Grading Los Angeles Chargers moves (or non-moves) at trade deadline

Fans of the Los Angeles Chargers were calling for several different players, there were rumors abound and the trade deadline had been circled on many calendars. In the end, Joe Hortiz and the Chargers chose not to pull the trigger on a deal and will stick with the team as it is currently made up. 

The opportunity for a deal was there. The Chargers could have used another wide receiver to bolster that position. The Kansas City Chiefs (DeAndre Hopkins), Buffalo Bills (Amari Cooper), Baltimore Ravens (Diontae Johnson) and Pittsburgh Steelers (Mike Williams), all picked up a wide receiver before the deadline. The Chargers, who could have used one more than any of those teams, chose not to. 

That could have been for a variety of reasons. Perhaps they felt the asking price was too much. Perhaps they weren’t interested in the names that were out there. Or perhaps, the Dallas Cowboys trading a fourth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers for Jonathan Mingo priced the Chargers out of the market. 

Names like K.J. Osborn and Darius Slayton were out there, but a deal did not happen. The Steelers ended up giving away a fifth-round pick for former Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams, a player the Chargers were connected to as a reunion possibility. 

Jets trading WR Mike Williams to Steelers for 2025 5th-round pick. (via @RapSheet + @TomPelissero) pic.twitter.com/JC6e7SM0ef

— NFL (@NFL) November 5, 2024

Many Chargers fans may be asking why the Chargers couldn’t make that deal happen, but they just might not have had a huge amount of interest. Instead, the team will move forward with what it has. 

Chargers WR depth chart- 2024 stats

There were other players mentioned in connection to a possible trade with the Chargers. New Orleans Saints edge rusher Chase Young ended up staying put, as did Cleveland Browns cornerback Greg Newsome and tight end David Njoku. 

Tre’Davious White of the Los Angeles Rams did end up getting moved and the Baltimore Ravens got him at an affordable price. But in the end, Hortiz decided he didn’t want to part with any of the team’s future draft capital. 

Trade: Rams are sending CB Tre’Davious White and a 2027 7th-round pick to the Ravens for a 2026 7th-round pick, per sources.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 5, 2024

Chargers trade deadline grade

Many Chargers fans likely did some moaning and groaning over the fact that the team chose not to be a buyer at the deadline, but it’s hard to argue with what Hortiz and Jim Harbaugh have put in place. 

Despite a rather weak wide receiver group, Justin Herbert has played quite well and the team is winning. The Chargers would have the No. 6 spot in the AFC playoffs if the season ended today. There may have been an opportunity to add a piece now, but Hortiz chose not to tinker with things. 

There’s an old saying that says if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. It’s not broke. 

Grade: B

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