Chargers 90-in-90: OG Ryan Hunter

Welcome back to another offseason series of 90-in-90! Now of course that is a loose title for these posts nowadays as we don’t often stick strictly to 90 posts in 90 days, but it’s too catchy and familiar of a title to just get rid of it so here we are.

But you all know the drill by now. Leading up to the offseason, we’re going to be highlighting players on the Chargers roster all the way up until the beginning of the regular season. We usually start with players at the bottom of the roster and try to end our journey with the team’s starters.

First up this year is offensive lineman Ryan Hunter. Enjoy!

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 while also sharing The Buffalo News Player of the Year honor with running back Qadree Ollison. Ollison went on to star at Pittsburgh before being drafted by the Falcons in 2019.

Hunter signed to play his college ball at Bowling Green University where he participated in 52 total games over his five-year career. As a junior, he started all 12 games at right tackle 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 October 1st later that season. Following his initial year in Los Angeles, he signed a reserve/future contract on January 5, 2021. Over the next year, Hunter was a mainstay on the practice squad before signing yet another future’s deal in January off 2022.

Basic Info

Height: 6’3
Weight: 316
College: Bowling Green
Experience: 5
Years with team: 2

Contract Status

“Ryan Hunter signed a 1 year, $825,000 contract with the Los Angeles Chargers, including an average annual salary of $825,000. In 2022, Hunter will earn a base salary of $825,000, while carrying a cap hit of $825,000.” - 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 Bowling Green which only adds to the notable experience that teams don’t mind having in even the players who sit furthest down the depth chart.

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 team continued to beef up the position group. Due to his lack of ideal NFL size and length, he’s pigeon-holed into an interior position which only got deeper with the drafting of Zion Johnson and Jamaree Salyer.

Odds of making the roster/What to expect in 2022?

The Chargers have 14 total offensive lineman on their roster at the moment and Hunter is pretty set within the bottom-three players. The team is expected to keep around nine offensive lineman on their active roster and with plenty of depth along the interior, Hunter is expected to spend another go-round on the practice squad.