The Los Angeles Chargers, clearly, had some difficult decisions to make when it came to settling the initial 53-man roster.
This isn't a team that gives up on its draft selections easily, and it must not have been a clear-cut choice to move both Kyle Kennard and Junior Colson off the roster to start the year. While Colson remains on the practice squad, Kennard has been released from the IR with an injury settlement—officially ending his time in Los Angeles. The team also was forced to move on from a pair of preseason standouts in Avery Smith and TeRah Edwards, moving both players in trades to bring back late-round draft capital.
With the edges of the roster as tight as they were, it seemed highly unlikely that there would be any room for fullback/tight end Scott Matlock, who's now undertaking his second positional change in just four seasons with the team's addition of Alec Ingold in free agency.
And yet as the Chargers approach Week 1, Matlock's placement on the IR with an undisclosed injury means that there will need to be a decision made eventually on his status. If Los Angeles wants to squeeze him onto the 53-man roster—which feels possible at this point given their decision not to outright release him—who does he replace? What does his role look like on a week-to-week basis?
Scott Matlock doesn't have a major role to play for the Chargers, but it's unclear what their intentions are for him
Matlock, ever since he came into the league, has clearly been a favorite of Harbaugh. It says a lot about a player when they're willing to not only switch positions but move sides of the ball entirely to fit the needs of their team, and Matlock has consistently played with intensity and physicality when he's been asked to take the field for the Chargers.
But no matter how you want to spin it, Ingold is a massive upgrade over Matlock at fullback, especially considering his experience within McDaniel's run game. Even with a switch to a Y tight-end role, there still aren't major snaps available for Matlock. The Chargers will employ ample 12 and 13-personnel looks, but their combination of Charlie Kolar, David Njoku, and Oronde Gadsden II should be more than enough to maintain that without an extra tight end on the roster.
As of now, the Chargers have three players on their injured reserve—Branson Taylor, Denzel Perryman, and Matlock. Moving those three pieces there gives the Chargers time to continue to evaluate players like Alex Harkey and Kendall Williamson before an additional roster crunch takes place.
Perryman is obviously a lock to return to the roster when he's healthy. Given his performance in the preseason and training camp, it's reasonable to think Taylor is as well. So where does that leave Matlock?
As a player with more than three years of NFL experience, he wouldn't have to clear waivers if the Chargers decided to move him to the practice squad. But they currently have two tight ends there in Evan Svoboda and the newly-signed Patrick Herbert, one of which would likely have to be released in order to carry Matlock. But Los Angeles' continued usage of him throughout the preseason also made it seem like he had a real chance to crack the 53-man roster.
Whatever path they want to take, Matlock's return from the IR presents a conundrum they'll need to solve. They've simply kicked the can down the road to Week 5 in terms of the remaining implications of their roster crunch.
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