COSTA MESA, Calif. – The offseason for NFL players is about rest and recovery, but also building your body for next year.

While the Los Angeles Chargers are working hard in the weight room and on the field with the training staff at Hoag Performance Center in the team’s offseason training program, they also have their own regimen away from the facility that they follow to get their mind and body prepared for competition come September.

Some players have a personal message therapist or flexibility coach, while others work with personal trainers on very specific training regimens to improve their strength and speed, or aid in recovery from a nagging injury.

In a league where the average length of a NFL career is 3.3 years according to the NFL Players Association, players want to put themselves in the best position to make the final roster, and ultimately help the Chargers win more games in 2018.

“Our focus is on how can we take that next step,” Chargers defensive tackle Brandon Mebane said. “We felt like we were better than 9-7. So we want to take our next step on actually improving, so we can close out those games that we felt like we should have won.”

Let’s take a look at three questions from this week’s mailbag:

@eric_d_williams how long will it take for the Chargers to sign Derwin James?
And what is the Likelihood of the Chargers appearing on Hard Knocks?

— ChargersSB53Champs (@ChargerBuckeye) May 11, 2018

@eric_d_williams: I’m not sure when the Chargers will sign Derwin James, but hopefully they avoid the situation the team went through two years ago with Joey Bosa.

David Mulugheta is James’ agent, who also represents Casey Hayward. The Chargers recently consummated a contract extension with Hayward, so hopefully the two sides worked in a similarly productive manner on James’ deal.

The Chargers are one of six teams eligible for HBO’s “Hard Knocks,” along with the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens and Washington Redskins.

Teams can avoid mandatory inclusion in the documentary series if they fall under any of these three exemptions: 1) They have a first-year head coach in place; 2) They reached the postseason in the past two seasons; 3) They appeared on the series in the past 10 years.

I asked Chargers GM Tom Telesco about the possibility of his team appearing on the show in January.

Back then, Telesco did not firmly slam the door on the Chargers being open to the possibility. However, the Bolts do not necessarily want to open their facility and training camp to cameras focusing on their daily operations.

Instead, the Browns could be the frontrunners to appear on the reality TV show, according to this report by Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal.

With No. 1 overall pick quarterback Baker Mayfield competing with veteran Tyrod Taylor to lead a team that’s won just one game over the last two years, the Browns would be appointment television.

“You know what? They’ll do that, but it’s OK,” Brown general manager John Dorsey told Cleveland radio station WKNR, when asked about the possibility of the NFL forcing the Browns to do the reality TV show. “I’m OK with it. I mean, you know what? It is what it is, but I’m OK with it.”

Former Browns GM Michael Lombardi posted on twitter a few weeks ago that Cleveland might be the team selected to go on the HBO show this year, so we’ll see what happens.

But from the Chargers’ point of view, they are not clamoring to be on the reality TV show.

Wipe out all of the team needs. Which UDFA has the best chance of making the team/ most talent?

— Parzival (@brett_arrows) May 11, 2018

@eric.d.williams: I only had a chance to watch the first day of rookie minicamp for a little over an hour, but two players I thought flashed on Friday were cornerbacks Tony Brown and Brandon Facyson.

Both players are big, physical defensive backs that fit the Chargers’ profile for taller corners that can play press coverage, and both have a chance to excel as gunners on special teams because of their length and speed.

San Diego State tight end non-roster invitee Darryl Richardson made a couple, nice catches over the middle of the field. And I thought quarterbacks Nic Shimonek and Troy Williams threw the ball at times with pace and accuracy.

What are the positions the chargers are looking to add on to for extra depth

— cj (@cjfusco_) May 10, 2018

@eric_d_williams: Two areas to watch for during the offseason and in training camp are linebacker and offensive line.

Even though the Chargers took Uchenna Nwosu and Kyzir White in the draft, they still need more physical and athletic bodies on the second level of the defense, so they are looking for more depth there.

And with starting tackles Russell Okung and Joe Barksdale both 30 years old, the Bolts would like to find a couple, developmental prospects to grow at offensive tackle.

Other positions to watch are tight end, running back and defensive tackle.