3 players the Chargers may regret leaving off the 53-man roster

The LA Chargers' official 53-man roster is in and while most of the roster was already set in stone, the Chargers still managed to surprise fans with some of the choices that were made.

This is not going to be the same 53-man roster that follows the team throughout the season and there is a good chance that the best players who were cut on Tuesday will return to the practice squad to stay in the building.

However, those players now have a chance to sign with any other NFL team and could even be poached by other NFL teams off the Chargers' practice squad if they are not protected. Only time will tell if these players end up staying in LA long-term but if not, the Chargers will certainly regret not including them on the 53-man roster.

3 players the Chargers will regret leaving off the 53-man roster

1. Tre'Mon Morris-Brash

Tre'Mon Morris-Brash was arguably the biggest standout of the entire preseason for the Chargers. Morris-Brash first started turning heads during training camp and followed that up with strong play in the preseason games.

It capped off in the team's final preseason game of the year where Morris-Brash recorded a pick-six off Dallas' Trey Lance. With such a strong showing, it seems inevitable that the UDFA would make the Chargers roster in some capacity.

However, Morris-Brash plays arguably the deepest position on the Chargers roster and the team prioritized depth in other areas over keeping him around. If he can return to the practice squad that would be great but it would be surprising if no other team signs him after the strong preseason he had.

2. Thomas Harper

Thomas Harper looked to be in the driver's seat to win out the fourth safety position on the roster heading into the final preseason game of the year. Then Tony Jefferson went and had one of the best preseason games in recent Chargers' history to swipe the roster spot straight out of Harper's hands.

Now the Chargers will hope that Harper passes through waivers and ends up on the practice squad. If he does then it will be no harm, no foul as the team will have him in its back pocket to elevate to the active roster if needed.

But if not then the Chargers may end up kicking themselves. Harper played better than Jefferson for most of the preseason and in training camp. Plus, in most cases, going with the younger player who has upside is typically the best outcome long-term for a team.

Harper is not guaranteed to be a long-time player in this league but he at least has that future. Jefferson, who came out of retirement, does not have that same future. Plus, Jefferson was not very impressive before retiring in the first place, so there is a chance we look back at his excellent preseason game as a source of false hope for his 2024 production.

3. Donald Parham

I am definitely going to be in the minority with this take as Donald Parham did not look great during training camp or the preseason. Parham did not make the initial 53-man roster and was outright released and it was not shocking at all for the fanbase.

That being said, it is not like Stone Smartt had some undeniable showing in training camp and the preseason that put him head and shoulders above Parham. Choosing Smartt over Parham really does seem to be choosing the better of two bad options, regardless of how positively the fanbase wants to spin Smartt (but if it was reveresed, and Parham was kept, many of the same fans would positively spin Parham).

Smartt may not even end up being on the roster in Week 1 if the Chargers can claim a better tight end but if he does it might end up looking like a mistake. He is not much better as a blocker than Parham is and while he is a pass-catching option, he does not have the same physical advantages Parham has with his height.

When choosing between two guys who realistically didn't earn a roster spot with their play, it might be better to default to the player who has more of a rapport with the star quarterback. In this case, that would have been Parham.

Plus, if the Chargers would have kept Parham on the roster the team could have kept both players in the building to continue evaluating. Because of his service time, Parham becomes an unrestricted free agent who is free to leave and even sign with another team's practice squad. Smartt, meanwhile, could have been easier to keep on the practice squad with only three years experience.