Following six seasons of personnel decisions by Los Angeles Chargers general manager Tom Telesco, we continue looking at his best and worst moves, moving on to No. 5.
Last article covered the sixth best and worst decision by Los Angeles Chargers general manager Tom Telesco. At roughly the midpoint of the list, these next moves will highlight the start of some of his most brilliant or dim-witted moves.
I have to reiterate that these will not involve moves Telesco didn’t make (ex: Not signing an upgrade at interior defensive linemen in 2018), but rather personnel decisions in the draft and free agency that helped or harmed this franchise.
Let’s see who made the list this week as we get to No. 5 in each category.
No. 5 Best Move: Signing UDFA CB Trevor Williams
The timing of this article could not be better; at the time of writing this, fellow cornerback Jason Verrett has been lost for the season with what is reported to be a torn Achilles. Verrett, the team’s first-round selection in 2014, is a former Pro-Bowl player who has shut down names like Antonio Brown and Calvin Johnson. And yet, the loss doesn’t hurt — that’s how good the young Trevor Williams is starting to become.
Williams started his career at Penn State as a wide receiver, and had up-and-down success with his eventual conversion to corner. It’s likely the reason he went undrafted, as his skills were not as polished as someone at the same position who had been playing that role for most of their life. Telesco scooped him up following the 2016 NFL Draft. Williams eventually played in NFL games the same year following injuries to key players, but was actually incredibly underwhelming both that year and into the 2017 preseason.
Following (another) injury to Verrett, Williams was forced into action early and started 15 games in 2017. Ron Milus is a defensive back coaching savant, and whatever he was able to get into Williams’ head seemed to work to perfection. Williams went on to have a fantastic year and graded out as the tenth-best corner in the NFL. Look for him to again start opposite Casey Hayward, this time in his first season as the true declared starter at the No. 2 corner position.
No. 5 Worst Decision: Cutting K Josh Lambo
The move that kept the Chargers out of the playoffs last season deserves to be on this list, and many would place it higher in the rankings. Cutting Lambo cost the Bolts at least three games last year: two misses to open the season, and one kick by Lambo that sent the Jaguars to an overtime win in Week 10 meeting.
The decision, however negatively impactful it eventually became, was warranted and even supported by fans at the time. Younghoe Koo, his eventual replacement, was an accurate college kicker and a very marketable player. Lambo also took a lot of criticism for laughing with Raiders players following a loss in Oakland. The move made sense, and the Chargers paid for it all year.
It wasn’t just Koo; every single kicker that followed (Nick Novak, Travis Coons and Nick Rose) struggled. The team fumbled, bumbled and stumbled their way to a 9-7 record, missing the playoffs with one of the most healthy teams they’ve had in years. It killed would could have been an exciting season for the Chargers, and that’s why it comes in here at No. 5.