Los Angeles Chargers: Early look at free agency for defense

The Los Angeles Chargers need better production from their players in 2019 if they want to reach the Super Bowl.

The Chargers season ended in a loss to the heady New England Patriots. Chargers fans believed that this playoff run was a legendary season in the making. That all came tumbling down when the Patriots put up 28 points on our defense which was considered our most polished side of our team. We will look at the Chargers options in free agency to better help our defensive side of the ball.

The Chargers have up to 28.6 million in cap space for the 2019 season via Spotrac. That number may go up from cuts of players and restructures of player contracts. The Chargers have certain needs on this defense for it to be considered an elite defense.

They need a safety with good to great range which Derwin James can fill that role, but we want him roaming the middle third at strong safety. With the free-agent class at safety this year we can say that the Chargers can shore up that other safety spot.

Names to consider are Earl Thomas, the engine of that legendary Legion of Boom defense. Another option would be Tre Boston who had a good tryout year as the free safety for the Chargers in 2017.

If this major role is filled in Gus Bradley’s defense, it can allow our defensive coordinator to be able to play more man to man defense which can give quarterbacks a harder time identifying which portion of the field to attack, especially with the outside pressure from Melvin Ingram and  Joey Bosa.

Although we have elite edge rushers, teams may be able to scheme those players out of the play on the majority of the possessions.

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The Chargers also need more interior pressure from our 3-techs and 0-techs.

Quarterbacks hate interior pressure, having a defensive lineman in their laps make them wholly uncomfortable, forcing poor throws and causing the quarterback’s pocket clock to tick a lot more quickly.

Names to consider are Sheldon Richardson, who was considered a marquee free-agent signing last year for the Minnesota Vikings or Dominique Easley, who has the tools to be that guy in the middle for the Chargers for a long time. Gerald Mccoy is another name that may be a cap casualty that the Chargers can use to help out that interior presence.

The Chargers need more help in certain areas for the defense to be considered elite. Those pieces are literally within a hands reach away from helping out our organization in the long run. We need these certain pieces to be able to make our team fearsome.