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Kris Rhim, ESPN
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Chargers have agreed to a trade with the Atlanta Falcons for quarterback Taylor Heinicke, a source confirmed to ESPN.
The Chargers will send the Falcons a conditional sixth-round pick, the source said.
This move wasn’t a surprise. The Chargers have one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL in Justin Herbert, but after he missed two weeks of training camp with a plantar fascia injury in his right foot, it was clear the backup quarterbacks were ill-prepared to keep the team afloat if Herbert’s injury lingered.
Easton Stick, who is in his sixth season in the NFL, had been formidable in four games that Herbert missed last season with a right index finger fracture. It earned Stick a one-year contract from a new front office, but throughout training camp and the preseason, Stick didn’t look like the player who started last season or one capable of leading the Chargers if Herbert went down with an injury.
In the Chargers’ three preseason games, Stick finished 25-for-55 with 303 passing yards, 1 touchdown and 3 interceptions.
“I don’t think we’re in a position to be comfortable,” coach Jim Harbaugh said about the team’s backup quarterbacks after the Chargers first preseason game. “I don’t think anybody on the offensive side of the ball would be happy with that.”
Heinicke, heading into his seventh season, has started 29 games over his career. As the full-time starter for the Commanders in 2021, he finished with 3,419 yards, 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. The Commanders finished 7-8 that year.
The Chargers made another move Wednesday, trading for Tennessee Titans CB Elijah Molden for a seventh-round pick.
Molden started 16 of 33 career regular-season games with the Titans. He recorded 137 tackles, 2 pick-sixes and 2 forced fumbles. Last season was Molden’s best as a pro, setting career highs in starts (eight) and tackles (72). Molden’s father, Alex, played defensive back for the Chargers for two seasons (2001-2002).
Molden gives the Chargers added depth and a special teams player at a position where they struggled last season. The Chargers finished the season allowing 249.8 yards passing per game, which ranked 29th in the NFL and was their highest since 2013.
News of the trade was first reported by The Athletic.