Chargers Intrigued With the Growth Shown From Second-Year WR Josh Palmer

COSTA MESA – Josh Palmer's involvement is expected to grow in his second NFL season. After being selected by the Chargers in the third-round of the 2021 NFL Draft, he delivered marginal production as a first-year wideout.

Palmer, coming off a season in which he logged four touchdowns on 33 grabs and 353 yards, has received some steady work with the first-team offense during the first two days of training camp.

“He’s a guy that jumped out early to us. I think he keeps getting better and more confident," offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said of Palmer following Thursday's training camp practice. "Especially your first year, as the offense gets installed, there’s a volume aspect that can be overwhelming to a rookie. I think that part, he’s through that hurdle, so that he can really just go out and play fast. He looked really good yesterday. I’ll watch the film today. He’s another guy, we keep saying this, that I think we can get involved more.”

With Keenan Allen and Mike Williams having already proved to be steady resources for Justin Herbert atop the receiver depth chart, Palmer looks to carve out a role alongside Jalen Guyton for the third and fourth option.

Palmer made five starts last season, and particularly picked things up a notch in Week 14 against the Giants when the team was without Allen. Palmer showed flashes of what he's capable of producing when enduring a more extensive role.

“I think it helps his confidence. It opens our eyes a little bit, seeing him doing it in a real NFL game, knowing what he’s capable of," Lombardi said when reflecting back on Palmer's Week 14 game last season. "I think it built a lot of confidence all the way around.”

Allen, now entering his 10th NFL training camp, says he's seen a polished wideout in Palmer across the first two days of practice.

“He’s definitely polished. He was polished last year, but now he is coming in and understanding more ways to do moves, more ways to get open on routes," Allen said of Palmer. "He’ll just keep learning along the way.”

The level of competition between the receivers and defensive backs has been considerably high in camp thus far, and Palmer has shown he belongs in the mix to undergo more looks in year two.

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Nick Cothrel is the publisher of Charger Report. Follow Nick on Twitter @NickCothrel for more Chargers coverage.