COSTA MESA — Chargers coach Brandon Staley made his recruiting pitch to free agent linebacker Eric Kendricks while Kendricks was vacationing in Hawaii. Their conversation, as Staley recalled, could have gone on for hours, but he cut it short because, well, Kendricks was in Hawaii.
Aloha, Mr. Kendricks.
Drue Tranquill had signed with the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, one of the Chargers’ AFC West rivals, and there was a job opening at a key position. Staley said he always thought highly of Kendricks while Kendricks was playing with the Minnesota Vikings for eight seasons.
“There’s some times where you just feel like you’ve known someone a lot longer than you have, and he’s one of those players that I had never coached, but I felt like I knew his game,” Staley said. “A couple of my really good friends coached him. I thought, ‘Hey, man, one day if I get to coach this guy, this would be fantastic.’”
So, Staley reached out to Kendricks during the offseason.
“I think what we just were able to do is listen to one another, get to know each other on a personal level, kind of rewind, take me back to Fresno all the way to now,” Staley said of tracing Kendricks’ San Joaquin Valley roots. “Take me through some of those games that we played against each other in Minnesota, when I was in Chicago and Denver, even when I was the head coach here.
“I just think that what he was looking for and what we were looking for was just the perfect fit. Those stars aligned. An hour flies by and it could have been two or three hours, easy.”
Kendricks, a former UCLA standout, signed a two-year, $13.25 million contract. So far, through spring practices and the opening two weeks of training camp, he’s been everything Staley believed he could be, and then some. Staley and Kendricks’ teammates praise him at every opportunity.
Tranquill was one of the Chargers’ defensive leaders in the 2022 season – off the field and especially on it, with a team-best 146 tackles, including 95 solo. Kendricks, a Pro Bowl selection while with the Vikings in 2019, has stepped into a similar role as an experienced leader on and off the field, according to Staley.
“You can’t put a price on it,” Staley said. “There are just things that he’s seen that a lot of these other guys haven’t. You just see that confidence because he’s been through the big games. He’s been through all these tough challenges that you have to face, and not only hasn’t been thrown, but he’s been one of the top players in his position in the NFL. He’s had a real impact on our group.
“We just have to keep working together. There’s a long way to go before where we expect to be. But he’s just a really good guy to go through the process with.”
SCRIMMAGE HIGHLIGHTS
Defense dominated the Chargers’ scrimmage Sunday at Jack Hammett Sports Complex. Defensive back Mark Webb Jr. intercepted a pass by backup quarterback Easton Stick and then recovered a fumble on the next play. Alohi Gilman had a diving interception of a deflected Justin Herbert pass. …
The Chargers’ offense was hamstrung to a degree by the absence of tackles Rashawn Slater, who has been sidelined for the past three days by an illness, and Trey Pipkins, who has been limited at times by an undisclosed injury. Pipkins participated in some but not all of the scrimmage. …
Cameron Dicker made field goals of 33, 35, 37, 40 and 43 yards. He also kicked a 33-yard field goal to cap Herbert’s drive during a two-minute drill. Dicker has handled all of the kicking duties the past few days because Dustin Hopkins is working through an undisclosed injury, according to Staley. …
Rookie wide receiver Quentin Johnston, a first-round draft pick from TCU, joined the list of players unavailable to practice over the past few days because of an illness. Slater, edge rusher Joey Bosa and tight end Gerald Everett also have missed practices because of an unspecified illness.