The Los Angeles Chargers are on a roll and won their second preseason matchup of 2025 against the Saints last Sunday. And during the contest, some players rose while others fell.
Below are the ones who need to show more in the next game against the Los Angeles Rams.
Los Angeles Chargers Running Back, Nyheim Miller-Hines
Miller-Hines had a decent performance against the Lions in the Hall of Fame Game and had a particularly memorable run during the second quarter against the Saints, where on a second-and-2 when he wasn’t able to get through the middle of the pocket, he switched gears, bouncing to the outside, avoiding the tackle of cornerback Rico Payton, and gained 9-yards and a first down.
But any good was overshadowed as he had two muffed punts.
One happened during the first quarter, where he appeared to be signaling a fair catch, and the ball came down right between his arms and bounced away. As he tried to recover it, Saints tight end Treyton Welch beat him to it, causing a new set of downs for New Orleans.
It happened again in the third quarter, and luckily, this time he recovered it.
As special teams is an important component, especially for players looking to make the team who may have less of an offensive or defensive role, this wasn’t a good showing.
Check Out Our Los Angeles Chargers Merch In The LAFB Locker Room!
And with a Chargers running back room where players like Kimani Vidal and Hassan Haskins are excelling, and Raheim “Rocket” Sanders just got a touchdown, good special teams play can really be the difference maker.
Wide Receiver, Brenden Rice
I wrote about Rice as someone who needed to step it up in training camp, and that certainly happened on Day 13, where Daniel Popper of The Athletic relayed that “Second-year receiver Brenden Rice had perhaps his best training camp practice in a Chargers uniform Sunday.”
He had multiple touchdowns that practice, including one where he “jumped over cornerback Deane Leonard and made a contested catch for the touchdown.”
But in terms of the Chargers’ preseason game, Rice faded into the background. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), he only had two targets, making one reception.
Want To Support LAFB? Subscribe And Join Our Chargers Community!
The target he missed was a deep shot during the third quarter, as there was some contact made by Saints cornerback Jayden Price, who had tight coverage on him. And the reception was during the fourth quarter for a first down. He also had a few snaps on special teams.
Ultimately, he’s not getting a lot of opportunities in game action, and is not making an impression with the little he has. So perhaps he’ll get more reps during this next game; otherwise, it may be a little late.
Edge Rushers, Kylan Guidry And Garmon Randolph
I grouped these two because of their position. Guidry had the lowest PFF defense grade (32.9%) of the team in Sunday’s preseason game, along with a neutral zone infraction during the second quarter.
Both Guidry and Randolph are also players who don’t show up in my notes a whole lot during camp, especially Randolph, who’s mostly been noted as not practicing.
With how well players like Caleb Murphy have been doing, especially this last game, and even Tre’Mon Morris-Brash, though it’s not clear how many edges will be kept, it’s critical that both Guidry and Randolph step it up on the next game day if they want to be in the mix.
Quarterback, Taylor Heinicke
Heinicke may be slowly falling out of the backup quarterback spot. Granted, he only played a few series for the Chargers on Sunday as head coach Jim Harbaugh feels they’ve seen enough from him, but in that small bit he did play, he only made one completion, didn’t try to make any plays with his legs, and overall, was flat in his performance.
He’s been doing decently in camp, and it’s not like Trey Lance was perfect against the Saints, but Lance has the mobility and was taking the first downs on the ground when he couldn’t deliver through the air.
Heinicke could pick it up next game, depending upon how much he plays, but Lance definitely has an edge.