Chargers may have gotten the steal of the offseason with re-emerging veteran

As the Los Angeles Chargers have alternatively climbed and stumbled to a 7-4 record through the first 11 weeks of the season, their defense, which was one of the best in the league a season ago, has seen both its highs and its lows, exemplifying some of the shakiness and inconsistency that has defined the team as a whole this season.

Yet, one offseason signing, cornerback Donte Jackson, has been a bright spot for the team with his capable coverage and big-play ability, and, as his excellent performance continues, it is clear that the Chargers got perhaps the steal of the offseason with his two-year, $13 million contract.

Although Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater will return next season, it is hard to imagine this team becoming a Super Bowl contender based on their offense alone. Instead, they will need to identify the cornerstones of their defense and continue to build a formidable unit on that side of the ball.

With Jackson under contract at a relatively low number next season as well, he could very well be one of these pieces.

Donte Jackson is playing some of the best ball of his career, and the Chargers desperately need it

Last season, Los Angeles had one of the premier passing defenses in the NFL, allowing only 206.9 passing yards per game to opposing offenses. Yet, they lost both of their starting cornerbacks, Asante Samuel Jr. and Kristian Fulton, in free agency, essentially forcing them to reshape their depth around Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart this season.

As a result, they added Jackson, who was coming off of a solid season with the Pittsburgh Steelers, in free agency in order to help fill that void. His contract number (and his handy $4.5 million cap hit this season) makes him just the 19th-highest paid player at this position in the league.

Yet, he has been one of the mainstays of the Chargers' defense.

In their brutal loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars last week, Jackson had his second interception in as many games and was only targeted three times in a matchup in which Trevor Lawrence completed 14 of his 22 passes for 153 yards. He allowed just five yards after the catch on these completions, and he earned the highest grade from Pro Football Focus (PFF) of any player on the team:

This past offseason was one that was strangely kind to cornerbacks, with players such as Paulson Adebo and Charvarius Ward signing relatively inflated contracts. Yet, many of the players who have put up the same level of production as Jackson, such as Fulton, Darius Slay and Nate Hobbs, are all making $10 million or more this season.

With the performance that Jackson has provided, and him being under team control for yet another season, it is quite possible that Los Angeles got a serious steal on the open market: one that will grant them the financial flexibility they need to continue to reconstruct their defense this offseason.