The Chargers entered Wednesday needing to free up cap space ahead of the new league year. They did so by releasing Mike Williams, but edge rusher Khalil Mack remained in place via a restructure. Fellow defensive end Joey Bosa will take the latter route as well.
Bosa has agreed to a re-worked Chargers pact, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. As a result, his 2024 cap figure will be lowered and he will remain in place for at least one more season. The former third overall pick was one of four players set to count more than $32M against the cap in 2024, with a projected charge of $36.6M. Converting the maximum amount allowable of Bosa’s $15M base salary into a signing bonus would create $10.4M in savings.
Given the team’s financial situation leading into free agency, it was widely expected the Chargers would cut or trade at least one member of the quartet set to occupy a major portion of their cap space (the three aforementioned players and wideout Keenan Allen). Mack and Bosa were reported as the ones Los Angeles was most likely to move on from, and the team spoke with potential suitors to gauge their markets. Any deal would not have come at market value, of course, given the contract an acquiring team would have taken on. New general manager Joe Hortiz has thus elected to run back the Mack-Bosa tandem in 2024.
The latter was due a $7M roster bonus Friday, leading to urgency on Hortiz’s part to work out Bosa’s future despite the cap relief brought about by moving on from Williams and restructuring Mack. As The Athletic’s Daniel Popper reports, at least one team showed interest in trading for the four-time Pro Bowler. Rather than moving on with two years left on his contract, Los Angeles will keep him in place for a ninth season with the franchise.
Bosa has been limited to just 14 games over the past two seasons, so questions will be asked about his ability to remain healthy moving forward. The Ohio State alum has posted nine sacks in that span, after reaching double-digits four times earlier in his career. At age 28, however, he should be able to continue playing at a high level with better luck on the injury front. The Chargers’ defense would benefit substantially if that were to be the case.
Los Angeles entered Thursday in worse cap shape than any other team in the NFL, per Over the Cap. That situation will change given the move with Bosa, but it will be interesting to see if another cost-clearing move is made with an Allen restructure.
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