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By Ellis Williams
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The Los Angeles Chargers are becoming more willing to trade players as Tuesday’s NFL deadline approaches, a shift that could put veterans on expiring contracts in play.
NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported Tuesday that the Chargers had been more receptive to offers over the previous 24 hours, two days after a 44-22 loss to Houston dropped them to 0-8.
General manager Joe Hortiz has until 4 p.m. ET to complete a deal, although Schultz cautioned that a trade involving star pass rusher Khalil Mack remains a long shot.
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“Khalil Mack is still considered a long shot,” Schultz wrote, “but other expiring contract players are available if the offer makes sense.”
Coach Jim Harbaugh had left room for moves that help beyond this season when discussing Hortiz’s approach on Monday. Asked about trading players for future picks, he described a general manager willing to consider both immediate and longer-term benefits.
“If something makes sense that will make our team better, now or in the future,” Harbaugh said, “Joe Hortiz is going to be open and active in pursuing that.”
That approach faces a much different backdrop than the one the Chargers envisioned entering the season. Los Angeles remains the NFL’s only winless team, and Sunday’s loss to the Texans exposed problems on both sides of the ball.
The Chargers allowed season highs of 485 yards and 44 points. During a decisive stretch, six consecutive Los Angeles possessions ended without points, while Houston scored 28. The Chargers had been within one point with just over five minutes left in the second quarter before the game slipped away.
Mack’s contract makes his situation particularly notable. The 35-year-old returned on a one-year, $18 million agreement reported by The Associated Press in March. The former Defensive Player of the Year had made nine Pro Bowls entering this season, including three during his first four years with the Chargers.
His experience gives Los Angeles a reason to value keeping him even as teams assess potential deadline additions. Schultz’s update stops short of saying the Chargers have changed their position enough to make a Mack deal likely.
Hortiz must now weigh any draft compensation against what the Chargers would lose for the rest of the season. The team travels to Baltimore for Monday Night Football next, but first must decide whether the offers it receives justify changing the roster.
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