Signing of Andre Roberts should not stop Chargers from continuing to shore up special teams

Even after the addition of veteran returner Andre Roberts, the Chargers’ special teams department is far from solidified. The team continues to be haunted by ongoing issues in the kicking game.

Tristan Vizcaino, who was given the nod over Michael Badgley for the starting kicker, has not done much to show he was the right man for the job.

In six games, Vizcaino has missed five extra points, which marks the most in the NFL.

Vizcaino was coveted for his leg strength by the coaching staff, but he has yet to make a field goal over 50 yards, and his kickoff touchback percentage is 41.94, which ranks 30th in the league.

Head coach Brandon Staley acknowledged his struggles with the extra points, adding that a good chunk of it has to do with Vizcaino’s confidence.

His confidence may be shallow because the Chargers have been giving up a ton of pressure off the right side of their field goal and extra point protection.

But the bottom line is that it’s a glaring concern that has been near costly, most notably the missed extra point against the Browns late in the fourth quarter that would have tied the game at 42.

Despite the 25-year-old’s growing pains, Los Angeles might be wise to strongly consider bringing in another kicker to avoid any blunders down the final stretch of the season.

The pool of available kickers is not deep, but a few notables include Dustin Hopkins, Giorgio Travecchio, Stephen Gostkowski, and Eddy Pineiro. Or, a pair of Chargers, Badgley or Josh Lambo, might intrigue.

Would it be surprising to see the coaches roll with Vizcaino following the bye? Not at all, given Staley’s comments on him needing to grow his confidence.

However, it is not worth taking the chance of these types of errors to grow any further, which is why change has to be taken into consideration.