Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Here are four names that could fit the bill for the Chargers as the trade deadline nears.
The NFL trade deadline is close.
Sitting at 3-4 and still in a spot to make a playoff run, the Chargers could afford to add some reinforcements at positions of need.
With that said, each Chargers Wire writer laid out a player that Los Angeles should look to inquire about.
Here are the positions the Chargers could look to upgrade before the deadline.
October 31 is inching closer, which means the NFL trade deadline is near.
Following their bye, the Chargers will embark on a 13-game stretch, meaning they will need all the reinforcements they can get to bolster position groups that are a little thin or in case someone goes down.
With that said, let’s look at a few positions that Los Angeles could look to upgrade within the next couple of weeks.
Cameron Dicker is officially the Chargers’ starting kicker.
The Chargers traded kicker Dustin Hopkins to the Browns in exchange for a 2025 seventh-round pick on Monday.
Hopkins was competing with Cameron Dicker for the Chargers’ kicking job, but now he is headed to Cleveland, where he’s set to take over for Cade York, who the Browns cut today.
A hamstring injury limited Hopkins to five games in 2022, which led to the emergence of Dicker, who closed out the season as the team’s kicker.
Signed in Week 7 of the 2021 season, Hopkins converted 27 of 30 field-goal attempts, including a game-winner against the Broncos last year in Week 6.
Dicker, who now takes the helm at kicker, made 19 of his 20 field-goal attempts while connecting on all 22 extra-point tries in 2022.
There is a strong possibility of the Chargers trading down in this year’s draft.
The Chargers are slated to pick No. 21 overall, at least for now.
There is a growing sense that Tom Telesco could trade down for the first time in his tenure as the franchise’s general manager dating back to 2013.
NFL Media’s Daniel Jeremiah had his annual pre-draft conference call on Thursday, and he touched up on the possibility of Los Angeles moving back and why it would make sense.
“I think that’s a real possibility and I think as you’re ready to pay Justin [Herbert], having more cheap starters is going to be the way to go,” Jeremiah said.
“I think trading down makes a ton of sense,” Jeremiah added. “If they were to trade down, now you start looking at edge rushers and receivers, I think there’s value down there at the bottom of the first round.”
Los Angeles has plenty of talent across each position group, but the issue is that they lack depth at them.
Trading back would allow them to potentially add another pick in the top 100 and still draft an instant contributor, no matter how far they move back and move them further toward accomplishing the task of bolstering the depth chart.
The 21st selection is pretty valuable and a team like the Cowboys (26th), Bills (27th), Bengals (28th), Saints (29th) or Eagles (30th) could see a player high on their board start to slide, leading to them calling up L.A. to swap picks.
Only a week until we find out if it comes to fruition.
Teams have until Tuesday, Nov. 1, at 1:00 pm PT to make a trade.
The Chargers bye week is coming to a close, as is the NFL trade deadline.
Teams have until Tuesday, Nov. 1, at 1:00 pm PT to make a trade for the remainder of the regular season. And the question looms if Los Angeles will be a buyer.
L.A. has dealt with a flurry of injuries at various positions, but the units that could use some retooling the most are wide receiver and cornerback.
Keenan Allen should be back to full health from a hamstring injury, as should Joshua Palmer, who missed Week 7 with a concussion. But Mike Williams will be out for multiple weeks with a high ankle sprain.
The Bolts’ offensive production has been incoherent for various reasons. However, the team has been unable to produce explosive plays because of the lack of speed in the room.
Some big-name receivers that could be made available for trade include Texans’ Brandin Cooks, Jets’ Elijah Moore, Broncos’ Jerry Jeudy, and Steelers’ Chase Claypool.
Even though the Chargers have the cap space, they don’t have much. And that could be one of the variables that sways them away from pursuing one of the players mentioned, but there are still other viable options.
As for the cornerback position, Los Angeles will be without its big-ticket free-agent acquisition in J.C. Jackson, who had season-ending ankle surgery.
Michael Davis will start in place of him, with Asante Samuel Jr. playing the other boundary spot. The depth behind them is thin, as rookie Deane Leonard is the only other outside corner.
Some players who might be on the trading block are Seahawks’ Sidney Jones. Chiefs’ Rashad Fenton, Vikings’ Kris Boyd, and Commanders’ William Jackson, among others.
In 10 years as general manager, Tom Telesco hasn’t pulled off a trade at the deadline to acquire a new asset, except for trading away cornerback Desmond King to get a draft pick in return in 2020.
But given the aggressiveness in free agency last offseason and this offseason, Telesco pulling the trigger on a player to improve the roster should not be written off.
“We are always going to look for avenues to enhance our team and make it better,” Staley said about exploring a trade ahead of the deadline. “If those avenues are possible, then we’ll definitely explore them.”
Identifying a few players who would make sense for the Los Angeles Chargers via trade.
The Chargers have been hit with injuries to key players, but it’s safe to say their roster is still solid. Nonetheless, a couple of position groups could be revamped as we near the halfway point of the season.
With that in mind, let’s identify a few players who would make sense for Los Angeles via trade, with the deadline quickly approaching on November 1.
The Chargers would benefit from adding a player like WR DeSean Jackson.
The Chargers’ offense has come to a screeching halt the past two games. In particular, it has been the passing game that has been problematic.
Early-down play-calling and the right side of the offensive line are to blame. However, we have not seen Justin Herbert do much of this season that is proven to have success: taking shots down the field.
Herbert’s air yards per attempt is 7.6, which ranks 23rd in the NFL. Furthermore, he is only averaging 7.9 yards per play-action attempt, according to Pro Football Reference.
While Keenan Allen and Mike Williams are one of the league’s better duos, Los Angeles would largely benefit from a proven speedster to unlock Herbert’s cannon of an arm more often to establish efficiency again.
One solution could be veteran DeSean Jackson, who the Rams recently waived.
Jackson, 34, was not let go of because of an injury or lack of production, but the team did not have many opportunities for him to contribute.
He left the Rams with eight receptions for 221 yards and one touchdown and showed that he has plenty of juice to be a downfield threat.
Furthermore, despite the injury concerns, Jackson is the healthiest in the past three seasons.
Since it’s now after the NFL trade deadline, Jackson is subject to waivers. If the Chargers were to claim him, they would take on his current $4.5 million contract. If Jackson clears waivers, he becomes a free agent.
Currently, Los Angeles is 20th on the waiver wire.
The bottom line is while he would not fix the pass protection problems or the drops that have been detrimental, Jackson is capable of bringing a downfield specialist that would allow Herbert to do what he does best.
UNO!@DeSeanJackson10's FIRST TD AS A RAM 😤 pic.twitter.com/v5REM4rBoD
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 26, 2021
General manager Tom Telesco stuck to his guns.
As the clock struck 1 pm PT, the NFL trade deadline officially passed.
Despite needing defensive and offensive line help and a speedy wide receiver, the Chargers decided to roll with what they have.
Seeing Los Angeles not making should not surprise, however.
General manager Tom Telesco has not been notorious for making in-season trades since taking over as general manager in 2013.
Telesco has only made two.
The first came when he traded WR Dontrelle Inman to the Bears for a seventh-round pick, and the other came last season when CB Desmond King was shipped to the Titans for a sixth-round pick.
Telesco’s non-aggressive approach to trades, especially during the season, comes down to him valuing his cap space and draft picks and building the team within the players he brings in.
That is one of the things that attracted Brandon Staley when deciding to take the head coach position.
Despite coming away empty-handed, it’s still possible that the Chargers could dip into the free agency pool to address some of their needs.
Chargers HC Brandon Staley is not ruling out a potential trade.
The NFL trade deadline is upon us, and the Chargers could use some reinforcements, most notably along the defensive line.
However, Tom Telesco has not been notorious for making splash in-season trades since taking over as general manager back in 2013.
Telesco has only made two. The first came when he traded WR Dontrelle Inman to the Bears for a seventh-round pick, and the other came last season when CB Desmond King was shipped to the Titans for a sixth-round pick.
Telesco’s non-aggressive approach to trades, especially during the season, comes down to him valuing his draft picks and building the team within the players he brings in.
While it’s rare, head coach Brandon Staley did not completely rule it out.
“We want to make sure that we’re exploring an avenue if there is one. And if there isn’t, that’s OK, too,” Staley said, according to The Athletic’s Daniel Popper.
Los Angeles is equipped to pull the trigger on a player with a little over $12 million in cap space and all draft picks, plus more with the projected compensatory picks the team is likely to receive.
An interior defender would go a long way to improving a dead-last ranked run defense that has been problematic all season.
For a team positioned to contend, Telesco may strongly want to consider stepping outside of the norm and make a move for someone like Bears’ Akiem Hicks ahead of the deadline on Nov. 2 at 1:00 pm PT.
Highlighting how the Chargers could fix their run defense woes.
The Chargers are stout in nearly all areas, but the run defense stands out as a glaring weakness. The unit is dead last in this category, allowing 157.6 yards per game.
In specific, the interior part of the defensive line has been the culprit. The group doesn’t possess enough talent to consistently hold its own at the point of attack. This has created big holes for ball carriers to run freely through.
Los Angeles has been able to mask it with their high-powered offense and ability to limit the pass, but the team can’t expect to let it slide any further if they want to make a deep run.
A player that would go a long way to fixing the woes is defensive tackle Akiem Hicks.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Bears permitted Hicks to find a trade partner after free agency began. The Chargers were among the teams that monitored the situation into the preseason.
Hicks, 31, has a previous connection with head coach Brandon Staley. The two spent time together in Chicago when Staley was the outside linebackers coach from 2017-18.
Hicks, the 11-year veteran, has 232 total tackles, 47 tackles for loss, 28 sacks, and five forced fumbles in his time as a Bear.
At 6-foot-5 and 324 pounds, Hicks is a solid all-around interior defender, who plays with tremendous leverage, strength, burst, and lateral movements to effectively penetrate and stand his own against double teams.
Akiem Hicks using the guard to tackle the running back. Totally normal. pic.twitter.com/xO9gUHAPE2
— Brandon Thorn (@BrandonThornNFL) October 20, 2020
Akiem Hicks is a damn freight train pic.twitter.com/YSTlmXuLzs
— Red Line Radio (@RedLineRadio) September 20, 2020
Hicks has dealt with some injuries throughout his lengthy career and is currently aiding a groin issue, but it hasn’t hampered him enough to keep him off the field at a concerning rate.
While Hicks’ salary might seem a bit steep at $10.4 million, the Chargers possess the sufficient amount of funds to acquire him, currently with a bit of north of $12 million in cap space available.
Furthermore, the team has all of its draft picks available. For someone like Hicks, it may require a 2022 third-round and a future pick.
Unloading that type of capital on a player may draw some pause, but Los Angeles would be investing in the positional group, both short and long-term.
Not only would Hicks be able to step in from Day 1 and provide a significant boost up front, but he could be the replacement to Linval Joseph, who will be a free agent at the end of the season.
In addition, Justin Jones is set to hit the market, as well. Therefore, the position will likely sit atop the priority list.
Sitting with a 3-2 record, the only likely scenario where the Bears would want to let go of Hicks is if they find themselves in a hole after their next three games against the Packers, Buccaneers, and 49ers.
But if Chicago is willing to part ways with the veteran ahead of the trade deadline on Nov. 2, general manager Tom Telesco would be wise to field a phone call.
If it does not come to fruition, Hicks is a name worth monitoring next offseason since he will be a free agent.
