The Los Angeles Chargers, for the most part, have moved on from last season's failures.
All of the ire of the fan base is currently focused on the failures of 2026. Although the offensive line has been re-shaped under the watchful eye of Mike McDaniel, the rest of the offense has failed to come together under his scheme. The Chargers are the third-worst team in EPA/play so far this season, and they now sit at 0-3 with a brutal slate ahead of them between now and Week 10. Hopefully they'll be able to reset and find their footing before things get even worse.
But let's just say you're not at fault if you haven't been keeping track of last year's cast-offs to this point in the season.
If you didn't know, though, Mekhi Becton—who was released by the Chargers this past offseason after a disastrous, one-year tenure in Los Angeles—remained without a spot on an NFL roster through the first three weeks of the season. But with injuries and turnover severely affecting the Green Bay Packers' protection, the organization has decided to give Becton a chance at redemption.
Who knows if he'll be able to achieve the level of performance we saw during the Philadelphia Eagles' Super Bowl run in 2025. But if he can at least accomplish some semblance of consistency, unlike what he did with the Chargers, he'll be a major boon to a team that desperately needs the help.
Mekhi Becton shouldn't be written off just yet as he gets a new NFL lifeline with the Packers
When Becton signed with the Chargers on a two-year, $20 million contract, the hope was that he would be a stead presence on the interior to help compensate for some of the clear deficits Los Angeles had at the center position. Paired with Zion Johnson, Joe Alt, and Rashawn Slater, the ceiling for the Chargers' protection was at least theoretically high.
Then Alt and Slater both went down for the season, and Becton struggled with his own injuries that made it difficult for him to find his footing in Greg Roman's blocking scheme. He complained publicly about the way the coaching staff had handled some of his snaps, and he just never truly seemed to get comfortable with Roman's primarily gap-blocking approach.
He was one of the worst guards in the league over the course of 2025, allowing 37 pressures and three sacks on 444 pass-blocking snaps per Pro Football Focus. By the time the offseason rolled around, moving on from Becton was the obvious move—especially given the fact that the Chargers could add to their already immense cap flexibility by simply taking on his
Becton, now, seems lined up to get a shot at a starting role in one of the two guard spots in Green Bay—at least temporarily. Starting left guard Aaron Banks has missed time with toe and knee injuries this season, and none of the other solutions (including Donovan Jennings, Jager Burton, and Jacob Monk) the Packers have tried seem to have truly found their footing.
At his best, Becton is a major force on the interior, using his size and relative athleticism to help move players in the run game and remain staunch as a pass blocker. At least that's the version of him we saw in Philadelphia.
The Chargers certainly won't miss him—even with the way that Cole Strange and Trevor Penning are playing. But if the Packers can surround him with the right pieces and give him time to acclimate to their protection scheme, there's a chance we see at least a minor turnaround for the veteran lineman in 2026.
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