LA Chargers: 3 former active Chargers that would be great on 2021 team

2. Adrian Phillips

If there is one massive mistake that Tom Telesco has made in recent history it is letting Adrian Phillips walk for virtually nothing. Phillips was a huge contributor on both special teams and the defense for the Bolts and the Chargers let him sign with the New England Patriots on a measly two-year, $7.5 million (max) deal.

Now, Phillips very well could have gotten a similar offer from the Chargers and simply wanted to play for Bill Belichick but still, that is a player that you absolutely have to bring back, even if you are paying him $5 million per season instead of $3.75 million.

Phillips is worth that money. The Chargers had the worst special teams unit in the league last season and while one player is not going to completely change that, losing a leader like Phillips does have its consequences.

Phillips would not only help the team on special teams but he would fit perfectly into Brandon Staley’s defensive scheme. Staley loves to implement versatile defensive backs, particularly rotating three safeties, and Phillips would work nicely alongside Derwin James and Nasir Adderley.

Phillips could play in the box or even succeed just fine as a deep split safety next to Adderley when James plays in the box or at the line of scrimmage. The safety position is extremely thin for the Chargers and Phillips would have helped that tenfold.

Instead, he walked for a max payday of $7.5 million.