The Chargers were quiet in their free agency spending this offseason. With $90-100 million in cap space as they entered the FA process, fans expected them to be more aggressive in their offensive line upgrades.
Tyler Biadasz was certainly a good start to the cycle. That signing shouldn’t be overlooked in terms of the very stable upgrade he provides over Bradley Bozeman. However, it’s also fair to say that re-signing Trey Pipkins and Trevor Penning didn’t really meet fans’ expectations in the moment. Cole Strange is obviously a Mike McDaniel favorite but leaves some play strength to be desired on film. G Kayode Awosika was brought in from Detroit at depth.
Will Cole Strange be the starter at right guard for the Chargers in 2026?
HC Jim Harbaugh spoke about the team signing Strange during his media availability at the NFL Owners meetings.
”Familiarity and availability,” Harbaugh started. “As Mike [McDaniel] was explaining the offense and Butch Barry (Chargers OL coach), we were watching a lot of Miami tape. And you could see Cole Strange was really good at all of the things they’re going to be implementing. Another guy that can be a coach to the other players and a really good player.”
Daniel Popper of The Athletic then asked if the expectation is for Strange to be the starter at right guard.
“Yeah, I mean yeah it would be,” Harbaugh said. “That’s what he’s been playing.”
Now it’s worth noting that Harbaugh’s tone was fairly indifferent in his response. He also pointed to the draft and post-draft free agency as times where the team could still add some talent along the offensive line. Names like Emmanuel Pregnon, Chase Bisontis, and Keylan Rutledge loom large early in the draft. Could free agent guard Joel Bitonio be a possibility later down the line?
Those names are pure speculation on my part. But the possibility of other players starting over a lineman making fringe starter contract money is not foreign to this front office. Trey Pipkins’ contract was fairly similar to Strange’s when the team opted to still draft OT Joe Alt in 2024.
As of now, I’d guess that Strange is the starter at right guard like Harbaugh indicates. And while he has potential, it would be a little disappointing considering the financial resources the team came into free agency with. That being said, McDaniel obviously has a vision for how he can continue developing Strange. He allowed 21 pressures and two sacks with a 97.4 pass blocking efficiency last season. On tape, Strange did play somewhat better towards the end of the year compared to his first few games in Miami.
Strange is certainly slotted in as the RG starter for now, but as we’ve seen before-fringe starters aren’t going to truly impact their draft calculus relative to potential franchise cornerstones.