13. LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (7-9)
LAST SEASON: The Chargers found their franchise quarterback with Justin Herbert setting rookie records for touchdowns and 300-yard games. Injuries on the offensive line and in the secondary played major roles in their squandering double-digit leads in four losses, and seven defeats came by eight points or less. Los Angeles won four straight to end 2020, but it wasn’t enough to save coach Anthony Lynn’s job.
FREE AGENCY: Lost TE Hunter Henry, C Dan Feeney, OT Sam Tevi, G Forrest Lamp, QB Tyrod Taylor, S Rayshawn Jenkins, LBs Denzel Perryman and Nick Vigil. Released CB Casey Hayward and OG Trai Turner. Signed C Corey Linsley, Gs Matt Feiler and Oday Aboushi, TE Jared Cook, QB Chase Daniel, LB Kyle Fackrell, CB Ryan Smith. Re-signed CB Michael Davis.
THEY NEED: OT, TE, WR, LB, CB, S.
THEY DON’T NEED: QB, RB, DE.
POSSIBLE FIRST PICK: Northwestern OT Rashawn Slater, Oregon OT Penei Sewell, Virginia Tech OT Christian Darrisaw, Alabama WR Jaylen Waddle, South Carolina CB Jaycee Horn.
OUTLOOK: GM Tom Telesco is on his third coach with Brandon Staley. Even though Telesco has done a good job selecting skill position players, he has missed badly on the offensive line. If Herbert is to continue to make progress, he needs better protection up front. With LA’s defense switching to a 3-4 base scheme, there must be upgrades at linebacker, which has been lacking depth the past couple seasons.
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