The Chargers will have the same cast at QB that they had last season and that’s a very good thing.  The starter is Phillip Rivers who is a outstanding QB.  Rivers has a low release point which gets some of his passes blocked at the line of scrimmage but he’s a very intelligent, efficient QB.  Rivers has enough arm to make every throw needed and he picked up his game last season when the running game suffered a bit.  He should have a big 2009 season for the Chargers.  Young veteran Billy Volek will back up Rivers again in 2009.  Volek could start for some teams and he’s an excellent guy to bring in if anything happens to Rivers.  Volek has a lot of the same skills as Rivers but he throws from a more normal angle.  Charlie Whitehurst is the #3 guy and he will be one of the better #3 QBs in the NFL. 

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON:  A

Nate Kaeding doesn’t leave many points on the football field and he has a very strong leg.  The 26-year old Kaeding played in all 16 games for the Chargers last season and he connected on 24 of 27 field goal attempts (88.9%).  He also made all 46 of his extra point tries.  Look for Kaeding to have another outstanding season in 2008 for the Chargers.  Kaeding has now played in 64 games in his NFL career and he has made 91 of 105 field goals (86.7%).  He has also nailed 207 of 208 extra points (99.5%) in his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  A

28-year old Antonio Gates has been a little banged up lately and the Chargers can’t afford to be without him at all in 2008.  Gates played in all 16 games for the Chargers last season and he caught 75 passes for 984 yards (13.1 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  Gates is a mis-match for any defender who tries to cover him as he is too big for defensive backs to deal with and he’s too fast for linebackers.  He also wins a lot of jump balls near the goal line where he is often lethal.  Gates has now played in 77 games in his NFL career and he has caught 340 passes for 4,362 yards (12.8 avg) with 43 TD grabs.  Look for Gates to again be in Hawaii in February as long as he can stay healthy.

6′2″, 288 pound Brandon Manumaleuna is a huge run blocking tight end.  Don’t expect him to catch a lot of passes but that’s not his job anyway.  Manumaleuna played in all 16 games for the Chargers last season and he caught 10 passes for 86 yards (8.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Don’t expect him to catch many passes this season even if Gates is hurting.  Manumaleuna has now played in 110 games in his NFL career and he has caught 90 passes for 825 yards (9.2 avg) with 10 TD grabs.

2nd year TE Scott Chandler didn’t play much as a rookie last season.  He’s a better receiver than blocker so he might be the main TE in the passing game if Antonio Gates misses time due to injury.  Chandler played in 1 game for the Chargers last season and he didn’t catch any passes as a rookie.  Bold prediction for 2008…..he’ll catch at least 1 pass this season.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  A

The Chargers are expecting big things out of Chris Chambers now that he has had a ful off season under his belt with the team.  Chambers can scoot down the field with the best of him and he likes to make the acrobatic catch in traffic.  He played in 16 games for the Chargers & Dolphins last season and he caught 66 passes for 970 yards (14.7 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 17 yards (8.5 ypc) last season.  Look for Chambers’ numbers to improve big time over the ones he put up in 2007 with Philip Rivers throwing the ball to him all year instead of the stiffs that quarterbacked the Dolphins last season.  Chambers has now played in 110 games in his NFL career and he has caught 440 passes for 6,243 yards (14.2 avg) with 47 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 43 times for 372 yards (8.7 ypc) in his NFL career.

6′5″, 241 pound Vincent Jackson is having a really solid training camp and the Chargers’ hope he builds on his success of last season.  He played in all 16 games for the Chargers last season and he caught 41 passes for 623 yards (15.2 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Look for Jackson to have better numbers in 2008 as teams won’t be double covering him with Chambers around.  Jackson has now played in 39 games in his NFL career and he has caught 71 passes for 1,135 yards (16.0 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  He has also carried the football 3 times for 16 yards (5.3 ypc) in his career.

The Chargers were hoping for much more out of 2nd year man Craig Davis than they got last season so they hope he improves.  Davis played in 14 games last season for the Chargers and he caught 20 passes for 188 yards (9.4 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Davis also carried the football 3 times for 9 yards (3.0 ypc) last season.

6′5″, 225 pound Malcolm Floyd has talent but he never seems to show it on Sundays.  He played in 6 games for the Chargers last season and he caught 7 passes for 97 yards (13.9 avg).  Floyd can move either way on the depth chart as it’s almost entirely up to him.  Floyd has now played in 22 games in his NFL career and he has caught 25 passes for 356 yards (14.2 avg) with 4 TD grabs.

6′2″, 226 pound Legedu Naanee played a lot on special teams last season but the Chargers hope that he can develop into a decent receiver in the near future.  Naanee played in 13 games for the Chargers last season and he caught 8 passes for 69 yards (8.6 avg) without a TD.  Naanee is another player that can move either up or down the depth chart based on training camp and the pre season.

6′5″, 220 pound Kassim Osgood is another player that contributes more on special teams than on offense and the Chargers are hoping that it changes this year.  Osgood played in all 16 games for the Chargers last season and he only caught 2 passes for 23 yards (11.5 avg).  It’s crucial that Osgood starts producing on offense or his roster spot could be in jeopardy.  Osgood has now played in 76 games in his NFL career and he has caught 32 passes for 630 yards (19.7 avg) with 4 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B

The early depth chart has last season’s backup Andrew Pinnock at the top of it but he will have a battle on his hands to hold onto the job.  Pinnock has the most size of the fullbacks on the Chargers’ roster right now as he is 5′10″, 250 pounds but he’s basically just a blocker.  Pinnock played in 10 games (3 starts) for the Chargers last season and he carried the ball 4 times for 1 yard (0.3 ypc).  He also caught 1 pass for 5 yards last season.  Don’t look for Pinnock to get the ball much in 2008 if he even wins the starting job in training camp.  Pinnock has now played in 42 games (3 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 18 times for 56 yards (3.1 ypc).  He also has caught 4 passes for 31 yards (7.8 avg) in his career to date.

Rookies Jacob Hester and Marcus Thomas will also be in the hunt at fullback.  Hester has the edge due to his size as Thomas only weighs 215 pounds.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B-