Roderic Teamer Jr. hopes he did enough to make the cut as Chargers beat 49ers
SANTA CLARA — No matter what happens over the next two days, Roderic Teamer Jr. has plenty of love waiting for him at home.
A defensive back hopeful for the Chargers, Teamer will learn his fate when cuts are made Friday and Saturday.
And even if the Chargers decide they don’t like Teamer enough, his dogs will joyfully welcome him back.
All nine of them.
Teamer and his father rescue, train, adopt and foster labradors and pit bulls at the family home in Louisiana.
“Just a passion of mine,” Teamer said, unnecessarily.
He entered the Chargers’ final preseason game — an eventual 27-24 victory over San Francisco on Thursday night — competing for a spot as a reserve and special teams player.
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Teamer had tight coverage on fourth down to force an incompletion on the 49ers’ first possession.
By the end of the first half, however, he was standing on the sidelines with his right quad heavily taped and done for the night.
In the first two preseason games, Teamer played 93 snaps on defense, and no one was on the field for more. He missed the third game because of a hamstring injury.
“I’m not really sure what that’s an indication of,” Teamer said of his high snap count. “It’s my first year, so I’m not sure what to read into that. The coaches are giving me an opportunity and I appreciate it.”
After four seasons at Tulane, Teamer’s path to the NFL has been all uphill. He wasn’t invited to the combine and wasn’t drafted.
The Chargers were the first to contact his agent when they called after the sixth round. Their eagerness sold Teamer on the chance.
“I’ve always had to kind of earn my way,” he said. “I’ve never had anything just given to me. I’ve never been the five-star guy or expected to come in and do crazy things and wow people. This is what I’m used to.”
The Chargers have until 1 p.m. Saturday to reach the league’s 53-man roster limit. On Sunday, they’ll put together their 10-man practice squad.
Though many of the decisions, by this point, are easy, the process for coach Anthony Lynn is not.
Emeke Egbule is vying for a spot in Chargers’ deep linebacker group, leaning on his versatility, pass-rush potential and performance on special teams.
“I wish someone could teach me or tell me how to approach that because these Fridays and Saturdays are the worst two days of the year for me,” he said. “[We’ve] got to cut the roster down … and that’s going to be hard to do. Some of these young men have been elite their whole entire life. They’ve never been cut from anything. Some of the emotions that take place — it’s tough. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it, but it’s got to be done.”
Among the significant moments Thursday: Wide receiver Artavis Scott had another impressive performance, catching three passes for 55 yards.
Both running backs competing for the No. 3 job had notable efforts. Detrez Newsome carried six times for 26 yards and a touchdown and had two receptions for 32 yards. Troymaine Pope had a 42-yard run.
Quarterback Cardale Jones started and went 10 for 16 for 149 yards and also scored on an acrobatic two-yard run in his final bid for the No. 3 spot.
Rookie Easton Stick, a fifth-round selection battling with Jones, threw his third and fourth interceptions of the preseason and ended up three for six for 22 yards.
Second-round pick Nasir Adderley made his preseason debut after missing most of training camp because of a hamstring issue. He was all over the field, breaking up two passes before intercepting Wilton Speight in the fourth quarter.
The Chargers did lose linebacker Jatavis Brown to an undisclosed injury in the first half. He missed the end of last season because of an ankle problem.
They completed the preseason with several veterans — including quarterback Philip Rivers, center Mike Pouncey and linebacker Thomas Davis — having not played a snap.
Lynn said he decided before training camp began that he would completely rest or nearly completely rest certain players as a precaution and with the long term in mind.
“I looked at our team last year at the end of the season, I thought we were a little tired,” he said. “We had some injuries here and there and some guys were worn down. I just feel like it’s going to help in the long run.”
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