The Chargers’ guard competition may have been settled by an injury update.
Los Angeles is expected to place Branson Taylor on injured reserve with a designated-for-return designation, and that move puts Kayode Awosika squarely in line to open the season as the team’s starting guard, according to Ian Rapoport of The NFL Network.
“The Chargers are putting G Branson Taylor on IR with a designated-for-return designation, source said. Sounds like Kayode Awosika is in line to start at guard,” Rapoport wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Taylor went down with an upper-body injury in the Chargers’ second preseason game, a 41-17 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. The injury opened the door for Awosika, but it also fits with the way the competition had been trending even before Taylor got hurt.
Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh made that much clear last Sunday, when he pointed to Awosika as the front-runner.
“Kayode Awosika is right there. He's the leader right now,” Harbaugh said, according to The Chargers Wire.
The timing matters because Los Angeles is finishing up its 53-man roster and trying to settle the pieces in front of Justin Herbert. The offensive line will be a major factor in protecting the quarterback, and Taylor’s eventual return would give the group some needed depth.
For now, though, Awosika appears to have the inside track. The Chargers open the regular season in Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, Sept. 13, with a new offense set to debut under offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel.
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