The Hall of Fame Game may not count but there is still plenty to take away from the action. LA Chargers fans got the first glimpse of what Jim Harbaugh's team will look like in 2025 and learned some key details about the inner workings of the depth chart.
For some, these takeaways were positive. Rookie wideout KeAndre Lambert-Smith thrived and proved he can be a difference-maker in 2025. For others, it wasn't as positive. 2022 First-round pick Zion Johnson really struggled as the starting center, which does not bode well for him this season.
Others didn't even get a chance to do much in the Hall of Fame Game, which does all the talking itself. This is the boat 2024 seventh-round pick Brenden Rice found himself in. The former USC Trojan didn't see the field until late in the fourth quarter once the game was essentially over and the field was full of players who won't make the roster.
Chargers may have just confirmed Brenden Rice will get cut
It's not hard to read between the lines with Rice's situation. It's never a good look when you don't see the field until the fourth quarter of the first preseason game. Usually, those players are the first ones to go.
This is not the first time Rice's job security has been in question. Earlier this offseason, offensive coordinator Greg Roman was discussing the depth in the wide receiver room and notably left Rice out.
This is an unfortunate fall from grace for Rice, who had immense hype behind him this time last year. The son of Hall of Fame wideout Jerry Rice, Brenden was projected to be a fourth-round pick in 2024 and fell to the Chargers in the seventh round.
As a result, many fans were convinced the Chargers landed the steal of the draft. All it took were a few training camp highlights to confirm those priors and the hype train officially left the building.
Rice never came around as injuries delayed his debut. The Chargers didn't utilize Rice much at all when he was healthy even when the team was dealing with injuries to a thin wide receiver room.
It's an unfortunate reality for Rice that he is not going to make the Chargers roster in 2025. Now the focus turns to making the practice squad; however, given the nature of the depth chart, even that might be an uphill battle for the former Trojan.