The Chargers are everyone’s favorite 2017 sleeper. The Bolts are moving to a new city, coming off of two consecutive double-digit loss seasons, and have earned only one postseason berth in the past seven years, but Los Angeles looks poised to at least contend for the AFC West during the upcoming campaign. Here’s what general manager Tom Telesco & Co. did this offseason:
Notable signings:
- Melvin Ingram, DE: Four years, $54MM. $34MM guaranteed. $2MM available via incentives. Had been assigned franchise tag.
- Russell Okung, T: Four years, $53MM. $25MM guaranteed.
- Jahleel Addae, S: Four years, $22.5MM. $8MM guaranteed.
- Damion Square, DL: Two years, $4MM. $1.225MM guaranteed.
- Mike Windt, LS: Four years, $4.421MM. $620K guaranteed.
- Tre Boston, S: One year, $900K. $100K guaranteed.
- Kellen Clemens, QB: One year, minimum salary benefit. $80K guaranteed.
- Kenny Wiggins, OL: One year, $865K. $75K guaranteed.
- Kenjon Barner, RB: One year, $815K. $75K guaranteed.
- Branden Oliver, RB: One year, $800K. $50K guaranteed.
- Dontrelle Inman, WR: One year, $2.746MM. Signed second-round RFA tender.
- Jeff Cumberland, TE: One year, $775K.
- Tenny Palepoi, DL: One year, $615K.
The Chargers’ offensive line has been a clear weakness for the past few seasons, and that was never more apparent than in 2016. With ineffectiveness plaguing the club’s guard positions, Los Angeles ranked in the bottom third of the NFL in adjusted sack rate, adjusted line yards, and pressure rate. Left tackle was a problem, as well, as King Dunlap graded as a below-average blindside protector in his second straight injury-shortened campaign. With an eye towards improving Philip Rivers‘ protection, the Chargers struck quickly to sign tackle Russell Okung on the first day of free agency.
Okung spent the 2016 season with the division rival Broncos after inking an oft-criticized, self-negotiated contract that contained no guaranteed money. Although Okung ended up earning $8MM last year, Denver declined a multi-season option on the veteran offensive lineman that would have locked him in with the Broncos through 2020. Okung ultimately came out on top, however, as his new Chargers deal makes him the league’s highest-paid tackle on an annual basis, slightly ahead of Washington’s Trent Williams.
Clearly, the pact is an overpay, as Okung only offered middling production last season (No. 38 among offensive tackle among 78 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus). And if the Chargers are looking for reliability, they aren’t getting it with Okung, who’s missed 24 games during his seven-year career. But for a club that’s been looking for any kind of consistent effort along the offensive line, Okung should be able to stabilize the left tackle position for the next several seasons.
Okung wasn’t the Chargers’ most significant investment of the offseason, however — that moniker goes to edge rusher Melvin Ingram, who was initially assigned the franchise tag before agreeing to a four-year extension. Ingram, 28, dealt with injury issues earlier in his career, but he’s appeared in all 16 games in each of the past two seasons. During that time, Ingram ranks fourth among 3-4 outside linebackers with 125 total pressures, and also registered 18.5 sacks.
In new defensive coordinator Gus Bradley‘s 4-3 scheme, Ingram will move to defensive end, meaning he should have even more chances to get after opposing quarterbacks. The change shouldn’t be all that extreme, however, as head coach Anthony Lynn says Los Angeles played “four-down spacing” in 2016 even though it used a 3-4 front. Lining up opposite reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year Joey Bosa, Ingram should be able to help the Chargers improve upon their 15th ranked adjusted sack rate.
In the second level of their defense, the Chargers re-signed Jahleel Addae to a four-year pact and also brought in fellow safety Tre Boston, inking the latter after he was cut by the Panthers. Addae is quietly one of the more effective safeties in the NFL: in 2016, he graded 13th overall at his position, per PFF, although he missed half the season after suffering a broken collarbone in Week 2. Among all defensive backs, Addae ranked 32nd in PFF’s tackle per opportunity, and is effective against both the run and pass. Boston, meanwhile, is still only 25 years old and is competing with incumbent Dwight Lowery for a starting job.
Like Lowery, offensive lineman Kenny Wiggins is fighting for a starting role, although Wiggins may have a near-lock on the No. 1 slot at right guard. Wiggins, a 29-year-old journeyman who was nearly out of the league as recently as 2013, is now slated to play a major role along Los Angeles’ offensive line following second-round rookie Forrest Lamp‘s season-ending injury. Lamp wasn’t the only offensive lineman on which the Chargers used a relatively early pick, as third-rounder Dan Feeney is also in contention for the right guard job.
Melvin Gordon will Los Angeles’ primary back running behind Wiggins and the rest of the Chargers’ offensive line, and his workload doesn’t figure to be reduced after he played 659 offensive snaps a year ago (sixth among NFL running backs). The Chargers signed Branden Oliver and Kenjon Barner to cheap single-season pacts, and Kenneth Farrow is returning, but Gordon could see an increase on his 254 rushing attempts. It won’t be surprising if Los Angeles seeks to acquire another — preferably pass-catching — running back during roster cuts, with Travaris Cadet, Andre Ellington, and Jamaal Charles among the candidates for release next week.
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Notable losses:
- Jeremy Butler, WR
- King Dunlap, T: Released, then retired
- Brandon Flowers, CB: Released, then retired
- D.J. Fluker, G: Released
- Orlando Franklin, G: Released
- Javontee Herndon, WR
- Ronnie Hillman, RB
- Stevie Johnson, WR: Released
- Sean Lissemore, DT
- Robert McClain, CB
- Dexter McCluster, RB
- Darrell Stuckey, S: Released
- Manti Te’o, LB
- Tourek Williams, LB
- Danny Woodhead, RB
Los Angeles began the offseason by purging its offensive line, releasing King Dunlap and D.J. Fluker in March before cutting ties with Orlando Franklin in May. All three members of that group played on at least 70% of the Chargers’ offensive snaps in 2016, but none was overly effective: none of Dunlap, Fluker, nor Franklin graded as a top-30 player at his respective position, according to PFF. Each was also scheduled to be relatively expensive in 2017, as all three carried cap charges in excess of $6MM for the upcoming season. Fluker, a former first-round selection, has since signed on with the Giants, while Franklin spent less than a week with New Orleans before being cut again.
Dunlap, meanwhile, ended up hanging up his cleats after drawing interest from only known club (the Broncos), and cornerback Brandon Flowers did the same, announcing his retirement five months after being released by the Chargers. Like Dunlap, Flowers received a few inquiries on the free agent market, as clubs like the Steelers, Cardinals, and Patriots all put in calls. But Dunlap and Flowers could be an indication that general manager Tom Telesco is relying on veteran players too often, and not cutting dead weight early enough, as the rest of the NFL decided Dunlap and Flowers weren’t worth signing.
Manti Te’o did land a new contract, but Los Angeles made the correct call in not matching the veteran linebacker’s two-year offer from the Saints. One of the best collegiate linebackers of the past decade, Te’o simply hasn’t been able to stay healthy at the professional level. It’s most been lower-body injuries that have sidelined Te’o, and that was true once again in 2016, as a torn Achilles ended his season after just three games. All told, Te’o missed a whopping 30 contests during his four-year run with the Chargers.
A few of Los Angeles’ offensive defections also dealt with health issues in 2016: a torn ACL forced running back Danny Woodhead to miss the majority of the season for the second time in three years, while wideout Stevie Johnson was sidelined for the entirety of the campaign following meniscus surgery. While the Chargers now have the wide receiver depth to withstand the loss of Johnson, it’s fair to argue the club should have made an effort to retain Woodhead. Although he’s now 32 years old, Woodhead was incredibly effective during his two healthy years with the Chargers, averaging 97 receptions in 2013 and 2015. Los Angeles doesn’t have another weapon like Woodhead on its current roster.
Trades:
- Acquired QB Cardale Jones from the Bills in exchange for a conditional seventh-round pick in 2018 or 2019.
While the Chargers were open to drafting a quarterback in the 2017 draft, they ultimately made seven selections without picking a signal-caller. Instead, Los Angeles sent a conditional late-round choice to the Bills for Cardale Jones, who was selected in the fourth round in 2016. Jones, 24, managed only 11 attempts last season, and the most notable thing he did during his rookie campaign was knock a phone out of a reporter’s hand during training camp with a pass that was overthrown by 20 yards.
Nearly every scouting report on Jones was similar: the Ohio State product has excellent size and arm strength, but doesn’t have a sound ability to read defenses or manage the pocket. Whether Anthony Lynn and Ken Whisenhunt can harness Jones’ talent is anyone’s guess, but he’s not expected to serve as Philip Rivers‘ backup in 2017. That honor will instead go to veteran Kellen Clemens, who’s served as Rivers’ No. 2 for the past three years.
Draft picks:
The Chargers simply can’t catch a break with their early-round selections: seventh overall pick Mike Williams isn’t expected to see the field until at least October as he recovers from a back injury, while second-rounder Forrest Lamp is done for the season after tearing his ACL. While Los Angeles clearly couldn’t predict Williams would suffer a herniated disc on the first day of training camp, the wisdom of the club using a top-10 pick on a wide receiver can be questioned, as the Chargers already employ Keenan Allen, Tyrell Williams, Travis Benjamin, and Dontrelle Inman, and had far greater needs elsewhere on the roster.
A number of mock drafts (including our own) projected Los Angeles to use that seventh pick on safety Malik Hooker, pegging the Ohio State product as defensive coordinator Gus Bradley‘s version of Earl Thomas. Instead, the Chargers opted to wait until Day 3 to address their secondary, using fourth- and fifth-round selections on defensive backs Rayshawn Jenkins and Desmond King, respectively.
King is especially intriguing, as Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus labeled the former Iowa Hawkeye the No. 1 mid-round gem of the draft. While he doesn’t offer speed, King can play either safety or corner (the latter probably only in a zone-based scheme), and has excellent ball skills, as he broke up 20 passes over the past two seasons. He’s also a sure tackler, per Palazzolo, who noted King missed only 11 tackles on 176 attempts from 2014-16.
Other:
Owner Dean Spanos had the option to move the Chargers to Los Angeles in time for the 2017 season, but decided to hold off for one more year in order to give San Diego the chance to retain the team. The city (and county) failed, however, falling $175MM short of what a Qualcomm Stadium replacement would have cost. Instead, the Chargers will play in LA’s StubHub Center for the next three seasons before moving to Inglewood, where they’ll share a stadium with the Rams.
The Chargers are only moving ~100 miles north, but relocating is never a simple task (as anyone who’s watched Amazon’s All or Nothing Rams documentary has witnessed). Doing so with a rookie head coach is even more difficult, as Anthony Lynn will attempt to manage the club’s move while also overseeing the Chargers’ roster for the first time. Lynn, who was linked to every head coaching vacancy this offseason, helped diagram one of the league’s more innovative running games with the Bills in recent seasons, and though Los Angeles retained incumbent offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt, Lynn will surely seek to improve a rushing offense that ranked 24th in DVOA in 2016.
New defensive coordinator Gus Bradley will have an excellent cornerback on his hands for at least two more years, as the Chargers made the easy decision to exercise Jason Verrett‘s 2018 option. Verrett, 26, has been excellent when he’s been able to stay on the field, as he boasted the NFL’s best coverage grade in 2015 (per PFF) and has allowed a career catch rate of just 57%. Health hasn’t been given for Verrett, however, as he’s missed 24 games through three seasons.
Top 10 cap charges for 2017:
- Philip Rivers, QB: $20,000,000
- Melvin Ingram, DE: $14,875,000
- Corey Liuget, DT: $9,500,000
- Keenan Allen, WR: $8,650,000
- Travis Benjamin, WR: $6,500,000
- Russell Okung, T: $6,000,000
- Joey Bosa, DE: $5,880,380
- Joe Barksdale, T: $5,546,875
- Antonio Gates, TE: $5,437,500
- Orlando Franklin, G: $5,100,000 (dead money)
A new city. A new head coach. A new defensive scheme. In a division that boasted two postseason teams in 2016, the Chargers may have a difficult time earning a playoff berth. But Los Angeles has depth all along its roster and top-end talent at crucial positions such as wide receiver and cornerback, so contending for the AFC West crown — or at the least, a wild card slot — is certainly within reach.
Information from Over the Cap and Roster Resource was used in the creation of this post. Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
