COSTA MESA — Donald Parham Jr. is often asked to do tall-man tasks like grabbing items from the top shelf and being a red-zone target for the Chargers.
The 6-foot-8 tight end is the first Charger to score touchdowns on each of his first two career receptions since John Jefferson did it in 1978.
Justin Herbert threw both touchdown passes to Parham. The second came last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars when Herbert put the ball over a defender’s head for Parham to grab.
“He reached up there and got it off the top shelf,” Herbert said Wednesday.
The rookie quarterback forgot to say no pun intended, but he didn’t forget the many red-zone plays Parham made in training camp when he was fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster.
“He’s a rare breed,” Herbert said about Parham. “Being able to move as well as he does at that height is pretty incredible. Any time we get him out there he poses a threat and we kinda saw that in fall camp. We marched him out there and he made some big plays.
“So we kinda knew going in that we’re gonna have a special guy here.”
Parham has given the Chargers another red-zone weapon, but he’s now being asked to do more with tight end Virgil Green sidelined with an ankle injury. The Chargers will face the Denver Broncos in a road matchup Sunday.
Green injured his right ankle during his touchdown catch versus the Jaguars. Chargers coach Anthony Lynn was undecided Monday when asked if Green would go on injured reserve to miss at least three games, but added that he expects him to be out a few weeks.
Green is arguably the Chargers’ best blocking tight end and helped protect Herbert with top offensive linemen Trai Turner and Bryan Bulaga sidelined with injuries.
Lynn said Parham is capable of filling Green’s blocking role because of the improvements he’s made since training camp.
“(The Chargers) instilled the importance of (blocking) in terms of my career and making sure I’m taking strides forward to become a better blocker,” Parham said. “Get my name out there as an all-around tight end. This program has definitely helped me out.”
Parham gets to practice with one of the best all-around tight ends in Hunter Henry. He’s striving to be at Henry’s level, but he’s made vast improvements this year, which started with him playing for the XFL’s Dallas Renegades.
Parham struggled to find his footing as an undrafted NFL rookie last year with Detroit and Washington.
He was able to showcase his talent as a pass catcher in the XFL, and that’s likely why the Chargers decided to take a chance on him, but it was going to come down to his skills as a blocker in training camp. The Chargers already had Henry, Green and Stephen Anderson, but they decided to keep four tight ends on the final roster.
Parham received more time to improve while being inactive for the first three games of the season. He made his debut in Week 4 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and only saw one snap, but made it count with a 19-yard touchdown catch. Parham saw a season-high 18 snaps against the Jaguars.
It was a long-awaited NFL debut, but perhaps a fitting one with Parham scoring near his hometown of Lakeland, Florida.
Parham was a late bloomer on the football field. He didn’t receive playing time on his high school team until his senior year and didn’t realize he could turn football into a career until his second year at Stetson University, a small central Florida private school.
“I was making a pretty good amount of plays and doing well, so I just kind of made it a thing in my head that I wanna become that next big thing,” Parham said.
He’s on his way to being the next big thing as the Chargers’ 6-foot-8 scoring weapon. But it’s not all about height and scoring touchdowns. Parham knows he’s gotta block, too.
“I’m definitely eager to step in that role,” Parham said.
PLAYERS RETURN TO THEIR HOMES
Lynn said many players and staff members were allowed to return to their homes after being forced to evacuate because of the Silverado fire.
“A lot of guys went back home yesterday and some guys still in hotels,” Lynn said Wednesday. “But we’re fine. That’s all I know now. Everyone is safe, everyone is fine, I can tell you that.”
Herbert was one of the players who stayed in a hotel Tuesday because of the evacuation orders.
By Wednesday afternoon, all Irvine residents and some from Lake Forest who’d been ordered to leave were allowed to return home.
INJURIES
Lynn said Turner and Bulaga will likely come down to game-time decisions Sunday against the Broncos.
Turner, who has missed the past four games because of a groin injury, didn’t practice Wednesday. Bulaga, who’s been out since Week 4 because of a back injury, practiced as a limited participant.
Rayshawn Jenkins was a new addition to the injury report. The safety was limited because of a hamstring injury.
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Chargers ask TE Donald Parham Jr. to do more than score touchdowns - OCRegister
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