The Los Angeles Chargers are now a little over a week away from beginning the 2026 season, when they will take on the Arizona Cardinals at home in SoFi Stadium on Sunday, September 13th.
With the Chargers being so close to the regular season, there are still a few things to monitor, such as the battle for the starting left guard position , the performance of the special teams , and a few other things.
On another note, one player who is not getting talked about enough is rookie center Jake Slaughter, who will now begin the season as the starting center as a result of Tyler Biadasz being out for the season due to significant damage to his ACL.
With Biadasz being out for the season, Slaughter has had to step into a very difficult role as the main communicator for the offensive line, but throughout camp and the preseason he has done a nice job.
Speaking of Slaughter's performance, offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel in particular seems to be very impressed with Slaughter's performance, as McDaniel shared some of his thoughts in Wednesday's media availability .
"So, the, here's the best litmus test. Okay, he's a rookie, and he's a center. And it was almost like, yeah, oh yeah, I better bring up Jake, cause I kind of no one's really talked about him. That's the for that position. What a compliment to not be talked about, because you're talked about in the natural flow of practices and games by complete and utter dismay of the handling of a football. You know, botched snaps, cadences, A gaps. So, I think that is exactly what he's been consistent and impressive," McDaniel said.
Looking at McDaniel's statement, he is clearly impressed with Slaughter, as McDaniel noted Slaughter's performance thus far to be consistent and impressive. Additionally, McDaniel talked about the fact that being a rookie center is not easy and that, with having to manage things like cadences and both A-gaps, Slaughter is doing a solid job.
On that note as well, McDaniel mentioned that it is a good thing for Slaughter not to be talked about as much because that means he is doing his job well and has put this offense in a position to be productive as a result of limiting the negative plays as much as possible.
Now shifting the focus to the regular season, while Slaughter has been solid thus far, the regular season is a lot different and a lot more demanding so it will interesting to see how he responds. Slaughter can still play well, but the pace, physicality and pressure will be a lot heavier in the regular season than it was in the preseason.
The good news for Slaughter is the fact that he has plenty of great veterans to help him work through the workload of an NFL regular season. On the offensive line, Slaughter has offensive tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater to help him out.
Slaughter also has the benefit of a quarterback like Justin Herbert, who has found success in the NFL and can give Slaughter advice on what has worked and how the offensive line can communicate most effectively to help the offense stay in rhythm.
The coaching staff is another thing that Slaughter can use to his advantage, especially with a head coach like Jim Harbaugh and an offensive coordinator like McDaniel who will both do their best to put Slaughter in a position to succeed.
Overall, Slaughter has done a great job throughout training camp and the preseason, and if he leans on the veterans as well as the coaching staff, Slaughter should be able to have a solid rookie year for the Chargers and potentially help this offense to be one of the top units in the NFL.
