Tony Jefferson’s game-day uniform was a faded scout team jersey. Instead of wearing the pristine powder blue and gold jersey under the translucent roof at SoFi Stadium on Sundays, the Chargers safety showed his best while a gentle breeze blew across the practice field on Wednesdays. He didn’t necessarily care if that meant jumping into passing lanes, intercepting passes and breaking up plays against his own teammates.
“That was like my game day,” Jefferson said.
Scout team reps for practice-squad players and reserves serve as a stepping stone, proving ground or even stage acting for Chargers players at all phases of their careers. Jefferson, a 10-year pro, has turned his practice highlights into a prime-time role.
The safety who was signed to the active roster last week after Alohi Gilman went on injured reserve, notched eight tackles against the Atlanta Falcons in his first start since Dec. 4, 2022.
Then after practice Wednesday, Jefferson was whisked away to film a “Sunday Night Football” starter introduction ahead of the Chargers’ AFC West game against the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs.
To the Chargers, the behind-the-scenes practice-squad role is just as vital as any game-day responsibility.
“Coach [Jim Harbaugh] calls it an opportunity squad,” said wide receiver Jalen Reagor, who worked his way onto the active roster in Week 7 after signing with the Chargers practice squad on Sept. 23.
The group of 17 practice squad members and a handful of reserves on the active roster serve as the scout team each week with the main objective of mimicking the opposing team against the Chargers starters during practice. Scout players wearing pull-on mismatched jerseys crowd around a coach who holds a card in the air showing a play.
Although it seems as if the costume change would be an unglamorous part of life as a professional football player, mention of scout team duties often elicit wide smiles from players.
When else could Kimani Vidal ever be mistaken for Derrick Henry?
The 5-foot-8, 215-pound sixth-round pick rotates with practice squad running back Jaret Patterson, impersonating the opposing team’s running back each week. Neither pretends they have Henry’s 6-3, 247-pound frame, but when they lined up against the Chargers’ top-ranked defense in practice, they tried their best to channel Henry’s downhill running style and speed.
“He’s crazy, especially watching him in person, he’s legit that big and that fast,” Vidal said. “So it’s pretty cool to be him.”
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was a favorite scout team assignment for Chargers backups Taylor Heinicke and Easton Stick, who tried to mimic the two-time NFL most valuable player’s style by running the initial scout-team play then breaking free from the pocket and scrambling in circles, running with the ball in one hand or attempting to juke a defender.
Free from the exact specifications of their own plays, running scout team plays is “like backyard football again,” Reagor said.
“But,” he added, “you’re still honing in your craft.”
Coaches and front office personnel obsess over every practice rep and drill, offensive coordinator Greg Roman said. They evaluate and grade every player, and for up-and-comers trying to stick in the league, any opportunity to line up against starters are valuable tests.
“Our defense is one of the best defenses in the league, so you’re going against the best of the best,” said Patterson, who is in his second stint on the Chargers practice squad after signing with Washington in 2021 as an undrafted free agent. “In that sense, if I could do that against them, I could go against — when my number is called — other opponents.”
When Gilman suffered a hamstring injury and went on injured reserve last week, the Chargers suddenly needed Jefferson to go from scout team nuisance to starting safety. He played 54 snaps against the Falcons, bursting off the sideline with three tackles on the first drive.
Jefferson played with the ferocity of nearly two years of pent up football frustration. After working as a scouting intern with the Baltimore Ravens last year, Jefferson signed with the Chargers hoping to scratch an itch to play that never wavered.
Hoping that a dominant 14-tackle, two-interception preseason performance against the Dallas Cowboys wouldn’t be his last stand on the field, Jefferson proved he could still make plays on game day by doing it in practice. He didn’t mind weathering Roman‘s reactions when he went off script.
“I was just trying to put myself in a good position, as if I were playing the game,” Jefferson said. “A few times, that results in interceptions.”
Justin Herbert never hounds Jefferson for going off script on scout team, but receivers accuse him of knowing the play. Jefferson owns up to his scout team tendencies, but the veteran also knows when to dial it back. He saves most of his freelancing for early in the week. As the game approaches, he wants to stick to the assignment to give the offense the clearest look.
“You want to be the best team player you possibly can be,” Jefferson said. “While I’m on the scout team, I want to do the best look. While I’m playing and active, I want to play the best I possibly can play.”
With starters dominating the live reps during practice, scout team players subsist on mental reps to stay ready for their opportunities. Only a snap away from having to come on the field, the backup quarterbacks stay engaged with the Chargers’ game plan by staying after practice.
Heinicke and Stick might only get four or five throws from a true pocket during each practice, Stick said. They stay on the field for about 30 additional minutes with senior offensive analyst Marc Trestman to repeat the whole practice script again with a small group of teammates. Practice squad receiver Jaylen Johnson or third-string center Sam Mustipher also often stay behind for extra work.
Then they blend into the background on game day under headsets and behind clipboards.
The job of scout team quarterback can feel thankless at times, Heinicke said, because even his best impersonation of an opposing quarterback will never be perfect. But the locker room celebration of a victory is the perfect message of gratitude.
“If you’re winning,” Stick said, “you know you’re doing things the right way.”
