3 Chargers who have impressed in training camp

Chargers Training camp has started hot and hasn’t cooled off through the team’s first handful of practices, including Monday’s first session in full pads.

A number of players have impressed so far, but these three have caught my eye the most.

Let’s dive in.

WR John Hightower

With incumbent speed threat Jalen Guyton still sidelined by the torn ACL he suffered at the start of last season, Hightower has done nothing but take advantage of the opportunities being given to him in practice to show off his own ability as a field-stretcher.

Through the first few days of camp, he’s been dynamite getting open deep for Justin Herbert and that play has been rewarded by some excellent passes his way. If you were keeping track at home the amount of deep touchdowns being caught by each receiver, Hightower is most certainly at the top by a good margin.

On Monday, head coach Brandon Staley told the media that Hightower “got better as he went” a season ago and that he’s continued to have a strong start to this camp. If Guyton misses enough camp, could the team end up moving on from the former UDFA?

CB J.C. Jackson

It cannot be understated just how incredible it is to see Jackson on the field going through nearly full practices this soon following his scary injury in week seven of last season. It became even crazier after watching him go through full 11-on-11 drills in pads on Monday.

Over the first handful of practices, Jackson has gone toe-to-toe with the likes of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams and held his own, despite not likely being back to 100 percent. After being skeptical of him returning in time for week one, it’s almost a foregone conclusion he’ll be ready to rock once the team takes the field against the Dolphins.

CB Ja’Sir Taylor

After the team allowed veteran slot corner Bryce Callahan to walk in free agency, it’s been expected that Taylor would take over the starting gig after he saw snaps in place of a injured Callahan during his rookie season. Thus far through camp, that certainly seems to be the case.

Taylor is having his ups-and-downs, but that’s to be expected as a young defensive back who is tasked with going up some notable wideouts every single day. However, I believe the ups have definitely outweighed the downs when you consider the impressive nature of his plays in coverage. When the pads came on during Monday’s session, Taylor was extremely physical from the start, showing no fear in regards to who lined up across from him.

In the end, Taylor gets a nod here simply due to exceeding expectations. His campaign was fine by all means, but I personally did not foresee his early camp sessions going this well and for that I’m impressed.