Chargers 90-in-90: OG Ryan Hunter

Ryan Hunter, born and raised in North Bay, Ontario, made the move to the United States as a teenager where he played his prep ball at Canisius High School in Buffalo, New York. His career at Canisius ended with Hunter being named the best offensive lineman in Western New York and sharing The Buffalo News Player of the Year honor with Qadree Ollison, who went on to star at Pitt before being drafted by the Falcons.

Hunter went on to play his college ball at Bowling Green University where he played in 52 total games over his five-year career. As a junior, he started all 12 games on the right side before flipping to the blindside as a senior.

After failing to get drafted in 2018, Hunter passed up an opportunity to play for the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL — who drafted him ninth-overall in the CFL draft — to sign with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent.

Most of his time with Kansas City was spent on the practice squad but he did make the active roster during their trip to Super Bowl 54. Ahead of the 2020 season, he was let go in final cuts.

Hunter ended up signing with the Chargers on the first of October later that season. Following his first year in Los Angeles, he signed a reserve/future contract on January 5, 2021.

Basic Info

Height: 6’3
Weight: 316
College: Bowling Green
Experience: 4
Years with team: 1

Contract Status

“Ryan Hunter signed a 2 year, $1,675,000 contract with the Los Angeles Chargers, including an average annual salary of $837,500. In 2021, Hunter will earn a base salary of $780,000, while carrying a cap hit of $780,000.” - Spotrac.com

The Good

Hunter played tackle in college which means he has some semblance of athletic ability to handle edge duties despite being just 6’3. He also played a ton of games while at BGU which means he’s got the coveted experience for any player coming into the NFL.

The Bad

Hunter has yet to get anywhere near the active roster for the Chargers and I believe the chances of that happening only went down after the re-vamping of the position. Due to his lack of ideal NFL size and length, he’s pigeon-holed into an interior position which I’d argue is the deepest part of the offensive line.

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

The Chargers have 14 total offensive lineman on their roster at the moment and Hunter is pretty set within the bottom-three players at the position. The team only keeps nine, maybe 10 offensive lineman on their active roster at a time and since the this new and improved unit is HOPEFULLY going to stay healthier than normal, that puts a big dent into the chances of any bottom-tier offensive lineman from making the team. With plenty of depth along the interior, Hunter is either barely hanging on to a practice squad spot or he’ll be looking for a new home by the end of the offseason.