Monday marked the first day in full pads for the Chargers at training camp, which is also significant for the battles in the trenches.
With all eyes on both lines, rookie offensive tackle Rashawn Slater drew the majority of the attention and successfully lived up to his billing.
During one-on-ones, Slater went 4-0 against edge defenders Joey Bosa, Kyler Fackrell and Uchenna Nwosu on two occasions.
When Los Angeles went into 11-on-11, Slater lost a couple of reps but he still maintained a high level of play, appearing to be technically sound with his hands to keep rushers at bay and showing a high football IQ to pick up stunts.
Slater’s dominance in pass protection comes by no surprise. In his final year at Northwestern, he allowed zero sacks against elite competition against the likes of Chase Young (Football Team), Zack Baun (Saints), AJ Epenesa (Bills).
Following Monday’s session, head coach Brandon Staley lauded Slater, saying that “he’s a really fun player to coach,” and adding that he’s stayed after each practice to get extra work in with offensive line coach Frank Smith.
Even though one practice isn’t going to gauge how a player is going to pan out in this league, Slater dominating against premiere pass rushers is a good sign for what could be to come.
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