The Los Angeles Chargers bolt up to begin 2021 preseason at SoFi Stadium for the first time with fans as they beat the Los Angeles Rams 13-6.
Before I give you my latest thoughts on the first game of the preseason, let’s back up a few weeks as I began covering the Los Angeles Chargers.
It’s been great catching all the action and getting a chance to watch the Rookie of the Year, Chargers QB Justin Herbert. As I watched Herbert with my very own eyes, I saw greatness in the making. Coming off his rookie year, he’s excited to be more of a leader and be the quarterback of the city of Los Angeles.
Herbert has been the talk around town as he’s the reigning rookie of the year and put up insane numbers as he broke multiple rookie records last season.
As I watched Justin Herbert practice with his teammates as training camp opened, I heard Justin being very vocal with the other veterans on the field which is a big sign of maturity for the second year quarterback. The way he is beginning to carry himself on and off the field is great for the Chargers because there’s not that many young quarterbacks who develop quickly like Justin and others.
Herbert has been looking good throwing the ball during practice as the rest of the roster has also looked pretty impressive but give credit to newly head coach Brandon Staley.
Staley was the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams last season under Sean McVay which allowed the Rams to be really good on the defensive side of the ball under Staley but also allowed him to be a candidate for head coaching jobs around the league which ultimately he landed down the hall as the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Chargers have huge support from the community as they all showed up at Chargers Fan Fest/Practice last Sunday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA.
The Chargers played a great first game which was very low scoring but this is what is expected when you have lots of new guys on the roster trying to make the team early on in the preseason.
One guy who made great plays last night was Chargers backup QB Chase Daniel as he threw for 104 yards and completed 15-24 passes in the debut of the new stadium.
Chase Daniel is turning 35 later this year as he will be the backup to Justin Herbert but Chase is great to have as the back up as there’s lots of teams who don’t have a solid backup and it can end up being a crucial piece to a successful season.
Daniel attended the University of Missouri in 2005 and had 4 amazing years there and also finished as a Heisman finalist twice. He when undrafted in the 2009 NFL draft but was signed immediately by the Washington Redskins and released early in the season but later was pick up quickly by the New Orleans Saints, who when on to win the Super Bowl that year.
Over the last 10 years, Chase has been part of 7 different teams but it seems like he is a perfect fit with the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Chargers defense was good last night as they only allowed 1 touchdown in the first half and held the Rams scoreless in the second half. One player who should be on everyone’s radar is rookie receiver Josh Palmer who was drafted 77th overall in the 3rd round of the 2021 NFL draft.
He is expected to help the Chargers this year even with Keenan Allen and Mike Williams as the top receivers. Palmer had 6 receptions with 36 total yards as he was limited with minutes in the first preseason game.
All I can say is that the Los Angeles Chargers have a lot of players with great potential but it is up to first year coach Brandon Staley to lead this team to the promise land.
Next game for the Chargers is on Sunday Aug 22nd as they host the San Francisco 49rs Live from SoFi Stadium.
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