The Los Angeles Chargers, with their cut of Will Dissly and their decision to let Tucker Fisk walk in free agency, signalled a clear intention to re-shape their tight end room this offseason.
Those moves left Oronde Gadsden II as the Chargers' lone tight end at the start of the offseason. The move, in a way, was warranted. Gadsden showed major promise as a pass-catcher during his rookie campaign, amassing 49 receptions for 664 yards and three touchdowns. But it was also clear that Gadsden's lack of blocking abilities needed to be compensated for.
Los Angeles responded by bringing in Charlie Kolar on a three-year, $24.3 million contract. While it was a slight overpay given his lack of a pass-catching pedigree, it was clear he'd have a major role to play in the Chargers offense.
Their signing of David Njoku after the Draft has thrown a bit of a wrench in things, however. The buzz so far has centered around the balance Los Angeles will strike between the pass-catching abilities of Gadsden and Njoku.
Could Njoku slowly carve out TE1 duties for the Chargers? Maybe.
But depending on how Los Angeles wants to utilize him, he could quickly take away snaps from Kolar as a blocking tight end. If Njoku proves himself as a blocker during the Chargers' offseason workouts, therefore, he could quickly eat into the role that was slated for Kolar.
David Njoku could take on a role next to Gadsden in the Chargers' two-tight-end sets
Njoku certainly has the history as a pass-catcher to be a formidable producer for the Chargers. We're just three seasons removed from his 2023 Pro Bowl campaign, in which he posted 81 receptions for 882 yards and six touchdowns.
But his production took a major dip in 2025 as the Cleveland Browns assimilated rookie Harold Fannin Jr. into the offense. Njoku took on more of a blocking role, and his share of the Browns' targets dipped tremendously. Across 12 games in 2025, Njoku received just 48 targets, converting that into 33 receptions for 293 yards.
Of course, if the Chargers see fit, there's ample room for Njoku to take on a major role as a pass-catcher. But he also has the size and the blocking pedigree to be used as more of an in-line blocker alongside Gadsden.
Kolar, from a perspective of pure size and strength, has the advantage in that role. But the threat of Njoku as a pass-catcher, even in a blocking position, can force defenses to account for both him and Gadsden, even if the playbook calls for only Gadsden to leave the line of scrimmage.
Kolar played 40% of offensive snaps for the Baltimore Ravens in 2025. Whether that number increases or decreases with the Chargers likely depends on what Njoku's upside as a blocker is.
The Chargers will likely use the rest of OTAs and training camp to figure out how they want to balance out the TE room. Although much of the concern, to this point, has centered around the potential of Njoku's signing to burn Gadsden in his sophomore season, it's also quite possible it leads to a decrease in the expected role of Kolar before the season even begins.
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