Chargers 90-in-90: WR Andre Patton

Andre Patton spent the 2019 season as the Chargers’ third wide receiver. However, he ended up with the seventh-most receiving yards on the team and finished eighth on the team in catches.

But before he made his way to the Chargers, Patton was a two-way standout for St. Elizabeth High School in Wilmington, Delaware. As a senior, Patton led his team in yards from scrimmage with 761 yards receiving and 677 on the ground with 22 total touchdowns. On the defensive side of the ball, he totaled 68 tackles and a trio of interceptions en route to being named the Delaware Defensive Player of the Year and the #1 prospect in the state of Delaware.

The three-star prospect by ESPN committed to play at Rutgers where he saw minimal playing time as a true freshman. In two starts among 11 total games played, Patton caught just three passes for 49 yards and a touchdown.

As a sophomore, Patton upped his numbers across the board with 20 catches, 223 yards, and three touchdowns. The following year, he set a career-high in both catches (34) and yards (432) but managed just a single touchdown catch.

In his final year at Rutgers, Patton caught another 33 passes for a career-best 460 yards and five touchdowns.

After he went undrafted in the 2017 draft, Patton signed with the Chargers where he would spend the next two seasons on the team’s practice squad. In 2019, Patton saw his first bit of playing time when he participated in 13 games and finished with six catches for 56 yards

Basic Info

Height: 6’2
Weight: 200
College: Rutgers
Experience: 3
Years with team: 3

Contract Status

“Andre Patton signed a 2 year, $1,080,000 contract with the Los Angeles Chargers, including an average annual salary of $540,000. In 2020, Patton will earn a base salary of $675,000, while carrying a cap hit of $675,000.” - Spotrac.com

The Good

Patton was the team’s second-leading receiver during the 2019 preseason with 86 yards while leading the team with a pair of touchdowns. He showed some nifty route-running and exhibited a knack for finding the holes in zone coverage.

The Bad

It’s surprising to see Patton stick around with the Chargers this long after a very underwhelming college career. He’s done enough to stick around for the last three years but it will be tough to continue using a roster spot for a guy who doesn’t specifically add anything to the offense. His skillset is similar to that of former UDFA Jason Moore and I’d say the latter provides more upside than the former. The 2019 season was his shot to show the team that he was a viable option in the pass game but the Chargers drafting a pair of wideouts signifies that they aren’t too high anymore on Patton’s chances of making an impact on offense.

Odds of making the roster/What to expect in 2020?

Patton’s chances of making the final roster rely mostly on whether or not the team decides to keep five or six wide receivers during final cuts. If they stick with only five, then I think he’ll be battling with Darius Jennings for the final spot. If it’s six, I’d throw Jason Moore into that mix as a potential youngster to win a spot, as well.