Chargers Add Valdes-Scantling to Practice Squad

The Los Angeles Chargers are signing veteran wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to their practice squad, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported, a depth move after three Chargers receivers got hurt in Sunday's loss to the Arizona Cardinals. NBC Sports, Reuters, and CBS Sports Fantasy amplified the same Fowler note Tuesday night into Wednesday.

KeAndre Lambert-Smith landed on injured reserve with a hamstring issue. Ladd McConkey is day-to-day with a rib injury. Derius Davis is also banged up. Los Angeles promoted wideout Gary Jennings from the practice squad to the active roster to replace Lambert-Smith, then turned to Valdes-Scantling for more body work behind the scenes.

Why MVS fits the moment

Valdes-Scantling, 31, spent training camp with the Dallas Cowboys before a late-August release on cutdown day. Green Bay drafted him in the fifth round in 2018. He has also suited up for the Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers, and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Career line through those stops: 219 receptions, 3,686 yards, and 21 touchdowns. He is a vertical specialist who can stretch a defense in practice and be elevated if McConkey's ribs linger into Week 2.

Fantasy managers should not treat a practice-squad stamp as an automatic active-roster unlock. It does tell you the Chargers want another experienced body while Lambert-Smith starts a four-game IR clock and McConkey works through contact.

Week 2 at SoFi

Los Angeles hosts the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, Sept. 20, at 4:05 p.m. ET. Watch Wednesday and Thursday practice reports for McConkey and Davis. If either is limited, Valdes-Scantling becomes the next elevation candidate on gameday paperwork.

The sourced move is simple: Fowler says practice squad, the receiver room is thinned, and a Super Bowl-tested deep threat is back on a roster until further notice. Two Super Bowl rings with Kansas City after the 2022 and 2023 seasons are why Los Angeles reached for him instead of a pure developmental undrafted name.

Practice-squad elevation rules still matter. Valdes-Scantling can only be elevated so many times before a permanent roster move is required, so treat early-week chatter as depth insurance rather than a locked three-wide package. If McConkey practices fully by Friday, MVS stays a practice body. If McConkey is limited, the elevation math gets real fast for a 4:05 p.m. ET kick against Las Vegas.

Keep McConkey on your radar. Keep MVS on the waiver wire. And check the elevation list before kickoff.