Stock Down: Andre Patton, wide receiver
Every team needs a guy like Andre Patton. Someone that’s gonna come in and grind every day. Someone that takes pride in the little things like blocking on the perimeter. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always lead to production and long term job security.
Patton was the de facto wide receiver three last year after Tyrell Williams left in free agency and both Travis Benjamin and Dontrell Inman ended up on the injured reserve.
That opportunity led to six catches for 56 yards. That’s not intended as a slight towards Patton, as I said I think he does bring value to this team as a blocker and likely special teams player. In terms of the special teams role, maybe he takes over for Geremy Davis, but I can’t see the production getting much better after the team added Darius Jennings in free agency and then drafted Joe Reed and KJ Hill.
The new collective bargaining agreement likely helps a guy like Patton stick around longer than would have been the case previously. The team has kept six wide receivers on the active roster in the past but it wasn’t a very common occurrence. Now that they can keep 55 players instead of 53, maybe that becomes the norm. Either way, it’s tough to envision a large role on this offense for Patton.
Stock Up: Donald Parham, tight end
With Hunter Henry‘s long term future uncertain, many people around the league thought the Los Angeles Chargers might have looked at adding a tight end in the draft as insurance in case they weren’t confident in that long term potential. Instead, they expressed some faith in Donald Parham, a developmental tight end out of the XFL.
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Parham has great size and athleticism for the position. He really excelled in the XFL during their limited season. I don’t know if anyone else made this connection but watching him run reminded me of former Chargers tight end Ladarius Green.
Both of them are very tall and are long stride runners. If he can develop into a more consistent route runner and blocker, the Los Angeles Chargers could have their hands on a very lethal combination between him and Henry.
The fact that they didn’t draft a tight end or bring in another cheap veteran signing means they believe that Henry can stay healthy and that Parham can be a contributor on this team as the third tight end on the depth chart.
I personally don’t believe Storm Norton will make the roster, but I would be shocked if Parham didn’t. Norton has a few guys he has to beat out and he plays a more difficult position. Parham on the other hand just has to compete with guys like Stephen Anderson and Andrew Vollert.
Obviously it’s not reasonable to expect a big-time workload for Parham this season as the team’s third tight end, don’t forget Virgil Green will likely still have a role on this team. If he’s able to flash some big-play ability and get around 15-20 catches, a couple hundred yards and a few touchdowns that be the best-case scenario for Parham this season in my opinion.
However, he’s making the jump from the XFL to the NFL and it seems he’s already earned a roster spot so anything more than that is great for him.