The Los Angeles Chargers had plenty to be optimistic about through training camp and the preseason. The shape of the QB room beyond Justin Herbert was not one of those things.
Granted, Herbert has missed an extended stretch of the regular season only once in his six-year career, so the health of the starting quarterback isn't an imminent concern in Los Angeles. But neither Trey Lance nor QB3 DJ Uiagalelei looked completely comfortable in the offense for the duration of the preseason.
Lance finished his three preseason appearances having completed 22 of his 38 passes for 237 yards, zero touchdowns, and one interception. He seemed generally shaky in the pocket and was often too willing to solve problems with his legs—stalling the Chargers' drives and killing any offensive momentum they had when he was on the field.
Uiagalelei, meanwhile, finished his three appearances having completed 24 of his 42 passes for 341 yards and two touchdowns. His raw numbers obviously give him the edge over Lance, but there are still inconsistencies in his mechanics and his downfield accuracy that ultimately left Los Angeles with no choice but to grant the QB2 job to Lance again.
Things are settled in Los Angeles for now. But Fansided's latest QB Rankings, based on a panel of 50 experts' opinions about all rostered quarterbacks across the league, had Lance as the 64th-best quarterback across the NFL.
For a team looking to survive a daunting regular-season schedule, that's far from a reassuring thought.
There are worse options than Trey Lance at QB2, but the Chargers need as much certainty as they can get
The Chargers obviously believe in Lance's potential as he continues to work within the team's system and, now, with his former offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel. He has the athleticism to extend plays consistently, and Los Angeles likely sees some upside to be unlocked over the next couple of seasons as Lance becomes a true veteran.
But it's hard to scrounge up an example of true NFL-caliber play on Lance's résumé. We can't entirely hold his Week 18 performance against the Denver Broncos against him, as he was playing almost entirely with the team's backups, but that showing didn't inspire much confidence in his ability to lead the offense during the regular season. The Chargers lost that game 19-3, and Lance threw for just 136 yards and an interception.
Fansided's rankings place Lance firmly in the "depth piece" category as opposed to the "high-ceiling backup" section— and the panel of experts believes, in the aggregate, that there are currently 27 backup quarterbacks better than Lance across the NFL.
There's room to push against the placement here. Both Cade Klubnik and Carson Beck are immediately above Lance in the rankings.
But there isn't much room to argue for him as being one of the league's most reliable or even among the most high-upside backups. There's still far too many inconsistencies in his game to believe in his ability to lead the offense over a significant stretch of the regular season.
Los Angeles isn't known to dish out draft capital willingly, especially if they don't see quarterback as a true position of need. But if the right opportunity becomes available during the regular season, the Chargers will need to consider giving up on Lance and making a move for a more reliable, veteran backup.
It's not an emergency, per se, but it's a shadow that will be hanging over the QB room as the Chargers enter the new campaign.
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