It's really no secret that the Los Angeles Chargers' biggest need this offseason is improving the offensive line, as the Bolts were easily one of the worst in the league in that regard this past year.
Just ask Justin Herbert about the 54 sacks he took during the regular season, as well as the additional six in the Chargers' wild-card loss to the New England Patriots, and he'd likely tell you the same. Well, he actually wouldn't, as he's just far too nice to say something like that, but we're getting away from the point here.
Now, some of the struggles can obviously be attributed to losing both starting tackles, as Rashawn Slater was lost for the year before it even began after suffering a torn patellar tendon in training camp, and Joe Alt missed several games early in the season with right ankle issues, an injury that ultimately shut his season down after he reaggravated it in Week 9.
But that's simply an easy excuse, as the fact of the matter remains that the backups Jim Harbaugh had in place on the exterior couldn't cut it, which is why he made a deal with the New Orleans Saints at the trade deadline to acquire Trevor Penning, which worked out horribly, as the former first-round pick was benched quickly.
And then, of course, there's the matter of the interior, as guards Zion Johnson and Mekhi Becton and center Bradley Bozeman all had subpar seasons. And all three may soon be gone, as Johnson is set to hit free agency, while Becton and Bozeman seem like prime cut candidates, especially now that Mike McDaniel is on board as offensive coordinator, as neither is a good fit for his system.
As such, moves will need to be made. And one NFL analyst believes that another trade with the Saints could conceivably be one of those moves.
Saints guard Cesar Ruiz has been thrown into the mix as a trade option for the Chargers
Recently, FanSided's Justin Carter shared what he believed to be a "dream" trade target for several of the teams that had been eliminated from the postseason, and his pick for the Bolts was six-year veteran guard Cesar Ruiz, who was a first-round pick of New Orleans back in 2020.
"The Los Angeles Chargers need offensive line help," Carter wrote. "The team's inability to give Justin Herbert a clean pocket borders on malpractice, and as good of a move as hiring Mike McDaniel as the OC is, it means nothing if Herbert continues to be harassed by the defense.
"Saints guard Cesar Ruiz was PFF's 13th-best-graded guard for pass blocking last season, though he struggled to run block. The Saints could still use him, but maybe they could use the $9.5 million in cap space they save by trading him after June 1 more than they could use Ruiz?"
The run-blocking struggles could be concerning, as McDaniel does view the ground game as an important piece of his offense to complement the passing attack. But as Carter mentioned, Ruiz did rank 13th among all guards in 2025 with a 73.1 PFF pass-blocking grade. And for the Chargers to have any sort of success in 2026, Herbert obviously has to stay healthy. So, this could conceivably be an option.
The big issue, though, is that Ruiz carries a cap hit of $14.196 million for both the 2026 and 2027 seasons, which might be more than Los Angeles wants to take on. And then, of course, there's the matter of what the Bolts would have to send the Saints in return. Now, if Ruiz ends up being a cut casualty, which is a possibility, the narrative naturally changes. It's certainly an intriguing option, but it doesn't seem overly likely at this point.