The Los Angeles Chargers are not going to be true sellers at the deadline no matter what happens.
Although Jim Harbaugh entertained the idea of a trade yesterday in a vague sense, Joe Hortiz has made it clear that the organization isn't interested in "giving up" on this season. It was already pretty intutitive, but you can be certain Los Angeles won't be entertaining calls for players like Tuli Tuipulotu and Derwin James Jr. Khalil Mack also seems to be off the table given his statements about wanting to stay in Los Angeles.
But what about pieces on expiring deals like Donte Jackson, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Denzel Perryman?
On the one hand, stripping back this roster's depth on the defensive side of the ball seems like an unfair card to deal Chris O'Leary after what he's accomplished to this point in the season. Moving on from Jackson, for example, would leave the cornerback room in a tight spot for the remainder of the season even with the signing of Jalyn Armour-Davis.
But as teams across the NFL continue to bolster their defenses, the opportunity will be there for the Chargers to retrieve value for some of these assets before they walk in free agency this offseason. It's simply a matter of whether they're willing to take it.
The Chargers have what teams across the NFL need at the deadline—defensive depth
Now, since Los Angeles isn't looking to deal any of its stars, they couldn't have been involved in any of the blockbuster trades that took place yesterday. The Jacksonville Jaguars, for example, added Jessie Bates III and Jordan Davis as starting defensive pieces, and they paid an absolute haul of assets to add those players to their roster.
The Chargers aren't operating on that level as sellers—not like the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles are. They've already made that clear.
But the Seattle Seahawks' Super Bowl run last season provided a potent reminder of an old adage. Defense, and especially depth on that side of the ball, wins championships. Almost any team that feels it's on the edge of contention this season will be in play for those sorts of pieces at the deadline.
The San Francisco 49ers, for example, sent out a fourth-round pick in exchange for Deforest Buckner's expiring contract. The Jaguars sent out a sixth-round pick for another defensive tackle in addition to Davis, acquiring Davon Godchaux from the New Orleans Saints. The Detroit Lions added to their depleted secondary by acquiring Andre Cisco from the New York Jets in exchange for a sixth-round selection.
It's turning into a bit of a defensive arms race, and each of the sellers in those scenarios has more wins than the Chargers this season. In fact, everyone does.
Who knows if Los Angeles could've specifically been in play in any of those deals. But there are certainly teams on the board that still have defensive needs, and the Chargers have the assets to help them address that. Jackson is a veteran corner with ample experience in zone-heavy schemes, and he could provide a rotational outside piece for any team with injury concerns in that room. For any team that's missing a bona fide nose tackle, or even just an extra rotational piece along the defensive line, Tomlinson should be an option. And although Perryman has yet to appear in a game this season due to injury, he's still a viable run-defending linebacker, especially since a team won't have to take on any injury risk beyond this season.
We're talking sixth and seventh-round selections here for the Chargers, but if Los Angeles wants to find a suitor for each of these pieces, they should be able to do so easily before the deadline passes at 4 p.m. EST today.
If the Chargers are ultimately inactive, it's nobody's fault but the front office's.
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