LA Chargers: How Joey Bosa’s extension impacts other key free agents next season

Joey Bosa has been locked in for the foreseeable future. Where does that leave the rest of the LA Chargers key free agents next offseason?

In what was a major shock to LA Chargers fans everywhere, defensive end Joey Bosa has committed to the team for the long term. Adam Schefter has reported that Bosa has inked a five year, $135 million extension to stay in the powder blue until 2026.

The deal makes Bosa the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history, and I think most fans will be in agreement that he has earned every penny.

With the deal being signed, the Chargers will now likely have about $65 million in cap space to work with next offseason. They still have multiple big-name free agents to sign, but the Bosa extension is something that needed to get done.

It provides a major sigh of relief for Chargers fans and the front office alike. Not seeing the “He’s going to play with his brother” comments riddled all over social media is going to take some getting used to for sure.

The Chargers have four potentially important free agents to look at next offseason. The most important now is surely wide receiver Keenan Allen, and the least significant of the high profile free agents would be defensive back Desmond King.

So how does Joey Bosa’s record-breaking contract help or hurt some key Chargers free agents getting their money? Let’s take a look at how this huge extension will factor into 2021 free agency.