I came away hopeful about QJ's future but also, he needs to work on his game to become a great NFL WR. Don't be so early to call him a bust and we should all be encouraging him as fans because this is OUR GUY! I'm rooting for him and I hope he breaks out next year! 🙏⚡
@@Michael_MaclaneWR Core Joshua Palmer Quentin Johnston Ladd McConkey DJ Chark Brenden Rice Cornelius Johnson Derius Davis a 7 WR competition an will they add Marcus Valdez-Scantling??? ⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡
This is a make-or-break season for QJ. The Chargers loaded up with rookie and veteran WRs this offseason, so competition for starting spots will be fierce.
1 veteran WR isn’t loading up. And they’re not getting rid of him until his rookie contract is up that’s not how it works they let rookies play out their entire rookie contract so that they have a more full body of work and stats to analyze.
This Breakdown shows how much we need Joe Alt, Herbo was getting crushed almost every 5 step drop, QJ will develop into a very above average WR2 with the right scheme.
It’s wishful thinking that QJ will develop into a very above ave #2 with the right scheme. He doesn’t seem to have the play strength nor hands to be a very productive receiver.
Seriously he is a second year WR that was drafted as a known project. You NEVER give up on a WR after year 2, especially one you used a 1st round pick on
FIRST round WRs are never projects. Check out what Addison and Flowers did as rookies. QJ just sucks and Teleseco should have been fired the day after passing on them to draft Johnston.
@@michaelbell75 - Telesco was terrible throughout his tenure. The Chargers finished in 3rd or 4th place in their own division 7 times in 11 seasons during Telesco’s tenure which is a reflection of his failures throughout. And they had a losing record during Telesco’s tenure. Telesco was the weakest link in their org for the last decade.
you say he wasn't targeted....I agree but I dont blame Herbert for not going there after all the drops and NON separation prior to Herbert not going there later in the season.
dood, you do such a great job. Your pre-draft, draft, and post-draft coverage was SO good. And now your UFA coverage and season previews are awesome! Keep up the great work. I always look forward to your posts...
Great catch on his tendency to put his head down when running a short route. I'd hate to think this, but could this be his way to count his distance/steps before having to turn? 😂
Johnston is a open space player he thrives on slants and screen type plays because he was known for his yac ability. We should work with those strengths to help him get comfortable in the game
That makes a lot of sence!! If that’s how he succeeded in college that’s how he should be used in the NFl until he develops other skills needed to play differently!!!
He telegraph's his routes from a mile away, I've called him bobble head in the past because of that. He's such an amazing athlete but he has to learn he can't out athlete people in the nfl like he did in college. If he learns to play tough, like completely take ownership of his area and attack the ball, he'll be a great player. Unfortunately that's not something you can teach but fortunately it is something you can coach. He has to figure the mental game out and that's not as easy as it seems. I hope he crushes this year.
New fan here love your videos. It’s something chargers media has been missing for a while. Detailed film breakdowns are the best! Link Steve smiths channel he talked about QJ and broke him down
Saw his doppelgänger that looked just like him hanging outside on McKee & Botham Jean in Dallas at 5am hope his offseason is going well and he becomes All Pro bc if that was him I doubt it
I think Quentin was not used correctly in his first year! I had concerns and I would have selected Mimms for a better fit for the Chargers but if you selected him you better have had a similar plan to use him in a similar way that he was used in college! “Don’t make it complicated stupid!!!” “ fit a square peg in a round .”
These was once a Bills 1st round wr pick named Eric Moulds who started out worst than QJ. He turned out damn good. Give the guy a chance. The Staley administration developed nobody. Slater was a lock. Let's see the kid with some real coaching. Salute 🫡
Excellent comment! People act like they never had a terrible beginning on their job! And the part of your comment about Staley not developing players, is so on point!
On the chargers you have another example , Mike Williams had a horrible rookie season , was hurt most of season , I don’t think he even reached 100 yards receiving for the year , year two he broke out
I don’t want him to fail. That’s my biggest thing. I see a lot of folks saying they don’t like him. I see a kid whose potential is probably the highest on our entire team but he needs help. Changing the culture will help. The chargers have had a loser mindset for too long. Justin’s coaches have never been good or stayed. Now he’s got a guy for the next 10 years at the least probably the rest of his career to learn the system from and build with that he will just win with. QJ, Mcconkey, Palmer, Rice. Those guys are Chargers that I want to be chargers for life if they are good enough.
It's not his drop passes. It's his route running and he soft off the Line The biggest problem is we picked him over Zay flowers. A complete mistake. Hopefully, he gets better this year.
i hate when people compare QJ to other rookies wide receivers who struggled. It’s not about production, any nfl wide receiver can produce or struggle producing depending on their situation. In QJs case he just isn’t a good wide receiver, the college tape shows it, his nfl tape shows it. It’s about his lack of skill sets
No matter how bad he was last year, I can't get past - Herbert as QB, Allen/Williams gone, a year removed from being the #21 pick. The Chargers definitely want and need him to succeed. To top it off.... available in the 10th+ rounds. Talk about no risk, with potential for very high reward. I'll take that "gamble" all day.
Mostly he rounds the turns in in routes. Ladd McConkey would be a good one to watch and see how he stops on a dime and changes directions. Someone has to teach QC to sink his hips into the cut. Rounding the routes out makes a CB's job too easy. High School Kids can cover that and even jump them for picks. He also tends to drift. If he is running a go up the hash-marks, you can see him drift towards the sideline. This is a problem with Brendon Rice also. This brings in the 12th defender (The Sideline). We have a staff, hopefully they can get coached up and they need to listen. Rice has his dad, but they say he never really listened to his dad (Kids think they know it all or know more).
I like QJ a lot but like you said he's got to get better at route running. Some of his routes look like he's almost lazy when he's running them. Not sure if lazy is the right word but they're not crisp routes where he make quick cuts. You only showed a few seconds of the work he was doing with MHJ but THAT'S the way he needs to run his routes! Those looked Great!! I REALLY hope that working with MHJ helped him a lot. Also I think as he watches McConky it'll give him ideas he can put in his resume.
It’s easy to say he just isn’t good enough but in all reality, he is good-coaching away from being a super star level talent. He just needs some guidance and insight on the game. Glad you touched separation because that’s what makes good receivers great. And QJ will be a great over the middle receiver for years to come. We flat out just used him wrong.
How come there isn't a single Charger "analyst" or team fanboy that doesn't mention the fact that Quentin Johnson couldn't or wouldn't learn the playbook last year?
Last season QJ played in the shadows of Allen and Williams and the staff didn't develop him like the new staff will. He's already outstanding in the running game. As he's given Time in the number one role, his route running will improve. He's been working hard with a trainer. I expect him to have a breakout year. Lots of potential. High ceiling. The rookie mistakes he made can be Coached out. When Herbert and QJ develop that Chemistry and Timing watch out cause they'll light up Secondaries imo.
Based on your critique there are things that he needs to improve on. That said why was he so productive in college against top talent? Use him like he was used in college!
I don’t expect much from him and with seven potential receivers on the current team and the Chargers bring Scantling back in this morning that would give us eight possibilities. Who would you keep if we keep five or six receivers? Don’t forget that we may have four tight ends on the team and going with five receivers is more likely.
I will take a 4.6 guy who has extreme agility over a 4.3 guy who is not agile. The agility translates to extreme quickness, bend and ability to change direction.
Chargers writer for FFMastermind here. I think you're asking an excellent question. In my view, the team has issues at WR, and they are, on paper, in worse shape in 2024 than they were last year. Could Quentin Johnston step up? Definitely. He did show improvement as the season wore on, but he started off really poorly, so it wouldn't take much to show some improvement. I think many feel he'll magically become the next Mike Williams, and while that could happen, it's far from certain. In my view, the media/public are giving Harbaugh too much credit for every move he makes. NFL is about results, and it's too early to tell what those results will look like. Of course, it won't take much to improve upon a 5-12 record.
QJ killed the wolverines a few years ago I think coach harbaugh sees the value in him as a outside wideout especially with the addition of DJ Chark a healthy X receiver to show him The ropes. Plus harbaugh will know how to use him unlike other coaches 😊
If you look at some of those throws they are 50/50 balls and not always his fault. He has trouble separating from defense but he can be used in different situations just with his height .if you go back and look there were receivers on each play Open in the middle of the field...He is not a Bust.. he is just not a Deep threat..
Plenty of good wrs have slow starts to their careers.He was used sporadically,and was misused imo He will be a drag guy,bubble,slant,screen guy in this offense and eill excel
Needs to get better at catching with his hands. He’s often lets the ball come all the way into his body. This makes him play smaller than he really is.
QJ dropped balls when he really needed to catch when he was all by himself and possibly shifted the momentum into our favor. On that note, I'm just gonna blame Staley for everything that went wrong.
I came away hopeful about QJ's future but also, he needs to work on his game to become a great NFL WR.
Don't be so early to call him a bust and we should all be encouraging him as fans because this is OUR GUY! I'm rooting for him and I hope he breaks out next year! 🙏⚡
Thanks for the great work, Michael!
Mike Williams had a worst Rookie Season then Quentin Johnston If anyone can turn him around it's Jim Harbaugh an his new Staff ⚡⚡⚡⚡
Good assessment Michael. Thanks for your thorough tape reviews. Will follow you the entire upcoming season.
Well
Said!!
Support your team players!
1000% agree he’s a hard worker and once he regains his confidence i think the potential is sky high
I see Maclane post, I turn into a happy man
Heck yeah 🙌⚡
@@Michael_MaclaneWR Core Joshua Palmer Quentin Johnston Ladd McConkey DJ Chark Brenden Rice Cornelius Johnson Derius Davis a 7 WR competition an will they add Marcus Valdez-Scantling??? ⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡
Straight up , skip right over that other casual “the director” . This dude is waaay more legit .
This is facts 😂🎉
I believe it's pronounced "Machine".
This is a make-or-break season for QJ. The Chargers loaded up with rookie and veteran WRs this offseason, so competition for starting spots will be fierce.
1 veteran WR isn’t loading up. And they’re not getting rid of him until his rookie contract is up that’s not how it works they let rookies play out their entire rookie contract so that they have a more full body of work and stats to analyze.
This was tough to watch, dude needs to get his sh!t together 😂
This Breakdown shows how much we need Joe Alt, Herbo was getting crushed almost every 5 step drop, QJ will develop into a very above average WR2 with the right scheme.
He’s very 1 dimensional tho so I don’t know about above average WR2, that’s Tyler Lockett Tyler Boyd level, I don’t rlly see rhat
@@MegaBenjaminmore of Justin Watson chiefs wr
It’s wishful thinking that QJ will develop into a very above ave #2 with the right scheme. He doesn’t seem to have the play strength nor hands to be a very productive receiver.
@@MegaBenjamin - agree!
Was looking forward to this deep dive! Thanks Maclane!
Indeed, great work by MM!
thank you so much michael, im always looking forward to your videos! you always break it down so i feel better about myself! 😂😂❤
Thanks man! 😂🙏
Seriously he is a second year WR that was drafted as a known project. You NEVER give up on a WR after year 2, especially one you used a 1st round pick on
FIRST round WRs are never projects. Check out what Addison and Flowers did as rookies. QJ just sucks and Teleseco should have been fired the day after passing on them to draft Johnston.
@michaelbell75 we can hope he will develop like Williams
@@michaelbell75 they are when Tom Telesco is drafting them.
@@michaelbell75 - Telesco was terrible throughout his tenure. The Chargers finished in 3rd or 4th place in their own division 7 times in 11 seasons during Telesco’s tenure which is a reflection of his failures throughout. And they had a losing record during Telesco’s tenure. Telesco was the weakest link in their org for the last decade.
@@dandeitch3459 I am not sure where you are going with this but agree QJ did not draft QJ.
you say he wasn't targeted....I agree but I dont blame Herbert for not going there after all the drops and NON separation prior to Herbert not going there later in the season.
dood, you do such a great job. Your pre-draft, draft, and post-draft coverage was SO good. And now your UFA coverage and season previews are awesome! Keep up the great work. I always look forward to your posts...
I never seen a WR slip and fall so much in my life.
Claypool
Great catch on his tendency to put his head down when running a short route. I'd hate to think this, but could this be his way to count his distance/steps before having to turn? 😂
Give the man the time it takes to acclimate himself to the NFL level.
He’s a star. Don’t give up the on him.
"He's a star" What you talken 'bout, Willis? 😅
@@bartbutkis we are fans first. “D” bags later. ⚡️⚡️⚡️’s
Johnston is a open space player he thrives on slants and screen type plays because he was known for his yac ability. We should work with those strengths to help him get comfortable in the game
That makes a lot of sence!! If that’s how he succeeded in college that’s how he should be used in the NFl until he develops other skills needed to play differently!!!
To me the coaches used him incorrectly. I also think the organization did not want to win last year.
QJ doesn’t seem to have the play strength nor hands to be a very productive player.
@@dandeitch3459
Michigan players seem to have good play strength so hopefully he develops his play strength.
@@ryansuter4424 - I hope you’re right but I don’t think we’ll see much improvement in his game.
Great video dude, appreciate the time you put into this one 👍🏽
He telegraph's his routes from a mile away, I've called him bobble head in the past because of that. He's such an amazing athlete but he has to learn he can't out athlete people in the nfl like he did in college. If he learns to play tough, like completely take ownership of his area and attack the ball, he'll be a great player. Unfortunately that's not something you can teach but fortunately it is something you can coach. He has to figure the mental game out and that's not as easy as it seems. I hope he crushes this year.
The tape of him & MHJ was actually crazy, boy is looking good
You do amazing work sir!! Thank you so much Michael!!
Dude this is a great video, thanks for posting
the DJ Chark ending...
Great video I appreciate it ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️
Yay new video!
🙏🫡
New fan here love your videos. It’s something chargers media has been missing for a while. Detailed film breakdowns are the best! Link Steve smiths channel he talked about QJ and broke him down
Super great analysis by you. I think you should be a scout. 😊👍💪
Saw his doppelgänger that looked just like him hanging outside on McKee & Botham Jean in Dallas at 5am hope his offseason is going well and he becomes All Pro bc if that was him I doubt it
I think Quentin was not used correctly in his first year! I had concerns and I would have selected Mimms for a better fit for the Chargers but if you selected him you better have had a similar plan to use him in a similar way that he was used in college! “Don’t make it complicated stupid!!!” “ fit a square peg in a round .”
These was once a Bills 1st round wr pick named Eric Moulds who started out worst than QJ. He turned out damn good. Give the guy a chance. The Staley administration developed nobody. Slater was a lock. Let's see the kid with some real coaching. Salute 🫡
Excellent comment! People act like they never had a terrible beginning on their job! And the part of your comment about Staley not developing players, is so on point!
On the chargers you have another example , Mike Williams had a horrible rookie season , was hurt most of season , I don’t think he even reached 100 yards receiving for the year , year two he broke out
I don’t want him to fail. That’s my biggest thing. I see a lot of folks saying they don’t like him. I see a kid whose potential is probably the highest on our entire team but he needs help. Changing the culture will help. The chargers have had a loser mindset for too long. Justin’s coaches have never been good or stayed. Now he’s got a guy for the next 10 years at the least probably the rest of his career to learn the system from and build with that he will just win with. QJ, Mcconkey, Palmer, Rice. Those guys are Chargers that I want to be chargers for life if they are good enough.
Your smart! Great idea to inspect QJ and present your findings! Keep it up, you and The Director are hands down the best Bolts reporters!
Really like how you rolled into the commercial too, seamless and much more enjoyable to watch a podcast that flows well...thank you
Great breakdown
Y'all see Jim at the Roast last night? Lol
It's not his drop passes. It's his route running and he soft off the Line The biggest problem is we picked him over Zay flowers. A complete mistake. Hopefully, he gets better this year.
Training camp superstar, let's hope he can learn how to translate it to the field with an actually competent coaching staff.
I don't know why we drafted him when Zay flowers was right there
Bottom 17%
Wtf was our previous staff doing. Why even take the risk when we had players like Flowers available at that point.
Just went back and looked Mike Dubbs rookie year : 10 rec 94 yards 0 tds 1 start
I like QJ; very professional build and great attitude. He lacks what can be corrected by coaching.
Bro I want to take my family to wach the chargers practice how when and where can I do that thanks bro
i hate when people compare QJ to other rookies wide receivers who struggled. It’s not about production, any nfl wide receiver can produce or struggle producing depending on their situation. In QJs case he just isn’t a good wide receiver, the college tape shows it, his nfl tape shows it. It’s about his lack of skill sets
You might be right but my question is ; then why was he productive in college and consideredby many the #1 receiver in last years draft?
Why’d we get a project in the 1st round 😞
Good breakdown, let’s be hopeful
No matter how bad he was last year, I can't get past - Herbert as QB, Allen/Williams gone, a year removed from being the #21 pick. The Chargers definitely want and need him to succeed. To top it off.... available in the 10th+ rounds. Talk about no risk, with potential for very high reward. I'll take that "gamble" all day.
Mostly he rounds the turns in in routes. Ladd McConkey would be a good one to watch and see how he stops on a dime and changes directions. Someone has to teach QC to sink his hips into the cut. Rounding the routes out makes a CB's job too easy. High School Kids can cover that and even jump them for picks. He also tends to drift. If he is running a go up the hash-marks, you can see him drift towards the sideline. This is a problem with Brendon Rice also. This brings in the 12th defender (The Sideline). We have a staff, hopefully they can get coached up and they need to listen. Rice has his dad, but they say he never really listened to his dad (Kids think they know it all or know more).
How was he drafted in the 1st round?
Everyone has him as a first round pick , he looked great coming out of college that’s how
same as Williams being drafted in the first round
Knowing how bad Staley was/is as a coach allows me to give him a lot of grace. Im ready to see him improve with coach Harbaugh.
I like QJ a lot but like you said he's got to get better at route running. Some of his routes look like he's almost lazy when he's running them. Not sure if lazy is the right word but they're not crisp routes where he make quick cuts. You only showed a few seconds of the work he was doing with MHJ but THAT'S the way he needs to run his routes! Those looked Great!! I REALLY hope that working with MHJ helped him a lot. Also I think as he watches McConky it'll give him ideas he can put in his resume.
It’s easy to say he just isn’t good enough but in all reality, he is good-coaching away from being a super star level talent. He just needs some guidance and insight on the game. Glad you touched separation because that’s what makes good receivers great. And QJ will be a great over the middle receiver for years to come. We flat out just used him wrong.
How come there isn't a single Charger "analyst" or team fanboy that doesn't mention the fact that Quentin Johnson couldn't or wouldn't learn the playbook last year?
wtf are you talking about idiot ? You are not a coach ,you have no idea if he learned the playbook or not , quit with the rumors clown 🤡
Every issue he points out is correctable through coaching... Maybe a better coaching staff will unlock this guys potential.
We tried to utilize him like he’s Mike will. We need to call plays that have him running routes that he’s good at.
Last season QJ played in the shadows of Allen and Williams and the staff didn't develop him like the new staff will. He's already outstanding in the running game. As he's given Time in the number one role, his route running will improve. He's been working hard with a trainer. I expect him to have a breakout year. Lots of potential. High ceiling. The rookie mistakes he made can be Coached out. When Herbert and QJ develop that Chemistry and Timing watch out cause they'll light up Secondaries imo.
If he was drafted by Telesco/Staley whatcha think 🤔
A man with Johnson's talent can be taught how to be a better reciever.
Herbert could do a better job at checking down receivers. It seems like he just watches and targets one receiver no matter what the defense does.
Based on your critique there are things that he needs to improve on. That said why was he so productive in college against top talent? Use him like he was used in college!
We also took his college QB and buddy WR2 from TCU to help him and..... yeah
I don’t expect much from him and with seven potential receivers on the current team and the Chargers bring Scantling back in this morning that would give us eight possibilities. Who would you keep if we keep five or six receivers? Don’t forget that we may have four tight ends on the team and going with five receivers is more likely.
I will take a 4.6 guy who has extreme agility over a 4.3 guy who is not agile. The agility translates to extreme quickness, bend and ability to change direction.
better question will he be a startable fantasy wr
He needs to go against the 1's this spring. Last spring he went against 2's and 3's last spring. That's why he looked reasonably good.
Chargers writer for FFMastermind here. I think you're asking an excellent question. In my view, the team has issues at WR, and they are, on paper, in worse shape in 2024 than they were last year. Could Quentin Johnston step up? Definitely. He did show improvement as the season wore on, but he started off really poorly, so it wouldn't take much to show some improvement. I think many feel he'll magically become the next Mike Williams, and while that could happen, it's far from certain. In my view, the media/public are giving Harbaugh too much credit for every move he makes. NFL is about results, and it's too early to tell what those results will look like. Of course, it won't take much to improve upon a 5-12 record.
I don’t understand those comparing him to Mike they are so different
Herbert needs “A” Maclom Floyd, “A” VJ, mentality-wise in my opinion. That go up, in, or out.
QJ killed the wolverines a few years ago I think coach harbaugh sees the value in him as a outside wideout especially with the addition of DJ Chark a healthy X receiver to show him
The ropes. Plus harbaugh will know how to use him unlike other coaches 😊
If you look at some of those throws they are 50/50 balls and not always his fault. He has trouble separating from defense but he can be used in different situations just with his height .if you go back and look there were receivers on each play Open in the middle of the field...He is not a Bust.. he is just not a Deep threat..
proper coaching could help with alot of those issues, but the kid has to want it...
Time will tell
We literally could’ve had flowers 😂😂😂
Or about 10 other guys, makes me want to Puka
You cannot determine if a player is a bust after one season. Just saying, look at Alex Smith….
My man falls down half the time and drops the ball the other half of the time. All while creating no separation 🤦♂️
I'd be happy with Malcolm Floyd type production from him. I see him getting lost in the depth, tho.
And Herb had no time lol
We were meant to get Q for Jim Harbaugh, not Staley!! This is the real year 1 ⚡️
I’m all for qj. he had 4 receivers before him, that were supposed to get it done ,throw my guy the ball
I despise Telesco for this. Years of punishment for missing on this pick. Hurts Herb's career. Hurts the cap, hurts the roster, hurts all of us.
It’s okay cuz we have “Lightning” Ladd in the fold now…
QJ is going to receive the best coaching that he has ever received in his short nfl career, (no pun intended). ⚡⚡⚡
U just gave away a "tell" when he has his head down.
Not thrown the ball....begs the question why?
I’m not going to write him off just yet
Plenty of good wrs have slow starts to their careers.He was used sporadically,and was misused imo He will be a drag guy,bubble,slant,screen guy in this offense and eill excel
He better get his shit together if not Jim will get rid of him in a heartbeat
it's been one year jesus christ people
he will get better
Just showed a camp "highlight" of QJ, the CB pulled off, and he still caught the ball with his body. He's a bust.
Not gonna call him a bust but definitely there were better prospects on the board.. remember one the con for QJ was body catcher and dropped balls.
After seeing this video I want to ring Staley’s neck and Telesco for drafting him. Maybe a new coaching staff will do him good
Needs to get better at catching with his hands. He’s often lets the ball come all the way into his body. This makes him play smaller than he really is.
Was on a breakout but after the draft just trade him to Telesco
He wasn't targeted much because herbert was running for his life half of the time.
Harbaugh is being a good coach but QJ is on the hot seat. He better step up or he’s out in 3 years
QJ dropped balls when he really needed to catch when he was all by himself and possibly shifted the momentum into our favor. On that note, I'm just gonna blame Staley for everything that went wrong.
Just gotta use him like Tyrell Williams...
He'll be ok... with right coaching
He has another shot this year. He still drops passes then trade his ass for a packet of ketchup
"Best blocking WR on the team", Yup he's getting snaps in this offense.
Yes he is
"QJ!!!! YOU CAN DOOO IT!!"
He looks like a lumbering giant with rocks for hands.
Im thinking a 2025 5th rounder....
21 overall geez.