With a quarterback controversy on their hands, who will be the LA Chargers starting quarterback in Week 1 of the 2020 NFL Season?
With the sixth pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the LA Chargers took Justin Herbert, a quarterback out of Oregon. Herbert and Tyrod Taylor will compete for the starting job, but which one should be the LA Chargers’ new signal-caller for the 2020 season?
Option 1: Tyrod Taylor
The likely candidate to be the LA Chargers starting quarterback for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season, is Tyrod Taylor. Taylor is a veteran quarterback who signed with the Chargers prior to the 2019 season.
After spending a year behind Philip Rivers, Taylor is the favorite to be the starter as he has spent a lot of time with Anthony Lynn dating back to their time in Buffalo. This will also be his second season with the Bolts and he is familiar with the roster and offense.
Taylor is a dual-threat quarterback. As we saw throughout the preseason, there were designed runs for him, as well as option plays. Taylor brings a whole new dynamic to the Chargers offense that we have never quite seen before.
During his time with the Bills, Taylor had some solid offensive playmakers surrounding him, but he has never had as much talent around him as the current Chargers roster does. With guys like Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Hunter Henry, Austin Ekeler and recently drafted K.J. Hill and Joe Reed, this is by far the most talented roster that Taylor has been a part of.
In Buffalo, his main targets were LeSean McCoy, Charles Clay, Robert Woods and Sammy Watkins. While these players were good, the Chargers weapons are better. In three seasons with the Bills, he threw for 8,857 yards, 51 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He also racked up 1,575 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground.
With better players around him, it might be safe to say that Taylor’s numbers could be better than they ever were in Buffalo. Taylor is a very conservative passer, throwing only 20 career interceptions with a 1.5 percent interception ratio. Each of his three seasons with the Bills have him ranked in the top 100 for lowest interception ratio in a single season, which shows how careful he is with the ball.
While it is good that he doesn’t throw interceptions or force the ball down the field, this could actually turn out to be an issue for the Chargers. In a division full of great offenses, Taylor might need to be more aggressive when passing and we really haven’t seen much of that from him over the course of his career.
If the Chargers defense is struggling against the Chiefs and they find themselves down two possessions in the fourth quarter, can the team rely on Taylor to take those deep shots and move the ball down the field quickly and efficiently?
Taylor does have five career game-winning drives, but his style of play might not be able to keep up with the high-powered offenses of the AFC West.
Taylor will not be the long-term solution for the Chargers. They drafted Herbert with the sixth pick and the plan is to get him on the field whenever he is ready. Will he be ready in Week 1 or will he need some time to learn and develop?