As the Los Angeles Chargers fell to 3-1 in their loss to the New York Giants, the team's already glaring weakness, their offensive line and their accompanying injury struggles, became even more frightening with left tackle Joe Alt suffering an ankle sprain that is likely to keep him out for at least their next matchup.
However, the team has one move they could still make, replacing struggling center Bradley Bozeman with experienced backup Andre James, in order to attempt to salvage a frankly terrible situation.
Bozeman, so far this season, has been easily among the worst centers in football, and, with a number of players missing time on an already shaky offensive line, James could be the temporary solution the team needs to provide any sort of protection whatsoever to quarterback Justin Herbert.
Andre James could be a temporary solution for the Chargers' offensive line
Heading into the season, Los Angeles's apparent refusal throughout the offseason to seek out offensive line depth already presented a frightening scenario for this team. Yet, just four weeks into the season, this nightmare has come to fruition.
All-Pro left tackle Rashawn Slater suffered a season-ending injury before the season even started, and, now, both Alt and Mekhi Becton have already missed time. Moreover, Trey Pipkins III, who replaced Alt at right tackle when he moved over to replace Slater, has struggled mightily, and left guard Zion Johnson has not necessarily been any better.
To make matters worse, Bozeman, who signed with the Chargers last offseason and has started all 21 of his games for the team, has struggled heavily in both pass and run protection, and, as a result, the team's offensive line stands without an anchor right now.
While James likely could not be that anchor, he could present a temporary solution for the offensive line if he can bring even a marginal improvement over Bozeman's play so far this season.
Although he had a rough year last season as the starting center for the Las Vegas Raiders, ultimately being replaced by Jordan Meredith in the offseason, he did spend four seasons a starter in Las Vegas and has had effective stretches in the past.
In part, the fact that such a move is even being discussed signifies just how rough a situation the Chargers are in.
On the other hand, however, it has come to the point where the team may have exhausted their depth at the position, and it is quite possible that any change, even a slightly risky one, could pay dividends as the team attempts to cobble together pass protection over the next couple of games.