Chargers Camp Report: Mike Williams, J.C. Jackson Highlight Tuesday's 1-on-1 Drills

Aug 02, 2022 at 03:41 PM

Eric Smith

Editorial Director

Tuesday's practice was closed to fans at Jack Hammett Sports Complex, but the Bolts put in a solid day's work for two-plus hours on a muggy morning.

Here are five observations from the sixth day of camp:

1. Williams, Jackson highlight WR/DB battles

The skill players were in the spotlight Tuesday as pass catchers went against defensive backs in 1-on-1 drills.

Mike Williams and J.C. Jackson provided the play of the day, as the wide receiver managed to haul in a deep pass as Jackson nearly recorded a takeaway. They both high-pointed the ball and fell to the ground with dual possession, but Williams was awarded the reception.

Williams' win was a bit of redemption after Jackson tallied a pass break up against him on the first play of the drill.

big play guys 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/lz3eUsl32b
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) August 2, 2022

Jackson later showed off his physicality against Keenan Allen, but the receiver managed to hang on for a short gain.

Others who stood out in the drill were tight end Donald Parham, Jr., and wide receiver Michael Bandy, both of whom created separation for a pair of catches.

Defensively, Nasir Adderley and Asante Samuel, Jr., each recorded pass deflections.

2. Back and forth on 3rd downs

The Chargers spent almost the entire 7-on-7 and full-team periods working on third downs, with the end result nearly an even split.

In 23 third-down plays tracked by Chargers.com, the offense won 11 times and the defense was successful 12 times.

The first-team offense converted half of their six attempts on 7-on-7, with Justin Herbert finding Allen, Parham and Josh Palmer to move the sticks. Jalen Guyton later provided a highlight-reel play with a diving catch deep down the middle on a throw from Easton Stick.

Defensively, the Chargers flashed both in coverage and in the pass rush on third downs.

Samuel denied Palmer a first down at one point, and Joey Bosa likely would have had a sack on Herbert in a real game.

3. More work in the 2-minute drill

Count another win for the second-team defense in the 2-minute drill.

After denying the first-team offense a touchdown yesterday, the unit forced a field goal try in a end-of-half scenario Tuesday. The offense initially started with the ball at their own 24-yard line with 69 seconds left.

Herbert led the offense into field goal range with only a few ticks left, but the 51-yard try from Dustin Hopkins was wide left.

The second-team offense, led by Stick, went against the first-team defense. They drove into field goal range before James McCourt hit a 46-yard attempt.

Through two days in pads, the second-team defense hasn't allowed any points in the 2-minute drill.

4. Rookie McCourt has solid day

McCourt's first kick of the day was the 46-yarder mentioned above, but he was solid after that, too.

The undrafted rookie out of Illinois made six of his seven total kicks Tuesday, including five in a full-team drill at the end of practice.

McCourt's lone miss came from 49 yards away, his longest attempt of the day. He was true on his other five kicks, ranging from 33 to 47 yards.

Hopkins had an off day, making five of nine overall kicks.

Chargers Special Teams Coordinator Ryan Ficken summed up the competition between Hopkins and McCourt:

"They have strong legs. They do a great job. They're professionals. They know their craft," Ficken said. "I think that the operation has been going really well with those guys.

"The thing that we will always try to continue to build on is consistency, making sure that we're staying in a rhythm up to the ball — our operation — we just have to make sure that we're consistent all of the way through the kicks and finish our kicks. Very impressed with both of them."

5. Odds and ends

Here are a few other plays that stood out Tuesday:

Adderley intercepted Herbert late in practice over the middle, a play that drew a big cheer from the defensive sideline.

Guyton had an acrobatic catch in the same team period, leaping over Deane Leonard and keeping both feet in bounds down the left sideline for a 25-plus yard gain.

Linebacker Nick Neimann also showed up on defense, tallying multiple run stops at the line of scrimmage. Damon Lloyd and Kyle Van Noy also flashed on run plays with strong pursuit.