The Los Angeles Chargers have been wheeling and dealing after roster cutdown day. Hours after swinging a trade for Tennessee Titans defensive back Elijah Molden, the Chargers reportedly traded for Justin Herbert's new backup quarterback. According to The Athletic, the Atlanta Falcons are trading Taylor Heinicke to the Chargers in exchange for a conditional sixth-round pick.
The Chargers kept two quarterbacks on their initial 53-man roster: Herbert and Easton Stick. Now enters Heinicke.
With the Falcons' No. 8 overall selection of Michael Penix Jr., Heinicke was demoted from his assumed role of backup to Kirk Cousins. The 31-year-old started four of five games played for Atlanta last season, going 1-3 and throwing for 890 yards, five touchdowns and four interceptions while completing a career-low 54.4% of his passes.
Heinicke became a fan favorite during his time with the Washington Commanders. The undrafted quarterback out of Old Dominion gave Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a close game in his first start for Washington, which came in the wild-card round of the 2020 playoffs. In that eventual 31-23 loss, Heinicke threw for 306 yards, one touchdown, one interception and rushed for 46 yards plus another score.
Heinicke got his shot as the full-time starter in Washington back in 2021 when Ryan Fitzpatrick suffered a season-ending injury in Week 1. He went 7-8 and threw for 3,419 yards, 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. In 29 total starts made for the Carolina Panthers, Commanders and Falcons, Heinicke has a record of 13-15-1.
