Chargers Training Camp is on the horizon.
The team will host 14 open practices as they welcome fans to The Bolt in El Segundo for the first time.
The Bolts are looking to have an instant impact in Year 1 of the Jim Harbaugh era and have a new-look coaching staff and roster that relentlessly attacked the offseason program.
Chargers.com will take a look at each position group leading up to training camp. The wide receivers are the final group to look at.
Who's on the roster?
Joshua Palmer, DJ Chark, Quentin Johnston, Derius Davis, Ladd McConkey, Brenden Rice, Cornelius Johnson, Simi Fehoko, Jaelen Gill, Leon Johnson, Jaylen Johnson and Praise Olatoke
Camp outlook
Don't worry if you're unfamiliar with the Chargers wide receiver room.
The position group underwent a major renovation this offseason as big-name veterans exited and a flurry of youngsters joined the team.
How would Chargers wide receivers coach Sanjay Lal sum up the room?
"I would say that they're young and they're willing," Lal said. "That's what really stands out."
Joshua Palmer returns as the most established and trusted target for Justin Herbert.
Palmer tallied 38 catches for 581 yards and two scores in 10 games a season ago. He quipped this offseason that while he doesn't feel to take on a bigger leadership role, the wide receiver room certainly looks and feels different than from previous seasons.
"We're taking shape. We have a lot of different personalities and a lot of different guys," Palmer said. "Only a couple guys are back from last season so everyone is fairly new and we're all learning each other."
Quentin Johnston and Derius Davis, a pair of 2023 draft picks, are also back on the Bolts roster, as is Simi Fehoko.
Johnston will be in the spotlight after he looks to improve on an up-and-down rookie season.
"Excellent speed, great guy, can pretty much run any route that there is," Chargers Offensive Coordinator Greg Roman said of Johnston in June. "Really doing a great job. We're really excited about him. We've done some different things with him, too, not just line him up outside. He looks great doing it.
"We're really excited about what the future holds for him and I want get him the ball quick, underneath routes, but we also want to be able to throw bombs to him too," Roman added.
DJ Chark is a fresh face in the room but brings a veteran presence with a Pro Bowl appearance to go along with 212 receptions, 3,069 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns in 69 career games.
"It's a classic veteran presence," Lal said. "But when DJ is at his best, he has punt return ability, which helps the run after catch, and he's a vertical threat.
"Once he gets back to that, that's really what he brings. He's a good person and I trust him in the room, too," Lal added.
The rest of the Chargers wide receiver group is new and includes a trio of 2024 draft picks in McConkey (second round), Rice (seventh round) and Johnson (seventh round).
Gill, Leon Johnson and Jaylen Johnson are undrafted free agents while the Bolts added Olatoke in June after rookie minicamp. Olatoke ran track at Ohio State and played club football for the Buckeyes.
"They're learning a new system," Lal said of his group, "but everyone is kind of in the same boat because you're learning a new offense."
Quick quote
"There's a lot of competition there and that's going to continue into training camp. I'm not going to sit here right now and say that there's a stoned depth chart because there's not, but I definitely think progress is being made pretty much by everybody." - Roman on the WR room
Player to watch: Ladd McConkey
With so much offseason turnover on offense, including the trade of Keenan Allen, the Chargers need someone to develop as a security blanket-type player for Herbert.
Hello, Ladd McConkey.
The No. 34 overall pick in this year's draft showcased a strong rapport with Herbert this spring as the former Georgia standout worked in with the first-team offense.
"He's just picked up the offense so easily, it's like he's been a four of five-year vet," Herbert said. "He understands the game, understands leverages, a smart player.
"And he's very athletic. He's one of those guys who is able to beat man coverage and finds the soft spot in zones," Herbert added. "I'm really looking forward to getting him the ball."
McConkey was clocked at 4.39 seconds in the 40-yard dash this past spring. And while he isn't the biggest player at 6-foot-0 and 185 pounds, he will bring a shiftiness that could be lethal on third downs.
"Very excited about Ladd. We know the physical traits, the speed, the quickness, the ability to change direction, catch the ball, make plays with the ball in his hands," Roman said about McConkey last month. "But just how he's picking things up and how he works at it every day, it's just such a great attitude, attention to detail, up in the coaches office late in the afternoons, early evenings, trying to talk about a few things that happened that day and get clarity on it.
"Those are the kind of things you look for and he's really displaying them," Roman added. "He's really picking things up quick and I think he's a guy that we can definitely do different things with. He's going to be a little bit of a Swiss Army knife."
McConkey was ninth wide receiver drafted in April, but don't be surprised if he turns in a fantastic rookie season as he potentially becomes Herbert's go-to target on money downs.
Key question: Who steps up in this group?
The Chargers plan to employ a bruising and physical run game this fall, but that doesn't mean they are going to waste the arm talent of Herbert under center.
There will be times when Roman wants to air it out and go deep, and it will be fascinating to see which players from this group elevate their games.
Palmer should be looked at as the leader of this group based on his experience with both the Chargers and Herbert, while Chark should provide that veteran presence that Lal alluded to above.
McConkey will be a key rookie to watch while Davis could provide some juice in creative ways while also being the lead returner.
Johnston could be the X-factor here. If he can take a major step forward and showcase the ability that made him a first-round pick, the Bolts wide receiver room should quiet the outside noise.
With training camp looming, time will tell how many wide receivers the Bolts keep on the 53-man roster.
If it's five, the group could consist of Palmer, Chark, Johnston, McConkey and Davis. But if the Chargers opt to keep a sixth guy, competition will be fierce between the likes of Rice, Johnson and Gill.
Either way, the Bolts wide receiver group will look to prove the doubters wrong during the 2024 season.
"You could guess that it would be difficult, but it hasn't been at all," Herbert said of the WR group in June. "These guys have been awesome and picked up everything, even the draft picks ... they've done such a great job of being involved with the offense and being out there
"We're all learning," Herbert later added. "It's a new offense but the way that everyone's attacked it, it's been great to see from those guys."
