Gus Edwards

The Athletic’s Daniel Popper said he sees Gus Edwards “as the clear lead back” for the Chargers heading into training camp.

Popper adds that he believes “secondary touches are open for competition, though if J.K. Dobbins is healthy, I think he wins that job.” Those drafting rookie Kimani Vidal would be interested in knowing that Popper believes Vidal is currently third on the running back depth chart. It’s about what we’d expect to see heading into training camp, as the Chargers brought in both Edwards and Dobbins via free agency this offseason, while Vidal is a sixth-round rookie. However, Edwards is entering his age-29 season and appeared to be on the decline at various times last season, and Dobbins has a lengthy injury history that includes a torn ACL suffered in 2021 and a torn Achilles suffered last year. While we’d expect the two veteran backs to get ever chance at earning the top two spots on the depth chart, the younger and likely more explosive Vidal could impress in the coming weeks.