Chargers’ Salary-Cap Moves Indicate Non-Teardown Approach with Jim Harbaugh
The Los Angeles Chargers have been the subject of much speculation regarding their approach to the upcoming season under new head coach Jim Harbaugh. However, the team’s recent salary-cap moves provide some insight into their strategy. On Wednesday, the Chargers released receiver Mike Williams, which saved them $20 million in cap space. They also restructured the contract of edge rusher Khalil Mack, giving them the flexibility to make other signings. These moves indicate that the Chargers are not looking to tear down their roster completely but instead take a middle-ground approach.
The Chargers faced a salary-cap crunch when Harbaugh and general manager Eric Hortiz joined the team in February. The high-priced contracts of players like Mack, Williams, Keenan Allen, and Joey Bosa accounted for a significant portion of the team’s cap space. The team was over $45 million over the cap heading into February and needed to make some tough decisions.
There were two options for the Chargers: they could either move on from all four high-priced veterans and completely rebuild the roster, or they could keep them through extensions and restructures, pushing the salary-cap issues into the future. Ultimately, the team decided to take a middle ground approach, keeping Bosa and Allen on their current deals while making some necessary cuts.
The release of Williams was primarily cap-related, as he had underperformed in recent seasons and was coming off a torn ACL. This move indicates that Harbaugh and Hortiz are willing to make changes to the roster and build the team in their image. However, the team decided to keep Mack, despite his age of 33, due to his dominant performance last season. The Chargers believe that Mack can continue to play at a high level and are willing to pay for it.
The specifics of Mack’s restructured contract are still unknown, but it will likely involve adding void years to the end of the deal to prorate the signing bonus over multiple seasons. This will provide the Chargers with some immediate cap relief, but it will result in dead-money charges once the contract voids after 2024. The team has several options for how many void years to add, each offering different levels of cap savings for 2024.
Harbaugh and Hortiz have made it clear that their goal is to build a winning team every year and compete for a championship. They want to find the right balance of players that will give them the best chance to succeed in the upcoming season. The recent salary-cap moves indicate that they are actively working towards achieving that goal.
While the team’s approach is not a complete teardown, it is clear that changes are being made. The release of Williams and the restructure of Mack’s contract are just the beginning. The Chargers still have decisions to make regarding players like Bosa and Allen, whose contracts have upcoming deadlines. It remains to be seen how these situations will play out, but one thing is certain – Harbaugh and Hortiz are hungry to win and are taking steps to build a competitive team in Los Angeles.