The LA Chargers have been extremely aggressive this offseason and it has been a beautiful sight to see for Charger fans. Trading for Khalil Mack and signing J.C. Jackson are two massive moves and the team pulled them off just days apart. Not to mention they also re-signed Mike Williams and helped the run defense with Sebastian Joseph-Day and Austin Johnson.
The Bolts still have more holes to fill with the biggest arguably being the right tackle position. Bryan Bulaga was officially cut and there is no chance that the Bolts go into 2022 with Storm Norton being the starting right tackle. There needs to be a replacement.
There are some solid cheap options available on the free-agent market that the team could explore that would give LA a solid starting option, even if it is not the most "aggressive". Fans that want the Chargers to remain in that aggressive mindset likely want the team to trade for La'el Collins, who likely will be traded from Dallas this offseason and is the best right tackle on the trade market.
However, a La'el Collins trade does not make sense for the LA Chargers.
There are multiple reasons why a La'el Collins trade does not make sense for the LA Chargers and in the following pages, we will break down each of those reasons in detail. While Collins himself is a solid player, the Bolts should be looking at other options to start at right tackle in 2022. Let's dive into the reasoning, starting with:
1. La'el Collins's availability
The LA Chargers just got burned by a right tackle signing because he could not stay on the field and stay healthy. While Collins is still under 30, his injury history the last two seasons is a bit concerning.
Collins missed the entire 2020 season as he needed hip surgery. He made a full recovery and returned for Week 1 of the 2021 season but then missed five games for missing a drug test. While it is not injury-related, it can be hard for a GM to trade premium draft capital for a guy who has missed 21 games over the last two years.
Is this the biggest reason? Not at all. But we know how cautious Tom Telesco has been about things like this in the past and that right away could be a red flag for the Bolts.