Backup quarterback is not going to be an issue for the second year in a row during the preseason. The LA Chargers are signing quarterback Taylor Heinicke to a one-year deal worth up to $6.2 million to back up Justin Herbert.
The Chargers were forced to scramble and trade for Heinicke prior to the 2024 season after seeing disastrous quarterback play in the preseason. At the time, there were concerns about Herbert's health and if he would have to miss a game or two to start the season. Without Heinicke, the Chargers would have conceded those games.
It ultimately did not matter as Herbert played all 17 games but it is still important to invest in backup quarterback. The Chargers are doing that with Heinicke and it likely will spell the end of Easton Stick, who hung on in LA much longer than fans expected.
Chargers re-signing Taylor Heinicke may spell the end of Easton Stick
Taken in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, Stick never quite became the true backup quarterback he was meant to be. A third-stringer for most of his career who actually played scout safety early in his career, Stick finally got the chance to be the backup heading into 2024.
Unfortunately, Stick quickly lost the job. The former North Dakota State quarterback put together some of the worst quarterback games in recent preseason memory. He completed 25 of 55 passes for 303 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions.
Stick's porous play directly led the Chargers to trade for Heinicke and eventually re-sign him this offseason. With Heinicke now secured, the Chargers may have completely closed the book on Stick.
The Chargers surprisingly re-signed Stick last offseason even though the team clearly needed a better backup quarterback. The only explanation at the time is that the new Chargers regime re-signed Stick solely to make Herbert happy and keep continuity in the quarterback room.
Perhaps the Chargers could re-sign Stick to be the QB3 solely to make Herbert happy but it is probably best to move on. After all, the Chargers already made a pro-Herbert move by re-signing Mike Williams.
The Chargers are much better off using one of the team's 10 selections in the 2025 NFL Draft to take a quarterback to serve as the third-stringer. With four sixth-round picks, the Chargers have an extra pick to burn on someone who will have more upside than Stick and will have four years of team control.
Hopefully, it doesn't even matter who else in the quarterback room because if it does that means Herbert got hurt in some capacity. The Chargers still need to prepare to break glass in case of emergency and Stick is not the option any team should want in an emergency situation.