a little more healthier above the waist, and he’s still probably the 2nd fastest player on the team. He was equally unstoppable Saturday catching slants and deep routes. The Chargers are going to have a tough decision next year when they have to decide if they want to re-sign him. You will see a mature Tyrell this year and its safe to say he’s gonna be among the leaders in Yards Per Catch.

Which brings me to Keenan. He’s probably in the best shape of his life and would typically be poised to build on last years team record season. But what I saw on Saturday has me re-thinking Keenan as a keeper on my fantasy team. His production has to take a hit. Has to. I haven’t even mentioned anything about Benji, Artavis, and the injured rookie Dylan Cantrell. It doesn’t mean Keenan is any less valuable,, it’s that Philip has so many weapons.

Disclaimer: Virgil Green and I both attended the same high school in Tulare, Ca. But don’t let that make you think I’m being biased here. Virgil is going to hold his own at the position. Speaking of which, this unit will be stable for the team, and I think with just how reliable they are, the Chargers are going to let Antonio Gates enjoy retirement.

Anyone worried about the Chargers back-up QB job? Don’t be. Geno Smith looks pretty comfortable out there in just his first season. Granted, he probably wouldn’t be a starter on any of the 32 teams in the league, but he just might be one of the top 5 backups though. That’s a vast improvement over Kellen Clemens. Everybody can breathe a sigh of relief.

Joe Barksdale had his hands full with Joey Bosa Saturday. From the little bit that I saw, he was going toe to toe with Bosa except for one play where Bosa got free. Let us hope that iron sharpens iron analogy we keep hearing means Bosa is gonna have Barksdale ready for the rest of the AFC West.

I won’t spend a lot of time on Derwin James, but I will say this: he’s gonna be lined up everywhere. The Chargers have their Ed Reed.

Let us hope Trevor Williams heals from his injury quickly and its not a lingering issue. No offense to Mike Davis, but the Chargers secondary didn’t have that swag we are used to seeing. Casey Hayward got beat a few teams, but he’s gonna be okay. That right side suddenly went from a starter to backup to the backup’s backup. That’s not gonna cut it.

The LB corp, if healthy, should be solid. I’m hoping by week 1 its Jatavis, Denzel, and Kyzir lined up. Emmanuel will still get his burn because the coaches like him, but Kyzir should see the majority of snaps. Jatavis was everywhere on Saturday, and its gonna be a good year if he can play all 16.

One Liners...

• Robert Aguayo booted a 48 yd fg with relative ease.
• No. 90 Whitney Richardson, kept flashing and I liked what I saw.
• Let us hope Russell Okung is in mid-season form already because I never saw Melvin Ingram get close to Philip.
• Austin Ekeler may be a part of this offense more than you think.
• Is this a make or break season for Melvin Gordon?
• Rayshawn Jenkins really wants to play and you can see it in his effort.
• Wish I could have spent more time looking at the battle in the trenches but the offense was passing too much for my eyeballs to stay glued in the muck.
• If Travis Benjamin gets hurt, Artavis Scott back deep returning may be the next man up.
• Philip shouldn’t have had an INT during the scrimmage; through the hands of Benji into Jenkins diving arms.