Chargers beat writer predicts recent draft pick to shockingly be cut

Training camp is going to look a bit different for the LA Chargers and the other 31 teams in the NFL this season. While the operation will look the same, the roster construction and how the team goes about it will be completely different.

Instead of structured cut-downs at various points throughout training camp and the preseason, the Chargers are going to be responsible for cutting the roster from 90 players all the way down to 53 all at once. That ill-fated day will come on August 29, four days after the team's final preseason game.

For the most part, fans have a good idea of what the 53-man roster will look like with there being room for a few surprises. There is a lot of backend talent on this roster so there are not many spots for UDFA standouts to earn a roster spot on the team.

That being said, some experts still predict there to be surprising cuts for the Bolts. Chargers beat writer Daniel Popper recently put out his 53-man roster predictions (subscription required) and among the more shocking predictions was that 2021 fifth-round pick Brenden Jaimes would be cut before his third season.

"The Chargers are really high on Bailey and think he can be a more reliable backup guard than Jaimes, who has struggled in his young NFL career. Jaimes has a big camp in front of him. He must show improvement if he wants to make the active roster."

Brenden Jaimes at risk of being cut by Chargers after latest prediction

There are very few media members who are as plugged in with the Chargers as Popper, so his prediction that Jaimes will be cut by the team certainly is something. Granted, a lot can change during training camp but it looks like Jaimes may have an uphill battle.

Jaimes not making it to the end of his rookie contract with the Bolts would be shocking, even if he has not had the chance to make much of a difference in games thus far in his NFL career. After all, Jaimes was a fifth-round pick in Brandon Staley's first draft as head coach and at the time, there was a lot of promise with what he could bring to the table.

It is one thing for a seventh-round pick to be cut before his rookie contract is up but a fifth-round pick? That really indicates that Jaimes is behind schedule and has not been the prospect that the Chargers were hoping he would be.

Staley has shown no remorse in cutting recent draft picks early in his coaching career, which is a good thing. 2021 sixth-round pick Larry Rountree got the ax ahead of the 2022 season. Rountree stuck around with the team on the practice squad but it is still surprising to see a team admit defeat so early on in a late-round pick's career.

Like Rountree, Jaimes would likely stick around with the team in a practice squad capacity but any other team in the league would have the ability to sign him to the active roster and end his Chargers career prematurely.