Los Angeles Chargers: 5 Breakout players who could star in 2021

The Los Angeles Chargers are the apple of many people’s eyes entering the 2021 season and these 5 players could be a big reason why as breakout candidates.

If you’re looking for fans and media members saying immensely positive things about the Los Angeles Chargers entering the 2021 NFL season, you don’t have to look far. After Justin Herbert became a superstar almost immediately in his rookie season and with the arrival of head coach Brandon Staley, the hopes are high for this team out in the AFC West.

For that to truly happen, though, the Chargers are going to need more than just the familiar faces like Herbert, Austin Ekeler, Joey Bosa, Keenan Allen and so on to have big years. They are going to need players to emerge with big seasons, breakout players if you will.

Some of these breakout candidates are breaking out simply because they’re rookies but, hey, that still counts. Nonetheless, these five players have a great opportunity to step up and make a big impact in the highly anticipated 2021 season for the Chargers.

Breakout players for the Los Angeles Chargers in the 2021 NFL season

5. Derwin James, S – Okay, so we’re starting off with a bit of cheating. Derwin James already broke out as a star in his rookie 2018 season. Because of that, most fans are more than familiar with him, even if they aren’t wholly tuned into the Chargers. But he’s also only played five games since that season and missed all of last year.

Now, he’s back healthy and the results could be amazing. James is the type of versatile talent who could star in almost any defense. Putting him in Staley’s defense changes the game, though. The head coach runs his defense through the safety spot and asks that leader to move all over. That plays right into the strengths of James and he should be an undeniable superstar after a year in that system.

4. Josh Palmer, WR – Keenan Allen and Mike Williams are the top two pass catchers in LA. There’s no debating that. But after that duo, there are some question marks. Hunter Henry left in free agency while the rest of the wide receiver depth chart is full of unproven players. One of those guys, Josh Palmer, could enter the league and make a big impact.

Palmer was under-utilized in college at Tennessee not because he lacked talent or the ability to get open but because of bad quarterback play. That allowed the Chargers to scoop him up later in the draft than his talent would indicate, though. Now he comes to the NFL and has already flashed in the preseason. With attention being paid to Allen and Williams, he could be a target hog who helps consistently move the chains for the Bolts.

3. Uchenna Nwosu, EDGE/LB – A second-round pick in 2018, we’ve not totally seen Uchenna Nwosu put it together for the Chargers. He’s made some splash plays here and there as a versatile defender who can rush and drop into coverage but hasn’t been a consistent presence.

Once again looking at Staley’s performance with the Rams, we could see Nwosu take a big step forward. The 24-year-old has the type of movability that Staley will like but also can benefit as a rusher from the attention that Staley will demand be paid to the likes of Joey Bosa and Jerry Tillery. The result could be the best season of Nwosu’s still-young career.

2. Rashawn Slater, OT – Whenever a team takes an offensive tackle in the first round, fans expect that player to be good as a starter right away. Such is the case with Rashawn Slater and the Chargers. But based on limited work in the preseason, we might be looking at something like we saw from Tristan Wirfs last season as the then-rookie made an All-Pro team with the Bucs.

Slater only played in Week 1 of the preseason but was one of the stars of the show. PFF graded him as the best rookie offensive lineman in the league for the week, which goes to show his talent. When you compare that to the proverbial turnstiles LA has had over the years at tackle, Slate could and should garner a ton of praise for his work as a rookie.

1. Asante Samuel Jr., CB – After the Chargers took Slate in Round 1, they followed that up with Asante Samuel Jr. in the second. Though Los Angeles has familiar names in the cornerback room, those names haven’t performed all that well to this point. But Samuel could come in and be a star in the Staley defense.

While with the other team in LA, Staley relied heavily on the versatility and slot coverage ability of Troy Hill, hence why he got a big deal in free agency from Cleveland. Samuel is cut from the same cloth but with perhaps more versatility and more athleticism to mold. That could allow him to be a stifling player in the secondary and quickly establish himself as one of the best young corners in the NFL.