The LA Chargers have been fairly active thus far this offseason. It all started with Tom Telesco making four bold restructures to free up cap space and since then, the Chargers have been able to answer many of the questions that fans had heading into the offseason.
They answered the linebacker question with Eric Kendricks, brought back next year's backup QB in Easton Stick and re-signed both Trey Pipkins and Morgan Fox. And they have done all this in less than five calendar days.
The one question that remains unanswered is what the team is going to do at the wide receiver position. The top three of the depth chart is solid but that is literally all the Chargers have. They need to add more bodies and while at least one should come early in the 2023 NFL Draft, adding a cheap free agent to build out the room is ideal.
Luckily for the Bolts, they were just gifted the perfect cheap free-agent wide receiver target from the Buffalo Bills, who released wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie.
4.42 speed. Was in Denver when Brandon Staley was there. Former Georgia Bulldog. Can serve as a primary kick returner. Let’s rock. https://t.co/3hVhuq8zkq
— Steven Haglund (@StevenIHaglund) March 17, 2023
Chargers have every reason to sign Isaiah McKenzie in free agency.
As Steven points out above, there are simply too many ties and connections to the Chargers to ignore. Brandon Staley loves to bring in former players and McKenzie would fit that billing. He also loves the Georgia system, which is the icing on the cake.
McKenzie might not be quite the speedster that Jalen Guyton is but he could add more value because of his ability to be a return man. With DeAndre Carter hitting free agency and not yet being re-signed, the Chargers desperately need someone to return kicks and punts.
Plus, there are some reasons for the Chargers to hesitate in bringing Guyton back. ACL injuries can really slow down a receiver (literally) and when the entire aspect of your game is built around speed that is a concern. McKenzie could be a plan B option for any potential concerns.
McKenzie's offensive numbers were not overly impressive last season but he was also low on the depth chart like he would be in Los Angeles. Having talented WR4 and WR5s is still very important in the NFL and it might be better to have McKenzie in the room instead of an unproven day-three rookie.
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Then again, the Chargers also have the means to do both, as most teams carry six receivers instead of five like the Bolts have the last two seasons. Hopefully, last year's injury bug showed Staley why that is such a bad idea and that causes the team to go out and bring in someone like McKenzie.