Tag: Joey Bosa

Former Pro Bowl safety has lofty expectations for Jim Harbaugh in Year 1 with Chargers

Jim Harbaugh has proven to be a winner everywhere he has coached, and one of his former players sees it being no different with the Chargers.

Jim Harbaugh has proven to be a winner everywhere he has coached. Now, as the Chargers’ head coach, one of Harbaugh’s former players believes it will be no different.

Former Pro Bowl safety Donte Whitner, who played under Harbaugh when he was the 49ers’ head coach, heaped high praise on him, foreseeing a lot of success for Los Angeles with Harbaugh as the leader.

“I believe that Jim Harbaugh and the LA Chargers are going to be in the AFC Championship Game this year,” Whitner said on a recent episode of Kay Adams’ show Up & Adams.

Whitner backed up his claim by mentioning Justin Herbert and calling Harbaugh the “quarterback Whisperer,” highlighting the success he had with former Niner Colin Kaepernick and Michigan’s JJ McCarthy.

“Any of the quarterbacks that were under the tutelage of Jim Harbaugh, he figures out what your strengths are, and he tailors his offense around that in the running game,” Whitner added.

Whitner then brought up the defensive side of the ball and how physical and fundamentally sound Harbaugh requires his players to play.

“And then his defense they have you know [Joey] Bosa on one side and then um of the guy Mack, Khalil Mack on the other side along with the secondary and how fundamental and physical he demands his teams to be.”

Harbaugh will have a lot of top-end talent to work with, but the depth of the roster still leaves a lot to be desired. If they can nail the draft, then we could start forecasting a successful 2024 season for the Bolts.

Chargers GM Joe Hortiz talks navigating salary cap, keeping Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa

The Chargers lost two offensive players, but were able to keep two defensive studs.

The Chargers were in an unfavorable position being over the salary cap, meaning they would have to move some star talent, which consisted of Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa.

General manager Joe Hortiz knew the possibility of keeping them all was unlikely while trying to free up cap space this offseason. 

Lo and behold, they managed to keep two of their defensive stars, Mack and Bosa. 

“We certainly did what we did with them and they certainly gained things on their end, too. It was a win-win for both of us,” Hortiz said. “I had conversations with Joey prior to it and I talked to Khalil after. You know how much they want to be here and that’s exciting to me. We want to bring great players in here so they can see it.”

Both Bosa and Mack made it clear that they wanted to remain in the Powder Blues for the Harbaugh era, as they were willing to rework their deals and help free up money for the Bolts. 

“I’ve been here for six weeks and this place is pretty cool. This organization is great. It really is. This is a destination place,” Hortiz said. “Being around Jim, guys are communicating with him. They want to be here. It shows me they want to be here.”

“…I will say this: I’m very happy we were able to get something done with Khalil and Joey. I expect that they will help our defense tremendously. I know that when they have been on the field together offenses have to account for them.”

With Mack and Bosa both returning, the defense will have star power. Mack is coming off one of his best seasons. Bosa battled a foot injury last year. The hope is that they remain healthy and consistent so Chargers fans can see both of them on the field together and wreak havoc.

Panthers free-agent target Mike Williams reportedly signing with Jets

Cross another Panthers free-agent target off the list.

Looks like Mike Williams won’t be making that trip to Charlotte after all.

As first reported by NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, free-agent wideout Mike Williams will be signing with the New York Jets. The former Los Angeles Chargers wideout, who will be getting a one-year deal worth up to $15 million, was expected to meet with the Panthers on Wednesday.

Williams was selected by the Chargers with the seventh overall pick of the 2017 NFL draft. The Clemson University product spent all seven of his pro campaigns in Los Angeles—where he totaled 309 receptions for 4,806 yards and 31 touchdowns.

The Chargers, in a cost-cutting move, parted ways with Williams last week. His release saved the team $20 million in salary cap space for 2024.

Outside of Williams, the Chargers also created some capital by trading six-time Pro Bowl receiver Keenan Allen to the Chicago Bears and restructuring the contracts of pass rushers Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack.

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Report: Chargers fielding trade offers for veteran players

The Chargers appear to be sellers as they head into the new league year.

The Chargers appear to be sellers as they head into the new league year.

According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, Los Angeles has had exploratory trade talks on Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack, Mike Williams and Keenan Allen.

Breer added that Allen is the least likely to be moved, but the team is listening to all offers.

Los Angeles is $21.1 million over the salary cap and must be cap-compliant by March 13.

The veterans have large cap hits, with Mack’s being the highest at $38.52 million, followed by Bosa’s at $36.61 million, Allen’s at $34.72 million, and Williams’ at $32.46 million.

Mack is coming off a career year, finishing with 17 sacks, but he just turned 33. Trading him would free up $23.25 million. Bosa has been riddled with injuries. A trade would free up $14.39 million.

Williams is coming off a torn ACL. A trade would free up $20 million. Allen finished with a 1,243-yard receiving season. He will be 32 this season. Trading him would create $23.1 million in cap space.

Whether it’s being traded or released, expect at least one of these players not to be in the Powder Blues next season.

Chargers DC Jesse Minter heaps high praise on Tuli Tuipulotu: ‘Didn’t look like a rookie’

Tuli Tuipulotu is coming off an outstanding rookie season.

Among the players returning that will be vital in Jesse Minter’s defense is edge defender Tuli Tuipulotu, who had an outstanding rookie season.

Minter is familiar with Tuipulotu’s skillset, having watched college film of him while he was at USC, and highlighted his versatility in an interview with team writer Eric Smith.

“I think his last year, we might have had one team that we were watching where there was some crossover film of USC,” Minter said. “The cool thing about him is he’s a guy in college that they moved all over the place — off the ball, up on the edge, they even had him played out in space a little bit.”

Tuipulotu, the former second-round pick, was a monster off the edge, finishing with the second-most quarterback pressures among rookies (51) and an 88.4 run defense grade that only trailed greats Maxx Crosby, DeMarcus Lawrence and Khalil Mack.

“You look at how he played his rookie year and I thought he stepped in and played really well for a rookie,” Minter added. “Didn’t look like a rookie, didn’t feel like a rookie when you were watching him. He plays with the toughness and the physicality that we certainly want our guys to play with.”

Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack’s future with the Chargers is up in the air, as they could be moved to clear up cap space. But one thing that is certain is that Tuipulotu will be on the roster next season and he will be a key piece of Minter’s defense.

Joey Bosa gives first impression of Jim Harbaugh: ‘I have a lot of confidence in him’

Joey Bosa is set to play for his fourth head coach in nine years of being in the NFL.

Joey Bosa is set to play for his fourth head coach in nine years of being in the NFL. While the other three did not pan out, Bosa has a great feeling about Jim Harbaugh being the Chargers’ head coach.

“We sat down and probably talked for 30 minutes, an hour a couple of weeks ago,” Bosa said. “Great first impressions. … I have a lot of confidence in him and the staff that he’s bringing around him.”

Harbaugh and Bosa are familiar with one another, as Michigan and Ohio State faced off in 2015, Harbaugh’s first year as the Wolverines’ head coach. The Buckeyes won 42-13. In that game, Bosa had a sack and an interception.

Now, Bosa will have the opportunity to be coached by Harbaugh, who guided Michigan to three consecutive victories over his alma mater and recently a National Championship title.

“I think he seems like a really genuine guy, which you don’t find that a lot in coaches all the time,” Bosa added. “He’s interesting. He loves football more than anything. I think all he wants to do is win. The way he talked about his feelings toward this job and toward the future was pretty exciting.”

Bosa has been riddled with injuries, as he has played just 14 games over the past two seasons. In his last healthy season in 2021, he posted 10.5 sacks and made his fourth Pro Bowl.

Bosa is a candidate to be released or traded, as he has a hefty cap hit of $36.6 million. The Chargers are currently $20 million over the salary cap, the fourth-worst situation in the league.

If Bosa sticks around, he will be amid all of the preseason storylines and projections of the Chargers making the Super Bowl with Harbaugh leading the charge. But for him, he would rather take it one game at a time.

“That’s an expectation for sure,” Bosa said. “I’d like to win Game 1 first, then we can talk about Week 2 and then Week 3. Sometimes getting caught up with all the Super Bowl talk and all the hype gets you unfocused and worrying about the wrong things when you should just be worrying about what’s in front of you.

“… There’s a lot of talk of Super Bowl every year, and every year I kind of have a similar answer like ‘alright, let’s see how the first week goes and then we’ll talk about that.’”

Report: Multiple teams interested in trading for Chargers’ Khalil Mack

Khalil Mack is coming off a 17-sack season.

On a Sunday morning edition of SportsCenter, Jeremy Fowler reported that multiple teams have interest in Chargers edge defender Khalil Mack as the calendar turns to March.

In a trade for Mack, the Chargers would save roughly $23 million on the salary cap. That move alone would put them around $2 million over the new $255.4M cap figure.

Regarding value in return, it isn’t easy to ascertain exactly what Mack’s market is. Pro Football Focus’ Brad Spielberger had a trade evaluation last week of a 2025 fourth-round pick for the Chargers in return.

One question is how much leverage Joe Hortiz would have in these discussions. Mack has a high cap hit due to 2023’s max restructure and other teams are likely aware of the Chargers’ cap situation. While Mack is coming off of a 17-sack season, as Fowler mentioned, will other teams be convinced that they’re getting that version of the star pass rusher as opposed to his 2022 or 2021 outputs? Those factors make getting high draft compensation back for Mack seemingly tricky.

He is also 33 and on an expiring contract. Perhaps talk of an extension could be surfaced with any team absorbing his 2023 cap number to reduce the strain. But that’s more theoretical than not, as Mack can still choose to enter free agency next year, with the cap presumably further increasing in 2025.

Another thing to consider for the Chargers is the status of the position room. Would the Chargers be OK with an oft-injured Joey Bosa leading the way next to Tuli Tuipulotu? Or would they pursue a potential nuclear option of trading/cutting both star pass rushers? How much Hortiz and Jim Harbaugh want to balance 2024 and 2025 resources and capital plays into that discussion.

The Chargers’ real choices are to cut Mack to save money, trade him at a somewhat diminished value due to the cap hit and age concerns, or keep him for 2024. If Mack is willing to stay around, he seems to be the most productive member of the restructured quartet of players outside Keenan Allen.

Without the right deal that includes a lower day two or higher day three draft pick for 2024, keeping Mack may make the most sense in the transition to the Harbaugh era. The Chargers may not have the leverage they’d theoretically want in a trade for either of their star pass rushers due to the reasons previously mentioned.

Best former Ohio State football players not in any college football video game

Best Buckeyes not in any College Football video game #GoBucks

A teaser trailer dropped for the new upcoming EA Sports College Football 25 video game, and despite seeing very little gameplay and details, the anticipation is at an all-time high. At this point, gamers who have waited a decade just want the College Football Playoff and transfer portal added and would be happy with the graphics from the past generation of consoles.

According to the trailer, we can expect a full reveal this May and the game to hit shelves this summer, but if you are like me, you are too much of a pessimist to believe it. Nonetheless, it is fun to take this opportunity to look back on some of the stars that we missed out on seeing on the virtual gridiron the last ten years.

When thinking of the former Buckeyes who would light it up in video game land, it is easy to think of skill position players, but I want to dive into both sides of the ball. Here are the top five guys I am most upset about missing out on.

Key dates for Chargers fans to know for 2024 offseason

Here are some important dates for Chargers fans to keep an eye on in the coming weeks and months.

The 2023 NFL season has officially come to an end, and the Chargers are headed into their offseason.

With that, here are some important dates for Chargers fans to keep an eye on in the coming weeks and months.

February

  • Feb. 27-March 4: NFL Scouting Combine (Indianapolis, IN)

March

  • March 5: Deadline for teams to designate franchise or transition tag players
  • March 11-13: Teams are permitted to contact, and enter into contract negotiations with, the certified agents of players who will become unrestricted free agents
  • March 13: At 1 p.m. PT, the 2024 league year and free agency begin; trades can be executed
  • March 24-27: Annual League Meeting (Orlando, FL)

April

  • April 1: Clubs that hired a new head coach may begin offseason workout programs.
  • April 19: Deadline for restricted free agents to sign offer sheets
  • April 25-27: NFL Draft (Detroit, MI)

May

  • May 2: Deadline for clubs to exercise fifth-year option for players selected in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft

Chargers’ Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack tabbed as potential cap casualties

NFL.com’s Matt Okada believes Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack could be on cut watch.

As the chaos of free agency quickly approaches, the Chargers will need to make some cuts to free up effective cap space, as they’re $35 million over the projected salary cap.

Two potential cap casualties could be Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack, per NFL Media’s Matt Okada.

The ideal scenario might be to restructure both deals to maintain the tandem at a reasonable price tag, but given the team’s defensive struggles and new management, don’t be surprised if at least one of these QB hunters hits the open market.

Together, Bosa and Mack carry $75.1 million against the cap, a shocking number that adds to Los Angeles having the fourth-steepest figure in the NFL. 

Bosa and Mack each have their reasons for possibly hitting the open market. Over the last couple of seasons, Bosa has struggled to stay healthy. Though that’s the same reason people said the 49ers made a bad trade in acquiring running back Christian McCaffrey since he was riddled with injuries—and now he’s at the top of his game. 

On the other hand, Mack’s age is going against him. The veteran just finished a strong 2023 campaign with a career-high 17 sacks. However, it’s a gamble whether he will produce anywhere close to similar numbers next season. 

In a perfect world, the Chargers could restructure both of their contracts, but with as many embarrassing defensive outings as the unit had this past season, general manager Joe Hortiz and head coach Jim Harbaugh may want to clean house and start fresh with their new regime.