Welcome back to the Chargers Mailbag!
The offseason is here but the Mailbag keeps going. We'll do one of these every month or so in the offseason. Send in submissions for the Mailbag here on Twitter or by sending me an email.
Off we go...
YES.
We'll get to plenty of free agency and draft chatter below, but in case you missed it, the Chargers will open the 2025 season in São Paulo, Brazil.
The Bolts will be the designated team (AKA the home team) in Week 1 on Friday, Sept. 5, but the opponent and game time won't be announced until the schedule comes out later this spring.
Personally, I'm fired up about the chance to go to Brazil. And yes, I also understand any potential fan frustration with losing a true home game at SoFi Stadium.
But the chance to experience a new culture is something I'm always on board with. If I'm being honest, I likely wouldn't get the chance to go to São Paulo on my own so going for work is a blessing.
Plus, we all know the NFL is focused on expanding the game on an international level.
What better way for the Chargers to grow their global brand than to bring Jim Harbaugh, Justin Herbert and Derwin James, Jr. to one of the world's most populous cities.
Week 1 in Brazil should go down as one of the most momentous occasions in franchise history.
Great question from Nick as we pivot to what the next few months could look like.
We'll start by saying this: the Chargers certainly have some work to do in order to build off the success that was Year 1 of the Jim Harbaugh Era.
The Bolts might end up with a few new starters on offense and could also stand to add some depth on defense.
Some of those decisions will be determined next month based on what happens with the 30 Chargers free agents from a season ago.
The good news?
The Chargers also have ample salary cap space they can work with. That figure is currently projected at more than $70 million but the 2025 cap has not officially been set yet.
The Bolts also have seven current draft picks, a total that could climb even higher based on potential compensatory picks.
Harbaugh and General Manager Joe Hortiz re-worked the roster a year ago with a limited budget and produced an 11-win season and a playoff appearance on the fly.
With a full offseason to work with, plus the resources mentioned above, you can bet Hortiz and Harbaugh are ready to pounce and improve the roster even more in the coming weeks and months.
Heck, both were talking about Version 2.0 of the Bolts only days after the season ended.
If you ask me, there's a chance we see some splashes and fireworks soon as the Chargers try to bolster their roster and position themselves for a deep playoff run in 2025 and beyond.
A few things to note here on Myles Garrett.
Yes, he has publicly requested a trade. But it also appears the Browns have no desire to move him.
The Chargers must first figure out some internal decisions at edge rusher in the form of Khalil Mack, who is slated to be an unrestricted free agent next month. Joey Bosa is also on the roster but has a sizable cap hit. Tuli Tuipulotu and Bud Dupree are also under contract for the 2025 season.
Garrett is an elite player, something the Chargers saw firsthand in Week 9 of the 2024 season when he had 3.0 sacks in a Bolts win.
The decision the Chargers (and other teams) have to weigh is giving up considerable draft capital (and maybe even a player) and how that factors into where the team is at in their roster-building process.
Time will tell on all of that but there's little doubt that Garrett is a star every sense of the word.
As for the second part of this question, I think it'a a strong bet that the Chargers add some pieces to the wide receiver and tight end rooms this offseason.
And that mostly has to do with the current numbers in each room. There are only four wide receivers (Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston, Derius Davis and Brenden Rice) under contract for 2025, not including Reserve/Futures deals. Will Dissly, meanwhile, is the only tight end under contract for the upcoming season.
The Bolts aren't going to stand pat there, it's just a question of which moves they make at those spots.
For what it's worth, Hortiz said at his year-end presser that the front office was going to take a look at a wide array of pass catchers this offseason.
"I don't think you pigeon hole any type of skillset," Hortiz said. "We want guys to make plays. We have them on this roster and we're going to add more.
"That's the goal, to create that competitive environment," Hortiz continued. "But we had a lot of guys on this team that made plays for us this year. Big plays, critical plays — I'm talking about game-winning plays — [from guys] that are here.
"They're going to build off of that and add to it and get better and better. But I don't think there's a specific skillset, we just want playmakers," Hortiz added.
Ahh yes, time to consult the magical crystal ball to see what the Chargers will do more than two months from now.
And this is before we know what the Bolts will do to revamp their roster with lots of aforementioned cap space.
If you ask me, flexibility is the word that defines that Chargers in the draft right now.
If the Bolts make some splashy offensive signings in free agency, then maybe they go defense in the first round.
But what if the Chargers attack free agency with an emphasis on boosting what was the league's No. 1 scoring defense in 2024? Then perhaps it's an offensive player at No. 22.
There's also this: the draft in general is an unpredictable rollercoaster.
The Chargers might think that a player at Position X will be long gone before they pick ... but what if they are still on the board when the Bolts are on the clock?
The honest truth is that potential positions of need can and likely will change based on what happens in the first few waves of free agency.
The only thing I can tell you for sure is that Hortiz and the Chargers won't be drafting a quarterback in Round 1 anytime soon.
There's no doubt that Philadelphia's defensive performance caught the attention of many around the league.
But I'd argue that Harbaugh and Chargers Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter were already well-aware of the importance of being stout in the trenches.
"We're going to earn our winning as a tough team, a resilient team, a relentless team, a physical team."
That's an exact quote from Harbaugh from his introductory press conference over a year ago. Those words still ring true to this day.
To me, both the edge rusher and the interior defensive line rooms will be fascinating to watch.
Does Khalil Mack return? I put that at the top of my key offseason questions last month and it still resides in the No. 1 spot. As mentioned above, there's also some intrigue around Bosa, too.
If Mack comes back, edge rusher is less of a need. If he goes to another team, that might be among the top priorities for the front office.
The Chargers defensive line surpassed a lot of external expectations in 2024 but three main players there — Poona Ford, Morgan Fox and Teair Tart — are all slated to be free agents next month.
The future of that position group will be determined by who stays and who goes once free agency starts. There's also a chance the Bolts add to that room in the draft as defensive tackle has been lauded as one of the deeper groups in the 2025 class.
My thought is that Loveland to the Chargers makes sense for multiple reasons.
Yeah, there's the Michigan connection. And while that surely helps, it won't be a dealbreaker.
But, as we covered above, tight end is a position of need simply because Dissly is the only player under contract for the 2025 season.
Now, maybe that changes with the likes of Stone Smartt, Tucker Fisk or Hayden Hurst returning to the Chargers.
Even so, I don't think I'm giving away any secrets in noting that the Chargers could use a young and dynamic receiving threat at tight end to pair with Justin Herbert.
The two draft analysts I respect the most are Daniel Jeremiah (NFL Network) and Dane Brugler (The Athletic).
Jeremiah currently has Loveland as his No. 7 overall prospect. Here is Jeremiah's blurb on him:
Loveland is a long, lean tight end with outstanding awareness, quickness and big-play ability. He has aligned in-line, as a wing and in the slot. He's urgent in his release. He has a tremendous feel for option routes and working in space. He can cleanly get in/out of breaks and he presents a big target to the quarterback. He attacks the ball in the air and is adept at finishing in crowds. After the catch, he has a smooth stride and possesses a nasty stiff-arm. He has some wiggle to make defenders miss, as well. His lack of bulk impacts his ability to stay connected as a run blocker, though. Overall, Loveland is equipped to make a lot of catches as a starting tight end in his rookie campaign.
Brugler, meanwhile, has Loveland at No. 11 overall on his Top 100 list. He wrote:
With his speed and ball skills, he can line up anywhere on the field and win as a QB-friendly, multi-level receiving threat. He has the most upside of any pass catcher in this draft class.
Those descriptions sound like a player the Chargers could use for Herbert in their offense.
Does that mean the Bolts will draft him? Of course not. There's a chance Loveland is gone by the 22nd pick anyway.
But in a deep tight end draft, it's worth noting that the Chargers could look at add at that spot somewhere in the draft.
Is it a possibility? Sure.
But I'm not sure how anyone can forecast a potential trade in February before the Combine has taken place, much less the first round of the draft.
Truth be told, I'm not sure the Chargers knew they would trade up with New England for the 34th pick last year until the deal actually went through. The Bolts had to see how the first round played out, which included their thought that Ladd McConkey was worth moving up for.
In other words, we won't know until late April if a trade up (or down) will materialize.
We'll end with this one from Mike.
Harbaugh actually gave an update on his health two weeks ago on The Dan Patrick Show.
All in all, it sounds like the Chargers Head Coach is doing well and ready for what could be an active offseason.
