EL SEGUNDO — The Chargers concluded their three-day minicamp Thursday with a feeling of accomplishment, but also one of determination and a sense of urgency that might have been missing since the heady days of 2022, when they were a trendy pick to go to the Super Bowl.
Here’s what we learned and what we heard – not only during minicamp but throughout spring workouts – and what comes next for the Chargers as they head into their summer break before reconvening for training camp at The Bolt in late July:
‘LET’S JUST GO’
To say the Chargers, especially those have been around long enough, have grown weary of their recent results would be an understatement. They have advanced to an AFC wild-card game three times in the past four seasons, and they have gone 0-3, with each loss as frustrating as the last.
So, they said, it’s time to flip the script.
Left tackle Rashawn Slater was the first to say it publicly earlier this month. He had made giant strides from a season-ending knee injury during spring practices and was on track to go full tilt when training camp begins next month, solidifying the Chargers’ offensive line.
“I think it’s just the whole team,” he said. “I’ve been here since 2021 and still haven’t had a playoff win. I just know who we have and what we’re capable of. It’s time for us to go do that, and there’s nothing stopping us, there’s nothing in our way. Let’s just go. Honestly, that’s just the sensation around the building. We’ve all got our own chips on our shoulders. We have our independent reasons, but as a team, too.”
Slater said he wasn’t speaking only for himself.
“I just think we’re hungry,” he said. “I think everybody who’s been here for a while knows we’re due to go win, we’re due to go execute and do what we’re capable of. Everyone they brought in (via offseason signings and the draft), we just brought in some competitors, and so we’re on the same page.
“The excitement is in the air.”
FANCY FOOTWORK
It’s subtle, it’s technical, it’s detailed, it’s in the weeds, but a change in quarterback Justin Herbert’s stance while accepting snaps in the shotgun formation was a topic of great discussion during minicamp. In short, Herbert will move his left foot forward rather than his right one.
No more goofy foot, in other words. Herbert will stand like a traditional surfer, with his left foot forward and his right foot back, the better to accept the snap and prepare to throw the ball quicker. It’s a small tweak, one suggested by new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, who used it to great effect in the past.
The former Miami Dolphins head coach wants Herbert to deliver his throws within 2.4 seconds. Herbert was open to the change, no doubt persuaded by McDaniel’s research that showed Herbert’s completion rate was roughly 80% when releasing the ball within 2.4 seconds or less over his six NFL seasons.
“I just showed him where it would be advantageous and he didn’t blink for a second and was excited to attack it,” McDaniel said. “So, when you have players like that, that go after their craft in that way, you can do things, you can change things that had been standardized in their game for years and you can do it with a reasonable expectation of success.”
THOMPSON SIGNS
The Chargers signed wide receiver Brenen Thompson, their fourth-round selection (105th overall) in the draft. Thompson was the last of their eight picks to sign his rookie contract, after a record-setting 2025 season at Mississippi State that included an SEC-leading 1,054 receiving yards.
WHAT COMES NEXT
Coach Jim Harbaugh said he would alter his practice schedule for training camp next month. After consulting with a number of experts, including the team’s athletic training staff, practice will begin each day at 10 a.m., in order to avoid the harsh, energy-sapping afternoon sun.
In the past, in his first two seasons with the Chargers, Harbaugh staggered the starts of camp practices in order to provide more rest. So, as an example, a noon practice one day would be followed by a 2 p.m. practice the next, which would be followed by a 5 p.m. practice one day later.
“It’s good for a tan,” Harbaugh said of practicing under a searing Southern California sun in the afternoons in July and August, before singling out the team’s director of player health, wellness and performance. “But when it comes to football, that’s a real drain of energy no matter what the temperature is. So, thanks to Marco (Zucconi) and his staff.”