Chargers vs. Texans preseason Week 1: 5 takeaways from LA's win

The Chargers started the preseason with a dominant win, beating the Texans in Houston by a final score of 27-7.

Here’s what to take away from the game.

The preseason often tells you just as much about who’s safe and who’s on the bubble before the game starts as it does when the two teams actually take the field. That was especially true in the first week for the Chargers, who rested most of their starters to get more of a look at their young depth and players fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster.

Edge rusher Bud Dupree, who struggled last season but still seems to have the faith of the defensive coaching staff, did not dress. Neither did veteran safety Tony Jefferson, a cut the last two seasons who has worked his way back onto the roster both times. That likely signals that both are safe and will be on LA’s final roster later this month. Running back Keaton Mitchell sitting out is also notable from a role perspective: Omarion Hampton and Mitchell sat out, but Kimani Vidal started the game, suggesting Vidal is the third back for now.

Lambert-Smith entered Thursday as a bubble player primarily because offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel has historically only kept 5 wide receivers on his initial rosters with the Dolphins, and the Chargers have four (Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston, Tre’ Harris, and Brenen Thompson) who are safe, with a fifth (Derius Davis) still in control of the starting returner job. But Lambert-Smith’s rapport with Thursday’s starting quarterback Trey Lance carried over from last season, as the second-year receiver led all receivers with 4 receptions and 58 yards, which would have also led all receivers if running back Amar Johnson had not had a 55-yard scamper down the left sideline in the fourth quarter.

That sort of volume early in Thursday’s game points more towards Lambert-Smith being safe. The Chargers also had four players return punts, which could have been an attempt to rest Davis (who was not targeted on offense) or an attempt to stir up some competition for their primary returner. Either way, LA has the leeway to keep six receivers, and Lambert-Smith stamped his claim on one of those spots on Thursday.

If the preseason continues as it did Thursday, the Chargers are going to have to make some tough cuts on the defensive line. Their defensive tackle rotation is essentially set in stone with the quintet of Teair Tart, Dalvin Tomlinson, Jamaree Caldwell, Justin Eboigbe, and rookie fifth-rounder Nick Barrett, but 2025 undrafted free agent TeRah Edwards and 2026 undrafted free agents Jahmeer Carter and Jacobian Guillory made it clear Thursday that they won’t go down without a fight. Edwards was a stout run defender in short-yardage situations, Carter flashed some backfield penetration ability, and Guillory pressured Texans quarterback Davis Mills to the sideline at one point. Those three are likely in a battle for two practice squad spots at most, so that will be a competition worth keeping an eye on later in the Chargers’ next two preseason games.

Lance and DJ Uiagalelei combined to go 18-of-29 passing for 275 yards, 1 touchdown (thrown by Uiagalelei), and 1 interception (thrown by Lance), but neither of them was a standout performer. Lance may have played his way out of being a roster lock with the interception, a poor read on a throw to Thompson, as well as at least two other near-interceptions that were dropped by Texans defenders. Uiagalelei was better, but threw mostly short and simple routes. His accuracy dropped sharply when throwing farther down the field. Jim Harbaugh has said that QB2 is a competition and the prospect of trading for Harbaugh’s quarterback at Michigan, JJ McCarthy, looms large after McCarthy was named the backup to Kyler Murray in Minnesota earlier this week. One of Lance or Uiagalelei will have to make a leap next week to keep that temptation at bay and prove that they should be the backup to Justin Herbert this season.

Undrafted rookie Avery Smith’s night got off to an inauspicious start, as he was on the wrong end of Houston’s only score of the game when Texans receiver Jared Wayne won a jump ball over the Toledo alum. After that, however, one of the Chargers' standouts of training camp continued to raise eyebrows. He had a pass deflection on third down on the next drive and added a fourth-quarter run stop on fourth and 1 to give the Chargers the ball back. Nikko Reed (4 tackles, 1 on special teams) and Eric Rogers (2 tackles), Smith’s primary competition for the 53-man roster, had quieter nights, so the rookie is now in the driver’s seat for LA’s CB5 job. Reed still has shown more slot ability than the other two, which is where the Chargers lack depth the most, so it may be neck and neck heading into preseason game two, but Smith’s performance on Thursday showed that he’ll likely make it a tough decision for Chargers brass.

This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: Chargers vs. Texans preseason Week 1: 5 takeaways from LA's win