As of this writing, the Chargers haven’t really shown us a lot of surprises in the preseason. In fact, they haven’t shown us much at all, as the Bolts tend to use their starters quite sparingly. So, in terms of the preseason, there’s not a lot to talk about from a fantasy perspective. The Chargers’ first regular season game will happen at home, on Sunday September 10^th against the Miami Dolphins. This report will be a review of the upcoming season opener.

QB: In my view, Chargers QB Justin Herbert is going to be a Top 5 fantasy quarterback most weeks. He’s young, agile, not injury-prone, and has plenty of good receiving targets. If you own Herbert, you start him.

RB: There’s only one Chargers’ running back to discuss and that’s RB Austin Ekeler. Ekeler is widely considered to be a Top 10 running back, and I would expect that to continue in 2023. Ekeler is strong in the run and excellent out of the backfield as a receiving back. No other Chargers running back is worthy of fantasy consideration currently, and I remain concerned about a lack of depth at the position. But Ekeler is a no-brainer week 1 starter.RB Larry Rountree, Jr. has been released.

WR: This is an area where the Chargers have a lot of depth. WR Keenan Allen runs strong routes and is evasive. He seems to be morphing into a former Chargers’ WR Charlie Joiner type, where the focus is running crisp shorter and intermediate routes. WR Mike Williams has a good stretch, good speed and good hands with greater deep threat potential. Unfortunately, both Allen and Williams have been somewhat injury prone. Consider them each a fantasy WR2 for now. I like what I have seen from rookie WR Quentin Johnston. There’s a good chance he could be the team’s #1 deep threat. But let’s not forget that he is a rookie, plus there are several more experienced players ahead of him on the depth chart. This is a "watch and learn" situation. Johnston should be owned in most fantasy leagues, but I wouldn’t start him until we see that he is a major part of the team’s offense. WR Josh Palmer is solid as well, but there are a lot of mouths to feed amongst Chargers receivers. There has been some discussion that Palmer could be traded in exchange for a running back, and I think they have enough depth at receiver to do this. Keep an eye on Palmer, but I wouldn’t start him now, and he should primarily be owned in larger leagues. But, if Palmer is traded, that could open opportunities, so if that happens and it looks like he could be given a starting role elsewhere, grab him.

TE: There aren’t a lot of exciting fantasy options at tight end. TE Gerald Everett is your best bet, but I’d only view him as a fantasy TE2. TE Donald Parham, Jr. is a deep threat, but a feast-or-famine player who seems to be often injured. I could see him as the type of player who has a big week at some point, everyone grabs him, and then he does little-to-nothing for weeks. He does have speed and talent, but probably shouldn’t be owned in most fantasy leagues. TE Tre’ McKitty has not impressed and may not make the final cut.

PK: The Chargers have 2 kickers in camp, PK Dustin Hopkins and PK Cameron Dicker aka "Dicker the Kicker". Both are very good, but Dicker is a lot younger, cheaper, and seems less injury prone. In my view, Dicker should make the final roster and Hopkins will probably be released. But if Hopkins is released, he will likely find a home elsewhere and again, he’s a solid kicker. Even though Dicker is also pretty good, the Chargers haven’t historically been a big team in terms of kicking field goals, so he’ll be an average to slightly-above-average fantasy option.

DEF: The Chargers have some excellent defensive players, but some holes as well and a lack of depth. They haven’t been a good run-stopping defense in a long time. On the positive side, they appear to have 3 very good edge rushers in LB Joey Bosa, LB Khalil Mack and rookie LB Tuli Tuipulotu. CB J.C. Jackson is well regarded, if he can stay healthy. S Derwin James is one of the best at his position. I feel as if Miami should have a solid offensive, so until they show us something, consider the Chargers’ defense as an average option for Week 1. Good luck in your fantasy games!

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