Jim Harbaugh announced Tuesday that Trey Lance would start for the LA Chargers in Thursday's Hall of Fame game against the Detroit Lions. Lance will play the entire first half and into the third quarter before handing signal-caller duties over to undrafted free agent DJ Uiagalelei.
Taylor Heinicke will serve as the emergency third quarterback while Justin Herbert won't dress. This is standard as the Chargers still have well over a month until games actually start to matter.
To some fans, Lance starting may indicate a battle for the third quarterback position between he and Uiagalelei. With an extra preseason game, the team has plenty of time to evaluate Taylor Heinicke in a game setting, after all.
However, that may not totally be the case. Lance is somehow picking up some buzz during Chargers training camp and his performance in the Hall of Fame game could be a catalyst that propels him into the QB2 discussion.
Lance has gotten the most reps with the second team offense so far in training camp. A strong preseason showing will cement his status as the QB2. Would expect we see him carry the ball a significant amount in the 4 games. https://t.co/eQUxUfJTlP
— Steven Haglund (@StevenIHaglund) July 29, 2025
Trey Lance has a chance to be the QB2, and that should scare Chargers fans
Obviously, nothing is set in stone and there is a long way to go until the 2025 season. Just because Lance is getting reps with the second-team offense doesn't mean anything about his place on the depth chart.
Those reps could have been happening simply because the Chargers knew he would play the early preseason games over Heinicke. There is arguably more info to be gathered in whether or not Lance is capable to be the QB3 than there is throwing Heinicke out there with the second-team offense. This could purely be for information gathering purposes.
However, it is notable that this is the first time all summer where it at least seems like a possibility Lance may win the QB2 job. That seemed like an impossible outcome when he first signed with the Chargers, and now there are at least signs of life.
Chargers fans should hope this impossible reality remains impossible. While Lance has the draft priors of being a former third-overall pick, he has struggled mightily in every small opportunity he has gotten throughout his NFL career.
Sure, Lance adds a different dynamic as a mobile quarterback and that could have some value if the Chargers need to run a Lamar Jackson-style offense if Herbert gets hurt but even that is situational. Lance still would have to do a lot of throwing in that offense and there are no signs he could handle that.
All Chargers fans have to do is look at the last preseason game Lance started, which was against the Bolts. As a member of the Dallas Cowboys, Lance threw five interceptions against the Chargers. Yes, five. In a preseason game.
If anything, Chargers fans should hope Lance turns in a similar performance in the Hall of Fame game to nip these backup conversations in the bud. The outcome of the game truly does not matter and the last thing the Chargers need is to give Herbert a bad backup because of a good preseason game or two.