On Tuesday, general manager Tom Telesco said that he likes the Chargers’ internal options when discussing the quarterback situation.
With Philip Rivers no longer with the team, Tyrod Taylor and Easton Stick are the only two quarterbacks on the roster.
Taylor, the 30-year old who signed with L.A. on a two-year deal last offseason, is the favorite to be the starter in 2020 at the moment. But where does that leave Stick?
The Chargers selected Stick in the fifth-round of the 2019 NFL Draft. The former North Dakota State product beat out Cardale Jones for the final quarterback spot last preseason.
During the regular season, Stick was never active on game days, but he still benefited learning from the two veterans during practices. Now with Rivers gone, he moves up on the depth chart, leaving many wondering if he will have the opportunity to start.
In the interview with Telesco, he said that the team has high hopes for Stick, but he is still a young quarterback with a ways to go. Despite having a draft pick spent on him, it doesn’t mean that he’s line to start within the next couple of year, or at all in his professional career.
Instead, the Chargers could have taken a flyer on him with the hopes of becoming a long-term backup, especially considering Taylor won’t be with the team much longer (if they choose to draft a rookie in the early rounds).
Or, Los Angeles’ intentions could be to develop Stick enough to the point where he does have upside as a starter, which could garner trade consideration from another team.
The bottom line is that while he has the resume as one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in the FCS and his athleticism and intangibles are second-to-none, his average arm strength and passing instincts limits him from being a starting quarterback in the NFL at the moment.
