After four seasons in Chicago, Khalil Mack is headed back to California. The Bears and Chargers are nearing a trade for the All-Pro edge defender, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. The sides have nearly completed this deal, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, adding that Mack’s contract will be adjusted.
The Chargers are set to send the Bears second- and sixth-round picks for the eight-year veteran edge player, Rapoport notes. The Bears will receive the Chargers’ 2022 second-round pick and their 2023 sixth. This will reunite Mack and Brandon Staley, who coached the Bears’ outside linebackers from 2017-18.
Mack is coming off an abbreviated season, but the former Raiders top-five pick and NFL Defensive Player of the Year is still regarded as one of the best pass-rushers in the game. Mack is set to team with Joey Bosa in Los Angeles. The Chargers rank in the top five in the NFL for cap space, giving them an easier path to absorbing Mack’s contract compared to most teams.
While this is a major move, it comes a year after the Raiders discussed reacquiring Mack from the Bears before the 2021 free-agency period. Chicago passed but saw Mack go down with a foot injury midway through last season. Mack underwent surgery and missed nine games. Prior to last season, however, the three-time All-Pro had never missed more than two games in a season.
The 2016 Defensive Player of the Year, Mack went to Chicago in 2018 for a monster haul. Chicago sent Oakland for a package headlined by two first-round picks. The Bears gave Mack a then-record $23.5M-per-year contract. Three seasons remain on that deal. Mack is set to earn $12.1M in base salary next season. The Bolts, however, now boast the most expensive pass-rushing duo in NFL history. They signed Bosa to a $27M-AAV extension last year. This move likely will send previous Bosa sidekick Uchenna Nwosu elsewhere; Nwosu is set to hit free agency next week. This is a luxury many teams could not afford, but the Bolts have Justin Herbert tied to a rookie deal until at least 2023.
Mack, 30, played a major role in lifting the Bears to the 2018 NFC North title. He collected his third All-Pro honor that year. He will head to Los Angeles with four double-digit sack seasons and six Pro Bowls on his resume. The Bears still have Robert Quinn, who broke Richard Dent’s franchise single-season sack record last season, under contract for 2022. This move will douse the Bears in dead money as well, saving them only $6M in cap space. Chicago will incur a $24M dead-money charge, part of that coming because the team restructured Mack’s deal in 2019 and in 2021.
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