Los Angeles Chargers Saturday Mailbag: Justin Jackson’s role and more

Questions 7-9

Question 7: Say the Chargers like Nic Shimonek (or any other player) and put him on the PS. If another team wants to sign him to their active roster, do the Bolts get a chance to do the same thing first, since he’s under PS contract, or is it up to the player or? -Bill

From Article 33, Section 2 of the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement:

"Any player under contract to a Club as a Practice Squad player shall be completely free to negotiate and sign a Player Contract with any Club at any time during the League Year, to serve as a player on any Club’s Active or Inactive List, and any Club is completely free to negotiate and sign such a Player Contract with such player… except that such player shall not be permitted to sign a Player Contract with another Club to serve as a Practice Squad player while under contract as a Practice Squad player."

If another team wants to sign quarterback Nic Shimonek, and he wants to go, he’s allowed to negotiate with that team. The Chargers would need to have Shimonek on the 53-man roster, although he can remain on the team’s game day inactive list.

Last season, Cardale Jones was carried as the third quarterback on the team, but was only active once. The Chargers needed insurance with Rivers clearing concussion protocol, so they activated Jones against the Buffalo Bills. Heading into 2018, Rivers, Jones and Geno Smith remain, so Shimonek would have to beat one of them out to make the final roster.

The team has a history of experimenting with late-round to UDFA quarterbacks, most recently 2013 seventh round selection Brad Sorensen and 2016’s undrafted Mike Bercovici. Neither panned out, but were always pushed away by other pressing roster needs.

Shimonek has a great chance to go out in the preseason and shine throwing to fellow Texas Tech receiver Dylan Cantrell, the Chargers’ sixth round selection in the 2018 NFL Draft. If he can be more consistent than Smith (who I expect to be off-and-on) then he may very well make the roster.

Question 8: What is Jason Verrett’s trade value? Verrett looked great at times when healthy, but he will either play well and Chargers won’t have cap space to extend or get injured again and be gone. If the Chargers can trade him for a third-round pick in 2019 it would seem to make sense to trade him and trust Trevor Williams and Desmond King. Ideal trade would be Verrett & 2019 third for Earl Thomas (assuming we can extend). -Scott

My gauge for this question is a recent AFC West trade involving Marcus Peters:

• Rams receive Peters and a 2018 sixth round selection
• Chiefs receive 2018 fourth round selection and a 2019 second round selection

Mind you, this is a two time Pro-Bowler, an NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, and a two time All-Pro. The Chiefs didn’t get as much for him as they should have, but I don’t expect anything close for Verrett.

Verrett has been a Pro-Bowler himself, but has only played in five games over the last two seasons. There’s also no value in shipping picks for players in the final year of their contract (see: Rams, Los Angeles). Trading for him would be a huge gamble, although the possibility of him staying healthy and returning to his elite form could be enticing. Verrett can be had for an early Day three selection.

Regarding an earlier point, Earl Thomas is in the final year of a four-year, $40 million contract extension and will be an undrafted free agent in 2019. Is he a good player, worth a contract, and a great fit? Absolutely, but so are Tyrell Williams, Denzel Perryman and Trevor Williams. What do they have in common? They’re all free agents in 2019. Telesco will take care of his own players first, especially the ones that really have a nice 2018 season.

Question 9: I keep hearing Derwin at SS or Derwin at FS but I personally think he should play the role AP played last year while King slides into the FS spot. What are your thoughts on what they should do here? -Jhameel

Good question. Here’s how I assume the starting defensive backfield will play out:

• CB1: Hayward
• CB2: Verrett
• CB3: Williams
• CB4: King
• FS: James
• SS: Addae

That’s probably along the lines of what you’ve heard, and something like that will be the general lineup moving forward. James, however, is so much more versatile than just a traditional deep ball safety, and I expect him to wear many hats during the season. The position you are referring to (held by Adrian Phillips) is that of the WILL linebacker, and while I believe James could excel there, I think the battle comes down to three players: Jatavis Brown, Kyzir White, and Phillips. That will be an exciting camp battle, as Brown has the natural gifts, White has the physique and attitude, and Phillips is an ascending player with experience.

I can’t wait for James to play wherever he does. Growing up, I loved watching enforcers like Troy Polamalu knock teams around while being allowed to roam around the field. Picked only one spot behind where Polamalu was years ago (No. 16), James has a chance to be that good for this team.

Next: NFL 2018: Best uniform for all 32 teams

That’s it for this week’s installment! Thank you again for the great questions, and be sure to get yours in so you can be featured on next week’s mailbag. With that, I leave you with a question to answer below in the comments: How will the Chargers fare against the Kansas City Chiefs at the Week 1 home opener? Let me know down below, and have a fantastic rest of your weekend.