Amar Johnson and Chargers beat Texans in preseason

HOUSTON — Chargers operating back Amar Johnson doesn’t have a ton of NFL expertise, but he is aware of to make every second rely.

“You don’t get the most opportunities at practice, so you’ve got to maximize the opportunities that you do get,” said Johnson, who had two touchdowns and a profitable conversion run Thursday in a 27-7 victory over the Houston Texans in a preseason opener.

“Every game you kind of hit the reset button like, yeah, I did something this week, but the next game is a new week.”

Jim Harbaugh said the urgency is palpable, particularly for gamers wanting to secure one of the last few roster spots.

“That’s why you play like your football life is at stake,” the Chargers coach said. “Because it kind of is.”

Johnson had a seven-yard landing run in the first half, then turned a short reception into a 55-yard gain in the second. He was tackled a yard short of the end zone. He smiled when requested about that, understanding he seemingly was going to take a ribbing from teammates.

“I had to punch it in one more time,” he said. And he did punch it in, scoring from the one on the next play.

Starting operating back Omarion Hampton didn’t play — most of the starters watched from the sideline — but the Chargers acquired a reminder last yr of how important it’s to have depth at the place. Injuries turned the place into a revolving door last fall.

Getting the ground sport going is a staple of new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel. The Chargers haven’t had a 1,000-yard rusher since Melvin Gordon in 2017.

Johnson, who went undrafted out of South Dakota State in 2025, initially signed with Green Bay before becoming a member of the Chargers at the start of the common season. He spent most of the autumn on the follow squad but was activated for two video games in November and had two carries for eight yards.

Running backs Jaret Patterson and Greg Desrosiers Jr. also turned in stable performances for the Chargers.

Passing grades

Chargers quarterback Trey Lance passes against the Texans on Thursday.

(Ashley Landis / Associated Press)

There’s some jostling over the backup quarterback job to Justin Herbert, that includes a replay of last summer season’s competitors between Trey Lance and DJ Uiagalelei.

Lance acquired the start and performed deep into the third quarter, finishing 12 of 20 passes for 164 yards with an interception. He ran for 27 yards in three carries.

Uiagalelei accomplished six of 9 for 120 yards — 55 on that wheel route to Johnson — and had a three-yard cross to Devonte Ross for the ultimate landing.

Harbaugh said both quarterbacks moved the offense nicely, and he was impressed with the way in which both dug themselves out of holes. Lance guided the Chargers to a first down after a first-and-20 start, and Uigalelei did the same dealing with a first-and-19.

“Can you move the football team?” the coach said. “Can you move the team and end up with points, field goals or touchdowns? More often than not, those drives were ending up in the end zone.

“Both quarterbacks acquitted themselves well.”

Front and heart

Around this time last yr, the Chargers had been reeling along the offensive line, having misplaced left deal with Rashawn Slater to a season-ending knee injury. Early in the season, they misplaced bookend deal with Joe Alt. In short, the offensive line was a mess.

Now, those gamers are back, and it’s all about making smaller tweaks along a stable line. The query mark is at left guard, with 5 candidates in the combo: Kayode Awosika, Branson Taylor, Jake Slaughter, Trey Pipkins III and Trevor Penning.

Slaughter, a rookie second-round choose, began at heart Thursday and moved to left guard and appeared to play nicely. That he can play heart in addition to guard is especially worthwhile, as he may be dependable depth to beginning heart Tyler Biadasz.

Harbaugh praised a number of offensive linemen. Asked what he appreciated about Slaughter in the sport, he said: “Just his demeanor, his physicality, his knowing what to do.”

The play of both the offensive and defensive strains was pleasing to Harbaugh, who praised the performances of younger defensive linemen TeRah Edwards and Jacob Guillory.

Meanwhile, first-round edge rusher Akheem Mesidor wasn’t on the sector a lot. Presumably, the coach goes to ease him into preseason video games.

“He’s been impressing me all camp,” Harbaugh said. “And by design, he didn’t play a ton of snaps.”

Dropportunity

Chargers vast receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith had 4 catches in the first half Thursday but couldn’t pull in this cross against Texans cornerback Collin Wright.

(Ashley Landis / Associated Press)

KeAndre Lambert-Smith had a game-high 4 receptions, all coming in the first half. Harbaugh was happy with the separation he created.

“I felt like I played fast, executed, played physical,” Lambert-Smith said. “I just did what I was supposed to do.”

He completed with 58 yards, but would have had considerably more had a cross not slipped through his palms. He had overwhelmed rookie nook Collin Wright on a deep ball, but the cross from Lance was barely underthrown. Wright mistimed his leap, and the ball acquired through to Lambert-Smith before bouncing off his palms.

“My feet got caught in the turf and it kind of messed up my whole adjustment to the ball,” the receiver said. “Wish I had that one back, honestly.”

The top three receiver spots are locked down by Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston and Tre’ Harris, but there’s room for one and perhaps two more wideouts. A rookie to watch the speedy Brenen Thompson, who doubles as a receiver and returner.

Double vanilla

Teams are always circumspect about doing something too unique during the preseason, lest they offer regular-season opponents one thing to research. That goes double this season for the Chargers, seeing as all three of their preseason opponents — Houston, San Francisco and the Rams — will face them again in the common season. It’s a bit of a balancing act, though, because it’s acquired to be tempting to get a look at McDaniel’s offense outdoors the construction of a follow.

“We’re doing things we’ve been practicing,” Harbaugh said. “It’s not too different than playing a division opponent twice in a year. And don’t underestimate Mike. He’s pretty sly about setting some things up for the next time we play.”