Chargers Offensive Aspirations Could Hinge on First-Round Draft Selection

Can the rookie step up?

Despite the Chargers earning the hard-fought win on Sunday, they lost an essential piece of their team.

Mike Williams went down with a season-ending knee injury late in the game against Minnesota, which led us to believe that the Chargers will need to rely more on rookie first-rounder Quentin Johnston from here on out.

The problem is that Johnston struggled with a case of the drops in training camp and the preseason. Could that be due to his inexperience with Justin Herbert? I guess we'll find out. 

One key piece of the Chargers' offense thinks that Johnston will be fine; he just has to get out of his head.

Keenan Allen had a historic game in Minnesota, and going into the division matchup with the Raiders; he had some words to say about Johnston.

“We just need him to be him, be the guy that we drafted,” Allen said. “We don’t need no more. We don’t need no less. When you get drafted [with] first-round talent … we need first-round talent.”

via Jeff Miller /

LA Times

So far on the year, the former TCU Horned Frog has five catches for 26 yards, but look for that production to go up in the absence of Williams.

Transitioning from the college game to the NFL seems a little tough for Johnston. According to Miller in his LA Times article, the 21-year-old has had difficulty "juggling all the plays" with the Chargers, but he admitted he's getting more comfortable.

Even more reassuring is that Keenan Allen seems to be taking Johnston under his wing. He wants him to feel at home in the high-powered Charger offense.

"Every time we break the huddle I’m probably going to tell him what he got just so there’s no misunderstandings, no questions so he can just go play fast,” Allen said.

via Jeff Miller /

LA Times

What better way to start your NFL career than to be mentored by one of the Chargers' greats?