Chargers Meet With Forrest Lamp
- Most NFL teams believe Western Kentucky offensive lineman Forrest Lamp will be selected in the 20s, per Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). Lamp will likely play guard in the NFL after playing tackle in college, but he offers versatility that intrigues clubs, as he could slide to the blindside or even to center if needed. Following his Pro Day, Lamp had dinner with the Chargers‘ staff, writes Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com, who reported last week that a number of clubs are interested in Lamp.
Philip Rivers Not Willing To Give Up Role
The Chargers have been connected to a number of quarterback prospects, including DeShone Kizer, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Dobbs. Current signal-caller, veteran Philip Rivers, understands why his team would start looking for an heir apparent. However, the 35-year-old was also adamant that he’s not looking to give up his role anytime soon.
Chargers Work Out DeShone Kizer
- Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer is working out with the Chargers on Friday, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Kizer already worked for the Jets and Browns, Rapoport adds. “(Kizer) makes some throws that Trubisky and Watson cannot make,” ESPN.com’s Todd McShay said during the Notre Dame passer’s pro day (via Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com). “But Kizer also misses a lot of throws that typically you wouldn’t see from (Mitchell) Trubisky or (Deshaun) Watson. I think probably he has the strongest arm. He has the biggest upside of all of these quarterbacks.” Potentially ready to tab a successor to Philip Rivers, the Bolts have been linked to Texas Tech’s Patrick Mahomes as well.
Chargers Work Out Patrick Mahomes
Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who could go anywhere from the top of the first round to the second round in this year’s draft, is drawing interest from three teams with aging franchise signal-callers. A Chargers contingent consisting of head coach Anthony Lynn, offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt and quarterbacks coach Shane Steichen put Mahomes through a private workout in Lubbock, Texas, last week, reports Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. The Bolts have a starting passer in Philip Rivers, but he’ll be 36 in December, so they’ll at least consider taking a QB early. The club is set to pick seventh and 38th in the first two rounds.
Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who could go anywhere from the top of the first round to the second round in this year’s draft, is drawing interest from three teams with aging franchise signal-callers. A Chargers contingent consisting of head coach Anthony Lynn, offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt and quarterbacks coach Shane Steichen put Mahomes through a private workout in Lubbock, Texas, last week, reports Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. The Bolts have a starting passer in Philip Rivers, but he’ll be 36 in December, so they’ll at least consider taking a QB early. The club is set to pick seventh and 38th in the first two rounds.
New Orleans, meanwhile, has a 38-year-old under center in Drew Brees, meaning there’s more urgency for the club to find its next passer than there is for the Chargers. With that in mind, Saints head coach Sean Payton, offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael and members of the team’s front office traveled to Lubbock to work out Mahomes on Tuesday, according to NFL.com. “They said every time they see me under center, I look better and better,” Mahomes said of the Saints, who currently own three of the draft’s first 45 selections (Nos. 11, 32 and 42).
Chargers To Re-Sign RB Branden Oliver
The Chargers have agreed to re-sign running back Branden Oliver to a one-year deal, as Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Exact terms of the deal are not yet known, but it’s quite possible that he has no guaranteed cash, so his roster spot is not a certainty. 
Oliver was non-tendered by the Bolts earlier this month, allowing him to explore free agency unencumbered. We did not hear any rumblings of free agent visits or outside interest, so it’s possible that Oliver didn’t find much of a market for his services. He’ll now return to the Bolts, presumably at a lower price than the one-year, $1.797MM original round tender.
Oliver became a focal part of the Chargers’ rushing game in 2014 amidst injuries in the backfield. In 2015, an injury of his own landed him on IR midway through the season. Then, last summer, he suffered an Achilles tear in August and never returned to action. Oliver has not seen the field since November 1, 2015.
The Chargers added running back Kenjon Barner to the fold this week and they now have five RBs in total.
Davis Webb A Potential First-Round Pick?
California quarterback Davis Webb is a candidate to be selected in the first round of next month’s draft, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link), who cites a “growing sense” Webb may be chosen on Day 1.
The Jets, Chiefs, and Chargers have all set up interviews with Webb, per Cole, while the Ravens and Buccaneers have also expressed interest in the 6’5″ signal-caller. A club could trade back into the first round with an eye towards drafting Webb, reports Cole, and such a move would enable a team to hold a fifth-year option on Webb. That option — for the 2021 campaign — would allow a club to retain Webb for a fifth season at a cheap rate.
While Webb has generally been considered a Day 2 pick to this point, the overall demand for quarterbacks could conceivably force him into the back end of Round 1. At present, Todd McShay of ESPN.com ranks Webb as the draft’s No. 7 QB, behind Deshaun Watson, Mitch Trubisky, DeShone Kizer, Patrick Mahomes, Nathan Peterman, and Joshua Dobbs.
Webb, 22, transferred to Cal from Texas Tech after losing out on the Red Raiders’ starting job to Mahomes. In his only season with the Bears, Webb completed 61.6% of his passes for 4,295 yards, 37 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.
Chargers Hosting RB Prospect Joe Mixon
Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is set to undergo surgery to repair a partially torn rotator cuff on his throwing shoulder, reports ESPN.com’s David Newton. The former MVP is expected to miss offseason workouts, but he should be recovered for the start of training camp. Newton originally suffered the injury during his Week 14 matchup against the Chargers.
- Embattled running back prospect Joe Mixon is set to meet with the Chargers, tweets ESPN.com’s Jim Trotter. The Oklahoma product would undoubtedly be an intriguing fit for Los Angeles, although the team is currently rostering four running backs in Melvin Gordon, Kenneth Farrow, Andre Williams, and Kenjon Barner.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/20/17
Here are today’s minor moves.
- The Patriots released running back Tyler Gaffney, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Gaffney has an extensive history with the Patriots but hasn’t played in a game. He spent the past three summers with the team, failing to make New England’s 53-man roster out of camp in each. He vacillated between the Pats’ active roster and practice squad last year, so if history is any indication, a reunion at could ensue at some point later this year.
- The Chargers re-signed previously non-tendered defensive end Tenny Palepoi, according to a team announcement. Palepoi missed the entire 2015 season with a foot injury but returned to action in 2016. He had 13 tackles in 13 games but wound up missing the last three contests due to a PED suspension. He still has to finish out that ban by sitting out one game in 2017.
- Another Bolts move: ERFA wide receiver Geremy Davis signed his tender.
- The Panthers announce they’ve re-signed cornerback Teddy Williams to a one-year extension. Mainly utilized in a special teams role, Williams played in only three games last year due to a knee injury. In 2015, he appeared in all 16 regular-season contests for the NFC champions.
- Long snapper Jon Condo re-signed with the Raiders. Condo’s been the Silver and Black’s long snapper since the 2007 season after breaking into the NFL with the 2005 Cowboys. Given that long snappers have a precise salary range — 14 of them earn between $1MM and $1.15MM per year — it’s fairly easy to project Condo’s next contract’s AAV. The 36-year-old is the Raiders’ second-longest-tenured player behind Sebastian Janikowski.
- Cody Parkey will have some competition with the Browns this summer. Cleveland added CFL kicker Brett Maher from the CFL. The 27-year-old hasn’t appeared in an NFL game yet. He’s kicked in Canada for the past three seasons, spending 2016 with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Maher made 41 of 50 field goal tries for Hamilton. Parkey, 24, hit 20 of his 25 attempts and made 20 of 21 PATs.
- The Redskins announced the re-signing of left tackle Ty Nsekhe. Washington placed an ERFA tender on Nsekhe, who at 31 is much older than players normally involved in these transactions. Nsekhe spent the past two seasons with Washington, starting in six games in that span. Four of those starts came last season while Trent Williams was serving a substance-abuse suspension.
- After the Nick Folk signing created a stacked Buccaneers kicker depth chart, the team released John Lunsford, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. Folk and Roberto Aguayo will battle for the Bucs’ kicker job, leaving Lunsford without a role.
Chargers To Sign Kenjon Barner
The Eagles did not elect to tender an RFA contract to Kenjon Barner, allowing the running back to explore other options. He appears to have found one. The Chargers agreed to terms to add Barner, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. It’s a one-year deal for Barner, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
Barner will be entering his fifth NFL season but was just eligible for restricted free agency this year due to service-time issues, but the Eagles non-tendering the ball-carrier moved him to the UFA market a year early. He will join a Chargers backfield that was decimated by injuries in 2016 and one that just lost Danny Woodhead in free agency. Barner adds depth to a Bolts backfield stable housing Melvin Gordon, who has failed to finish each of his first two NFL seasons, and Kenneth Farrow.
The Eagles used Barner sparingly, with the likes of Ryan Mathews, Darren Sproles and DeMarco Murray blocking his path to playing time.
On 27 carries last season, Barner averaged a career-best 4.8 yards per carry. Philadelphia initially acquired Barner via trade from the Panthers, so the Chargers will be the former Oregon running back’s third NFL team. The soon-to-be 28-year-old running back gained 129 yards last season and scored two touchdowns. He has just 61 career carries.
Chargers Re-Sign Kenny Wiggins
- The Chargers have re-signed reserve offensive lineman Kenny Wiggins to a one-year deal, per Michael Gehlken (Twitter link). Wiggins, who had stints with the Ravens and 49ers from 2011-13, is now in line to play a fourth year with the Bolts. He debuted in 2014 and has since racked up 29 appearances and nine starts. Wiggins totaled a career-high eight starts in 2015, while the other came last year.