LA Chargers: Best trade in team history with the New Orleans Saints

The LA Chargers’ best trade with the New Orleans Saints landed them a Pro Bowler.

In an ongoing series here at Bolt Beat, we are breaking down the best trade that the LA Chargers have made with every other franchise in the NFL. Today, we break down the best trade in team history with the New Orleans Saints.

The Saints and Chargers are most infamously connected because of Drew Brees, who went on to become the face of the Saints and one of the five greatest quarterbacks of all-time after his tenure with the Chargers.

However, that was not a trade, and if it was one, then it would be one that Charger fans would never want to speak of again. In terms of trades, though, there actually is one really positive one for the Chargers that stands out above the rest.

The LA Chargers’ best trade in team history with the New Orleans Saints:

A quarter of the way into the 1980 season with a 4-0 record already under their belt, the LA Chargers lucked out and were on the positive receiving end of a bad situation elsewhere as they landed former third-overall pick, running back Chuck Muncie.

Muncie was a solid running back for the Saints that already had a Pro Bowl under his belt before becoming a Charger. With the Chargers, Muncie added another two Pro Bowls to his resume and was a big factor of the offense during the early 1980s, which was a great time in Charger football.

Muncie was traded by the Saints mostly for off-field, work ethic related concerns but with the Chargers he was nothing but a workhorse when he was on the field.

Muncie played all the way until the 1984 season with the Chargers before retiring and had 886 rushing yards in his second to last season. His best years were from 1980 to 1982, though, which is where his two Pro Bowls occurred.

Muncie’s best season was 1981, where he carried the ball 251 times for 1,144 yards and 19 touchdowns, which tied Earl Campbell’s 1979 record for the most rushing touchdowns in a single-season (a record now belonging to a different Charger, LaDainian Tomlinson).

In those three years, the Chargers went 11-5, 10-6 and 6-3 (the 1982 season was shortened to nine games) and Muncie was a big reason why the offense was so successful.

What the Chargers got out of Muncie was exponentially better than what they probably would have gotten out of that second-round pick.