LA Chargers: Greatest trade in team history with the Chicago Bears

The LA Chargers and Chicago Bears have been trade partners only three times.

The LA Chargers and Chicago Bears are two of the most historic franchises in the NFL. The Bears are one of the oldest teams that came from the original NFL while the Chargers were one of the original AFL teams.

Despite both franchises being intertwined with the history of the league for quite some time, the LA Chargers and Chicago Bears have only been trade partners three times. First in 1998 and most recently in 2017.

In an ongoing series here at Bolt Beat, we are out to find the singular best trade that the Chargers have made with every single other NFL franchise, utilizing Pro Football Reference’s Trade Finder tool.

The LA Chargers’ best ever trade with the Chicago Bears:

The LA Chargers spent an arm and a leg in the 2007 NFL Draft to move up in the second round as there was a safety prospect that the team was really high on — Eric Weddle. To move up 25 spots in the draft, the Chargers had to part ways with two third-round picks as well as their fifth-round pick.

It was absolutely the right move as the Chargers drafted one of the greatest, if not the greatest, safety in franchise history. Weddle was one of the best players of the entire decade in the 2010s and spent nine total seasons with the Chargers.

Although his time with the Bolts did not end on great terms due to a rocky relationship with management, Weddle is remembered fondly by Charger fans. He made three Pro Bowl teams and was named an All-Pro twice in San Diego.

He recorded 100 or more combined tackles three times in his Charger career, had five multi-interception seasons (including a league-leading seven in 2011) and has a pretty decent case to be a Hall of Famer.

This trade would have been a home run for the Chargers even if the picks they sent in return panned out to be great players, which they didn’t, making the icing on the cake taste even sweeter.

Bazuin was riddled with knee injuries and never played a snap in his NFL career, Wolfe finished his career with 72 rushing attempts in four years, Payne had one really solid year with the Bears in 2008 but only played in the league for three total years and was mediocre in the other two and Harrison only lasted three seasons, starting nine games.

The Chargers may have drafted a bust in the first round that year in Craig Davis, but they redeemed themselves by selecting one of the best safeties of the entire next decade.