The Los Angeles Chargers have started off free agency by letting moves passively happen. This, along with some intelligent signings. Both Austin Ekeler and Kenneth Murray were impending free agents and have signed to new teams. Fans believe that they fall in the category of addition by subtraction. Only time will tell, but as of the end of day one of free agency, it looks like the Chargers will be getting more production for a lower cost.
Who Did The Chargers Lose on Day One of Free Agency? – Addition By Subtraction
Washington Commanders Spend In Free Agency on a New Weapon – Austin Ekeler
The Washington Commanders went into free agency with the most cap space to spend. They were not quiet whatsoever, signing plenty of new exciting talent. During the course of their spending, they picked up former Chargers superstar, Austin Ekeler. The former undrafted free agent was signed a two-year deal worth up to $11.43 million.
This move was in correspondence with the loss of Antonio Gibson to the Patriots. The Chargers lose their aging rusher, the Commanders get their Gibson replacement.
The contract given to Ekeler is likely not to give the Chargers a compensatory selection in 2025, as the Chargers signed Gus Edwards in free agency. This has yet to be confirmed, but it is trending in that direction.
Ekeler had an amazing 2021 and 2022, but 2023 was a major regression from the highs he was once at. Some speculate it was due to injury. Before his injury, Ekeler had a strong week one performance. He recorded 117 yards on 16 carries. That performance was 18.5% of Ekeler’s total rushing yardage of the entire season. However, later in the season the team came out and said the injury was “a thing of the past“. Regression has likely hit what once was a fan favorite, rather than a nagging injury.
I once mentioned what is a silly stat, but a very telling one: “Oral-B Glide Pro-Health Deep Clean Floss contains 43.7 yards of floss. Austin Ekeler had only 8 games where he ran for more yardage. Four of those games were within 10 yards of the Oral-B Floss as well (Fun Fact inspired by @4vertz_ on X).”
That summarizes what the Commanders got themselves into. Hopefully reuniting Ekeler with former Chargers Head Coach and runningback specialist, Anthony Lynn, will lead Ekeler to have a much more successful season in 2024.
Tennessee Titans New Fiery Leader – Kenneth Murray
Shifting gears to the defense, The Los Angeles Chargers let former first-round selection, Kenneth Murray walk in free agency. After a promising rookie season, Kenneth Murray went in the opposite direction in Brandon Staley’s defense. Murray constantly struggled in coverage and did a very poor job processing offensive schemes. This led to Charger fans begging for a replacement while he was still rostered.
The Chargers never found anyone that could fully replace the snaps given to Murray. Positively, 2023 third-round selection, Daiyan Henley very well could be the successor to the low-level starter that Kenneth Murray was.
So, all of this to say, Murray’s market was much larger than what was thought by Chargers fans. This is a good thing for the Bolts, as they are very likely to get a compensatory selection in 2025 if they were not to sign anyone who cancels out his contract. They likely will not sign anyone with that type of price tag, as we all know their cap situation is still in the negatives.
The Contract Given & What the Titans Will Receive From “K9”
The Tennessee Titans saw a player who was a former first-round selection, who is coming off his best year since 2020 and decided to spend pretty big for the position. The contract given to Murray was a 2-year deal worth up to 18 million dollars. The Titans desperately needed help in the linebacker room. They have strong roleplayers with Jack Gibbens, Chance Campbell, and Luke Gifford. Regardless, all of those guys should not be day-one NFL starters. The Titans do not possess anyone with the same amount of starting experience and upside as who is referred to as “K9”.
Murray will give the Titans a linebacker with experience calling a defense as well as someone with the tools to become “the guy”. Though that has not happened during his time with the Chargers, he was a first-round selection for a reason. Murray is a very passionate leader and will likely be beloved by this Tennesee locker room, which is needed after a regime change. Best of luck, to who at times, earned his badass nickname of K9.
Day One Free Agency Conclusion – More Changes to be Made
The Chargers currently sit at -$25.974 million in cap space as of the time of writing. The Bolts need to be cap-compliant by 4 p.m. ET on March 13th. Los Angeles will be releasing more players in the coming days. The needle will be pushed the most by who we deem is the “big four”. This group consists of Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Joey Bosa, and Khalil Mack. It is worth noting that Allen is very likely to stay with the Chargers.
It will be a tough pill to swallow to see some of these impending guys during the free agency period, but it is a needed change. The Chargers, like all teams, will see turnover in the four tiers of players. Notable Starters, Role Players, Depth/Special Teams Guys, and The Back End of the roster type of players.
2024 free agency has so much more to come for all 32 NFL teams, and the Chargers have really yet to fully rip the band-aid off.
Main Photo: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
