The Los Angeles Chargers offensive line has dealt with a significant amount of injuries this season. Only two linemen have played every snap this season. Zion Johnson is one of them.
To date, Johnson has easily been the Chargers best offensive lineman this season. The Chargers declined his 5th year option and he is playing on the final year of his rookie contract.
Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh clearly values Zion Johnson's toughness and consistency. Harbaugh has mentioned the phrase "There every day" or the acronym TED to describe leaders and consistency he values. Harbaugh went on Pat McAfee's show last season and raved about his guard's toughness.
#Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh was off by a few weeks but he revealed Zion Johnson sustained a high ankle sprain on the Pat McAfee Show, presumably against the Broncos in week 5 (he was on the injury report as a full participant for the Cardinals)#BoltUp pic.twitter.com/G2yakR7clc
— Thomas Martinez (@BoltsDraftTalk) November 12, 2024
Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz came up under Ozzie Newsome in the Baltimore Ravens organization. The Ravens over the past decade or so have had a very specific plan for their starting centers.
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Before Tyler Linderbaum was drafted in the first round, the Ravens' previous three starting centers had all been drafted at other positions. They were developed to play center and were given trial runs during the pre-season the season prior to them taking over center duties.
For example, Ryan Jensen played exclusively at guard during the 2016 season for the Ravens despite playing center in the pre-season. He was Baltimore's starting center in 2017. Matt Skura played left guard and center during the 2017 pre-season but started at right guard the entire regular season before becoming the starting center in Baltimore in 2018. Bradley Bozeman was the Ravens' starting left guard in 2018 through 2020, but played center during the 2019 pre-season. Bozeman took over starting center duties the next year in 2021.
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Zion Johnson has played left guard and right guard during his NFL career. Some teams did view him as a possible center during the draft process and he practiced the position at the Senior Bowl. The Chargers gave him a trial run at center this pre-season, the same way the Ravens did with most of their centers.
Zion Johnson's run at center this pre-season never felt like a realistic possibility for this season. However, it may have been for a specific purpose for 2026.
Johnson has all the attributes Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers look for in their offensive lineman. He also physically stacks up almost identically to the average physical attributes of the Ravens' starting centers, with the exception that Johnson is significantly more athletic.
I did the research, here's the data.
What did Joe Hortiz and the Ravens look for in their Centers?
Clues to the Chargers Future at Center https://t.co/ywO6OtNQsT pic.twitter.com/ln3ISVINsw
— Thomas Martinez (@BoltsDraftTalk) March 7, 2025
Zion Johnson's RAS card when switched to center
Created using Mathbomb RAS
If the Chargers follow the Ravens' pattern, we can expect Zion Johnson to be given significant consideration to be Los Angeles' starting center if he is signed to an extension.
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