EL SEGUNDO — Trey Lance was left out of the Chargers’ quarterback rotation during the team portion of their practice on Tuesday. He wasn’t injured, offensive coordinator Greg Roman said, but was simply the odd man out as starter Justin Herbert got most of the reps after getting very few last week.
Roman said the competition for the backup job behind Herbert was “wide open” after 18 days of training camp, two preseason games and considerable evidence to the contrary. Lance has elevated his status with two dynamic performances in victories over the Detroit Lions and New Orleans Saints.
“I don’t think anything is set in stone,” Roman said.
If so, then Lance, Taylor Heinicke and DJ Uiagalelei remain locked in competition despite Lance displaying a penchant for making things happen. He did it with his arm in throwing two touchdown passes against the Lions. He did it with his legs, running for one score against the Saints.
“Resourceful,” Roman said of Lance’s play. “Obviously, he used his legs quite a bit. Under the circumstances, it was the right thing to do. He did a great job of moving the chains. Again, it was just winning football. He did a really nice job, all around, everything we asked him to do.”
Conventional wisdom suggests that Lance needs to play and play and play in order to reach the full potential of a quarterback who was drafted third overall by the San Francisco 49ers in 2021. Injuries threatened to derail his career, but he appears to have found a home with the Chargers.
Granted, serving as a backup to someone ranked among the top five to seven quarterbacks in the NFL isn’t considered glamorous work. Entering the fifth week of camp, Lance would appear to have gained the upper hand in the battle to be Herbert’s backup when the season begins on Sept. 5.
Heinicke filled the backup role last season, but he and the Chargers’ offense sputtered to start an eventual 27-13 victory over the Saints on Sunday at SoFi Stadium. Only when Lance replaced Heinicke in the second quarter did things start popping for the Chargers’ offense.
Cameron Dicker’s field goal broke a scoreless tie with 13:30 left in the half. Lance then set up his own 5-yard touchdown run on the next possession with scrambles of 14 and 15 yards. Lance rushed for a team-leading 48 yards on seven carries and completed 7 of 14 passes for 55 yards.
Heinicke was 1 for 5 for 8 yards passing against the Saints.
So far, Lance has played the most snaps of any Chargers quarterback. He played 47 of 64 snaps against the Lions and 44 of 61 against the Saints. Heinicke didn’t play against the Lions and was on the field for only three series against the Saints. Uiagalelei played a limited role in the fourth quarter of each game.
Lance was 13 for 20 for 120 yards and two touchdown passes in a 34-7 victory over the Lions in the Hall of Fame Game on July 31 in Canton, Ohio.
So, where do things stand, as far as Lance is concerned?
“Just keep stacking one day at a time,” Lance said Sunday. “Just trying to have great practices and stack those on top of each other and then great games and continue to stack those. Like I said last week, I thought it was a good starting point and this week (was) another one, another big win. I’m excited for next week.”
Next week is this week.
The Chargers face the Rams as the visiting team on Saturday at SoFi Stadium.
“I love it,” Lance said of getting most of the snaps. “When I heard we were going to the Hall of Fame Game (to play the Lions), I was probably the most excited person who’s ever been in the Hall of Fame Game. If they told me I could play four full preseason games, I’d be fired up about it.”
EXTRA POINTS
Wide receiver Ladd McConkey joined his teammates for practice for the first time since he was sidelined by an unspecified injury two weeks ago. He declined to explain to reporters what was troubling him, dodging a question specifically about a possible hamstring injury. …
Running back Najee Harris went through a series of drills on the sideline, including a set of what could be generously described as sprints. He hasn’t practiced after sustaining an eye injury during a fireworks accident on July 4. There is no timetable for his first practice, according to Coach Jim Harbaugh.