INGLEWOOD — Coach Jim Harbaugh made good on his recent suggestion that he would alternate Kayode Awosika and Trey Pipkins III at left guard, platooning the veteran offensive linemen during the Chargers’ 26-14 season-opening loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
It was a wrinkle that didn’t seem worthwhile until Harbaugh explained it.
Or attempted to do so, anyway.
Asked why he didn’t stick only with Awosika, who started the game alongside left tackle Rashawn Slater, rookie center Jake Slaughter, right guard Cole Strange and right tackle Joe Alt, Harbaugh said, “Because we thought that was the best thing for us.”
When pressed, he repeated, “Because we thought that was the best thing for us.”
Awosika won a multi-player competition during training camp to become the starting left guard, with Slaughter dropping out of the battle to replace center Tyler Biadasz after Biadasz suffered a season-ending knee injury during a joint practice Aug. 18 with the San Francisco 49ers.
But then Harbaugh announced he would platoon Awosika and Pipkins, who also had a sound camp and often filled in for Slater when Slater was sidelined by knee pain that flared up in July. Slater and Alt suffered season-ending injuries last season, but were said to be sound Sunday.
When the Cardinals sacked quarterback Justin Herbert on a 4th-and-goal play from Arizona’s 3-yard line, the pressure came from up the middle, dropping Herbert for a 10-yard loss. When the Cardinals blocked JK Scott’s punt deep, it also came from the middle of the formation.
Asked if he was pleased by the results of his platoon at left guard, Harbaugh said, “Good, good. There were some, definitely, good things, but a lot of things to get better at, too.” Asked if he would continue to alternate Awosika and Pipkins, Harbaugh said, “Yeah, well, we’ll look at that.”
INJURY REPORT
Wide receiver Ladd McConkey was forced from the game late in the third quarter after absorbing a hard hit from Arizona linebacker Mack Wilson Sr., a jarring blow on a third-and-16 play from the Chargers’ 18-yard line. Harbaugh did not have an update on McConkey’s condition after the game.
McConkey proved to be Herbert’s favorite target, catching five passes for 82 yards, including an 8-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter. Herbert connected with McConkey on three passes for 60 yards on the Chargers’ opening possession, which produced a touchdown.
In addition, wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith (hamstring) and safety Elijah Molden (hamstring) were also injured. There were no further updates on their injuries, either. The Chargers return to the practice field Wednesday, when the next league-mandated injury report is issued.
STAT OF THE DAY
By passing for 209 yards against the Cardinals, Herbert topped the 25,000-yard mark for his career. He upped his total passing yardage to 25,029 in 96 career games in the NFL. He went into Sunday’s game fourth in passing yards in the NFL since his rookie season in 2020.