3 Chargers on their way to being cut barring a late-season turnaround

Mike Williams is on his way to being cut by the Chargers

Unfortunately, Mike Williams does not have the chance to have a late-season resurgence to keep his spot on the Chargers in 2024. Williams tore his ACL in Week 3 and won't be back on the NFL field until the 2024 season. All signs are pointing to that being with a different team.

The Chargers cutting Williams after the 2023 season for salary reasons seemed obvious after the team restructured his contract in the 2023 offseason. Williams getting hurt again only made that decision easier, as the Chargers cannot afford to pay $32.46 million for someone who constantly gets hurt.

Sure, his absence in the offense has been felt and that might be enough to convince some fans that he should return. But the Chargers simply have to find a way to replace what he offers at a much cheaper cost. It is going to be very hard to do but it is a necessity at this point.

Cutting Williams would free up $20 million in salary cap space with a dead cap hit of $12.46 million. After cutting SJD and Kendricks, cutting Williams would put the team back in the black roughly $6.6 million below the cap.

The Chargers would have to continue to make salary-cap room (which may include extending Keenan Allen, or a more shocking move like trading Joey Bosa or also cutting Khalil Mack). But at the very least, these three moves would put the Chargers in a much more manageable position.